The grasshopper is a creamy drink made from bright green creme de Menthe, and equal parts creme de cacao Blanc and cream, shaken with ice but not served with ice. It was then adapted by someone who took an evangelical leap of faith, into a tasty, moussey pie with a crunchy chocolate biscuit crumb, straight from the 70s like the prawn cocktail.
Perhaps this isn't what springs to mind when someone says Christmas dessert, but that's certainly not the case in the States and has particular Christmas legitimacy for me because for years our favourite seasonal dessert has been a Viennetta, plucked from the freezer, and this tastes just like it in a tart medium with the most mystifying texture. The best way I've read it described is by Nigella Lawson who says its mouthfeel is like that of ice cream that has not been frozen but is still set. There wouldn't be a single Christmas menu I'd want to rule it out from.
A note on ingredients, Creme de Menthe is quite easy to find, it should be in most supermarkets, but Creme De Cacao Blanc (white chocolate liqueur) is not so plentiful. I found regular brown Creme de cacao (make sure it's translucent not creamy) and it just darkened the green slightly, making a nice jade colour. If you want you can add green colour to intensify it, but then it risks looking garish so proceed with a steady wrist and as usual, go for a thick emerald paste food colouring, not a bottled green poison. If you don't want to use alcohol, you can use about a tsp each of good quality peppermint extract and vanilla, and up the quantity of milk to make up the liquid. But this is not the same.
- This, technically is part 1 if the dinner, as it needs to be prepared on Christmas Eve, or even further ahead if that made your life easier.
1)Prepare the buttery biscuit base- I never fail to be amazed by how such a crumbly biscuit base can hold its shape as well as pastry, but nevertheless this one works. Blitz 300g double chocolate chip cookies, such as the marylands that come in a purple packet. If you really like it, throw 50g desicatted coconut in as I did the first time I made this. Gradually blitz in about 4 tbsp melted or very soft butter until it looks like fine compost, then press it into a deep 25cm loose based flan tin, using the back of a spoon and your fingers to get up the corners and sides. Alternatively, bash it all in a freezer bag and mix it in a bowl. Leave in the fridge whilst you prepare the filling.
2) In a small saucepan, heat 125ml milk until just before boiling then lower the heat and add 200g preferably white marshmallows and stir until fully blended and melted. Be patient here, they must melt completely but not boil. Allow this to cool- you can speed this up by plunging it into a bowl of iced water; I sympathise with your impatience highly.
3)Stir in two small shots of creme de Menthe and 1 of creme de cacao (you can vary the ratios to suit how alcoholic you want it) and whisk it in. In the meantime whip 300ml double cream until it's softly whipped; don't have it stiff as it won't mix smoothly into the marshmallow mixture. Whisk the cooled marshmallow mixture and cream together until you have a cohesive, vibrant mixture. At this point you can dye it. Pour this gently into the biscuit lined tin and allow it to set in the fridge overnight or at least half a day.
4)For a final decoration on Christmas day, pipe rounds of whipped cream (stiffly whipped here) on the pie and give everything a dirty snow dusting of grated dark chocolate or a crumbled biscuit. If you wanted to be ever so cruel but genius, buy some chocolate covered grasshoppers online and place them sinisterly on the pale surface. I have to say I haven't taken the insect part that far.
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