Lesley's Lemon & Limoncello Mousse

I have been eyeing Lesley Orr’s Lemon and Limoncello Mousse for a while and thought it would be ideal for a ladies’ supper party last week and then I made it again a few days ago as a refreshing end to a rather rich lamb curry.

Lesley is married to my cousin Robert. She is a superb chef, trained at the Cordon Blue School in the UK. She did a stint in restaurants, taught at Winkfield Place and Prue Leith. In South Africa she and Robert started The Bay Tree restaurant in Johannesburg, before they returned to the UK. They now own a beautiful B&B on the Somerset/Devon border and here Lesley also gives regular cookery demonstrations. (Highly recommended if you are in that area or visiting the UK. www.causwaycottage.co.uk)

I love Lesley’s recipes. They are thoroughly all tried and tested. Her food is uncomplicated and delicious.

As the autumn days come along citrus fruit takes over from the summer stone fruit and the lemon and lime harvest increases. My repertoire of desserts becomes fairly citrus focused.

Since the severe droughts in the Cape our lemon trees have thrived. I’m not sure if they are coincidentally reaching maturity or whether they are reacting to less pampering and water. We have had a constant supply of lemons for about 24 months.

We also have a rather large stash of homemade Limoncello (recipe here) in the cellar.

What I love about this recipe…..

It does not contain gelatine, so the mousse is super light & creamy

Another attraction to this recipe is that it has a relatively small percentage of sugar and cream, and it is gluten free, catering for my gluten intolerant niece! So I feel that it also ticks the ‘healthier eating’ boxes.

The custard base is easy to make and is ideally made a day ahead.