Fruit puree
Fruit blended until smooth and often strained, used to add natural flavor and color to mousses, sorbets, fruit jellies, curds, fillings and frostings.
- Baking ingredients and additives
Pastry kitchens often buy frozen purées, which taste the same year-round and may contain a little added sugar, so check before adjusting a recipe. Homemade purée is easy: blend ripe fruit and press it through a fine sieve to remove seeds and fibers.
For buttercream or cake batter, simmering a purée to reduce it concentrates the flavor without adding too much water. Some raw fruits, including pineapple, kiwi and papaya, contain enzymes that stop gelatin from setting, so their purées must be heated before going into a gelatin dessert.