After my successful last stint at baking a fancy shmancy cake, I was all encouraged to bake another one for the hubby. I had it all planned out, until, he said – No cake.“What! But it’s your birthday”, I protested!And then he (not so) gently reminded me of the weighing scale. Yeah, that witch-of-a-gadget! Damn you, scale!
The main issue with baking a cake is what do you do with the rest of it, after eating a piece (or two or three)? I would love to take baking lessons and I’ve given it a thought in the past…but then…who is going to finish all that cake?
But a birthday is a birthday is a birthday…and what good is a celebration without some dessert? Right? So I decided I’ll make a dessert that’s pre-portioned and won’t have to sit in the fridge and tempt us for days to come. :)
Instantly, Chocolate Mousse came to mind – that creamy, delicious, chocolatey goodness, that is.
Here is how I made it –
Ingredients:
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate (I tend to use Ghirardelli dark, simply because I love it)
2tbsp unsalted butter
Expresso coffee (2 tbsp/ to liking)
2 cups cold heavy cream
3 eggs
1 tbsp sugar
Raspberries
Mint leaves
The recipe:
* Separate the egg whites and the yolk.
* Heat 3/4 cup cream in a 1-quart heavy saucepan until hot. Whisk together yolks, sugar, and a pinch of salt in a metal bowl until combined well.
* Melt the chocolate in the microwave. Take it out every 15-20 seconds, depending on the strength of your microwave and give it a stir.
* Add butter and coffee to the chocolate and repeat till smooth.
* Add chocolate to the cream and stir frequently.
* Beat egg whites with sugar till they are foamy.
* Fold in egg whites in the chocolate-cream mixture.
* Beat remaining 1 1/4 cups cream in a bowl with an electric mixer until it just holds stiff peaks. Fold in gently.
* Let it cool down completely.
* Spoon mousse into your choice of stemmed glasses and chill. I used a variety of white wine and martini glasses.
* Refrigerate for 3-4 hours.
Making dessert never got so easy!
Garnish with whipped cream, mint leaves and raspberries and you have a winner!
Chocolate mousse is great for entertaining. You can make it ahead of time and it looks super cute!
