What dessert is called a floating island?

A floating island, also known as Ile Flottante, is a classic French dessert made with meringue floating on a cream Anglaise.

What is floating island in French?

A floating island is translated as Œufs à la neige in French, meaning "eggs in snow."

Who invented floating island?

A floating island was invented by the great cook Auguste Escoffier at the end of the 19th century. However, the dessert wasn't made with the meringue; it was based on Savoy biscuit, apricot jam, whipped cream, and custard.

Can floating islands be made in advance?

Make creme Anglaise two days in advance and keep it in the fridge, but bake the meringue 1-2 hours in advance or 3 hours at maximum. Assemble the dessert on the day of serving.

Best Floating Island Dessert Recipe

Name: Floating Island Dessert
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 1/3 cup + 1 teaspoon (80 g) caster sugar; 2/3 cup + 1 tablespoon (180 g) egg whites (see note #1); 2 cups + 2 tablespoons ( 500 ml) whole milk; 6 large egg yolks; 1/3 cup (75 g) granulated sugar; 1 vanilla bean or 1 sachet of vanilla sugar; 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons (100 g) granulated sugar; 5 teaspoons (25 g) water; 7 oz. (200 g) roasted hazelnuts; 2 teaspoons (10 g) unsalted butter; 1 small pinch of salt

Floating Island Dessert

Meringue sphere covered with caramelized hazelnuts on crème Anglaise with the rest of the dessert

Print Recipe

★★★★★

5 from 6 reviews

Finish your dinner in style with this easy-to-make floating island dessert. It is a foaming meringue sphere floating on a crème Anglaise and sprinkled with caramelized hazelnuts. The dessert is a French classic worth making!

Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: 6 1x
Category: Gluten-free
Method: Baking
Cuisine: French
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

Scale

For meringue:

1/3 cup + 1 teaspoon (80 g) caster sugar
2/3 cup + 1 tablespoon (180 g) egg whites (see note #1)

For crème Anglaise:

2 cups + 2 tablespoons ( 500 ml) whole milk
6 large egg yolks
1/3 cup (75 g) granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean or 1 sachet of vanilla sugar

For caramelized nuts:

1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons (100 g) granulated sugar
5 teaspoons (25 g) water
7 oz. (200 g) roasted hazelnuts
2 teaspoons (10 g) unsalted butter
1 small pinch of salt

* If needed, please refer to Baking Conversion Charts.

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

To make crème Anglaise, split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds. Mix egg yolks with vanilla seeds (or vanilla sugar) and sugar using a hand whisk. Place milk in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Pour the hot milk into the egg yolk mixture, stirring constantly.
Bring everything into the saucepan back and cook over low to medium heat for about 7 to 10 minutes, stirring and tracing "8" with a wooden spatula. Stop cooking just before boiling (using a cooking thermometer, check the temperature that has to be between 179-183 F/82-84 C). Please don't exceed the custard's temperature of 185 F/85 C!
Pass it through a fine-mesh sieve or chinois strainer into another bowl set over a larger container with ice cubes so that the cooking stops. Cover with plastic film in contact and refrigerate until serving.
Preheat the oven to 355 F/180 C. To make the meringue, using a stand or electric mixer, beat egg whites at moderate speed, then increase the speed and continue until soft peaks are formed. Gradually add the caster sugar and whisk to get the glossy meringue with stiff peaks.
Using a brush, lightly oil the cavities of the half-sphere molds. With a pastry bag fitted with Ateco plain pastry tip 809 or simply with a spoon, place the meringue into half-spheres and even top with a bent spatula. Bake for 3 minutes on the middle rack of the oven (no baking sheet is required).
Remove the mold from the oven, and let it stand for a few minutes. Turn out the mold onto parchment paper and slightly press each half-sphere to release the baked meringue. Refrigerate until ready to assemble.
To caramelize nuts, roast hazelnuts at 355 F/180 C for 12 minutes. Place water and sugar in a saucepan and cook till the temperature is 239 F/115 C. Add the toasted nuts and caramelize them while constantly stirring with a spatula. At first, hazelnuts will be covered with the sugar syrup; then, they will get coated with sugar. Finally, the sugar will start melting and caramelizing, coating the nuts. At this point, add butter and salt, stirring constantly.
Transfer caramelized hazelnuts to parchment paper and let cool. Crush lightly using a food processor and keep in an airtight plastic box.
To serve the dessert, assemble two half-spheres, and roll them into crushed caramelized nuts. Pour crème Anglaise into a serving plate and arrange a meringue sphere over the custard sauce. Sprinkle crushed hazelnuts over crème Anglaise if desired.

Notes

180 g egg whites, approximately equal to 5 1/2 raw fresh egg whites from large-sized chicken eggs.
While making crème Anglaise, make sure to stir the custard evenly with a wooden spatula. Do not let the custard boil! Once the white foam has disappeared and the custard coats the back of a spatula well and holds a trace while drawing your finger across it, crème Anglaise is ready. Use this test if you do not have a cooking thermometer.
To prevent crème Anglaise from overcooking, use a container with ice cubes or a cold water bath to cool the custard as quickly as possible.
If the custard has boiled and got overcooked (the eggs coagulate and form lumps), strain it through a fine-mesh sieve and give it a few mixer strokes to remove all the lumps. Your custard will become smooth again.
Use grapeseed oil or vegetable oil to brush silicone half-spheres before baking.
Make-ahead option: make crème Anglaise, cover with plastic in contact, and store in the fridge for up to 2 days. Make caramelized nuts and keep them in an airtight container. Bake meringue half-spheres, turn them on parchment and store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 hours.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 meringue sphere
Calories: 501
Sugar: 48.7 g
Sodium: 82 mg
Fat: 28.9 g
Saturated Fat: 5.6 g
Carbohydrates: 52.7 g
Fiber: 3.2 g
Protein: 13.7 g
Cholesterol: 222 mg

Keywords: floating island dessert, floating island, floating island recipe

Find it online: https://www.bakinglikeachef.com/ile-flottante-christophe-michalak/