Tropical fruit soup

Tropical fruit soup

Photograph by James Carrier

SERVES 4
TIME About 1 1/4 hours, plus 2 hours to chill

Ingredients
1 cinnamon stick (2 in.)
1 star anise
8 whole cloves
8 black peppercorns
2 stalks (about 2 oz.) fresh lemon grass
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tbsp. grated orange peel
4 thin, quarter-size slices peeled fresh ginger
1 piece vanilla bean (2 in.)
1 tbsp. rum
1 large egg white
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded dried coconut
About 2 cups fruit*
1 pint coconut or tropical fruit sorbet
Mint sprigs, rinsed

Directions
1. Put cinnamon, star anise, cloves, and peppercorns in a heavy plastic food bag; coarsely crush with a rolling pin.

2. Trim and discard root ends and coarse outer leaves from lemon grass. Chop tender white part of stalks.

3. In a 1- to 1 1/2-qt. pan over high heat, combine 2 cups water, crushed spices, lemon grass, 2/3 cup sugar, orange peel, and ginger. Slit vanilla bean lengthwise; scrape seeds into pan and add pod. Bring to a boil, remove from heat, cover, and let stand at least 1 hour.

4. Pour spice syrup through a fine strainer into a bowl; discard residue. Add rum, cover, and chill until cold, at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

5. Meanwhile, in a bowl with a mixer on high speed, whip egg white until it holds soft peaks. Gradually add remaining 1/3 cup sugar, and continue to beat until white holds distinct peaks. Fold in coconut.

6. Line a 12- by 15-in. baking sheet with cooking paper or parchment. With a narrow spatula, spread egg white mixture in a 10- by 13-in. rectangle.

7. Bake in a 350° oven until meringue is deep golden brown, about 10 minutes. Let cool on sheet to room temperature. Gently pull off paper, then break meringue into 4 or 8 equal pieces.

8. Spoon fruit equally into wide soup bowls and fill equally with spice syrup. Scoop sorbet into balls and add equally to bowls; insert meringue pieces into sorbet, and garnish with mint sprigs.

* Use a combination of 3 or more kinds: peeled and diced pineapple, mango, papaya, kiwi, or banana; fresh or canned litchis; sliced kumquats or strawberries; passion fruit pulp; orange segments.

PER SERVING 438 cal., 15% (66 cal.) from fat;3 g protein; 7.3 g fat (5.7 g sat.); 93 g carbo (1.4 g fiber); 64 mg sodium; 4.8 mg chol.

Serve with 2009 Cimarron "Monsoon Red", Cochise County