Leaf gelatine

Gélatine en feuilles

What it is

Sheets are graded in Bloom, the force needed to press a plunger into a standard gel, named for Oscar T. Bloom, who patented the gelometer that measures it in 1925. The clever part of the leaf format is that the grades are cut to different weights — a platinum sheet is lighter than a bronze one — so that one sheet sets the same volume whichever box you open.

In the kitchen

Soak five to ten minutes in plenty of cold water, squeeze hard, and dissolve into liquid that is warm rather than boiling: past about 85 °C the strands break down and the set weakens. Raw pineapple, kiwi, papaya, fig and ginger carry proteases that digest it completely — scald the fruit a minute first, or use it cooked.

Goes with

Cream Vanilla Raspberry Dark chocolate White sugar Egg Redcurrant

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