Smoked Earl Grey and berry marshmallows

For the smoked Earl Grey tea, place the rice, brown sugar and tea leaves in a 20cm baking tray that is lined with foil. Secure a wire rack over the tray and carefully place the bowl with the liquid tea on top. Cover the tray completely with foil and slowly warm over medium heat, 10 – 15 minutes. Carefully remove from heat and set the tea aside, covered, to infuse until needed.

Line a 20cm x 20cm x 10cm-deep baking tin with baking paper and dust thoroughly with icing sugar and cornflour.

For the marshmallows, place the sugar, glucose and water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer until it reaches 127°C on a sugar thermometer. In the meantime, sprinkle the gelatine powder into 100ml of the smoked Earl Grey tea and stir until fully dissolved.

When the syrup reaches the correct temperature, remove from the heat. Pour the tea with gelatine into the syrup and carefully stir to combine.

Using a free-standing mixer, whisk the egg whites in a large mixing bowl until stiff peaks form. Still whisking, slowly add the syrup mixture to the eggs (do not pour the syrup directly onto the beaters, as it may splash). Whisk until the mixture is thick, shiny and holding its shape, about 30 minutes.

For the berry sauce, heat all of the ingredients, including 30ml (2 tbsp) of the smoked Earl Grey tea, in a saucepan over medium heat until the berries start to lose their shape. Mash the berries a little and set aside to cool completely.

Once you’ve finished whisking the marshmallow mixture, fold the berry sauce gently through the marshmallow mixture to create a rippled effect. Leave some sauce aside.

Spoon the marshmallow mixture into the pan, top with the remaining berry sauce and allow to set, about 2 hours.

Slice up the marshmallow and dust thoroughly with icing sugar and cornflour.