Dark Delights
For his last night in Stirling before starting his new job, I cooked John a dark, dark dinner.
We had venison stew, this time made with red wine, mushrooms and truffle oil, roast potatoes and deep purple braised cabbage followed by chocolate & coffee mousse.
Dark Chocolate & Coffee Mousse
With this recipe, I probably fretted a bit much. I’m never very good with sweets, although I have made chocolate mousse before. However, that was over a year ago and cooking in a restaurant kitchen is completely different; with all the experienced chefs around to whom this isn’t a big deal, you just get on with it:
140g dark Belgian chocolate, chopped; 3 eggs; 2tsp vanilla sugar; 150 ml double cream; 2 tsp coffee; good splash brandy or Cointreau
Prepare 3 large and 1 smaller bowls, a pot with gently simmering water over which two of the bowls fit and dissolve the coffee in a little hot water.
Separate the eggs and whisk the whites in a fat-free bowl until very stiff. Keep in fridge.
Add the sugar to the yolks and whisk until very pale, set bowl over the pot of simmering water and continue whisking until just hand-warm.
Whisk the cream in a smaller bowl and try not to churn it (I did, but it still worked).
Put 2/3 of the chocolate chunks into the other large bowl and set over the steam. Leave without disturbing for 3 min, then stir gently. If completely melted, take bowl off the heat and stir in the remaining chocolate chunks (this ‘tempers’ the chocolate. If all is well, it should not curdle and remain pliable enough for decorating etc. We just did this routinely.)
Gradually stir the yolk into the chocolate, then the coffee and booze. Fold in the cream, then the eggwhites.
Pour mixture into ramekins or glasses and set in fridge. Voilà!
The cream makes this mousse a little lighter, in fact. If you want it really dark, omit it and stir 75g melted butter into the chocolate mixture instead.
This dessert can be made well in advance, and perhaps should be. After licking out the bowl, I was so full that I could hardly eat dinner.
Tags: 'Round the World Recipes, Tag Index
Denni