To: Nina Cerbo
Cc: Pat Cerbo
Sent: Tue, October 26, 2010 7:10:15 PM
Subject: Recipes for Top Secret Chocolate Mousse and Gougeres (Cheesy Puffs)
These two recipes were in this week's Providence Journal and sound yummy...taken from a cookbook that is right up my alley -- long, because the author "takes painstaking care to be exact and leaves little room for misinterpretation!" But her goal is to make french cooking "approachable," and the mousse sounds easy. |
Recipe: Top-Secret Chocolate Mousse
3 1/2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
Whipped cream or crème fraîche, for serving (optional)
Gently melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water or in a microwave oven on medium power.
If necessary, transfer the chocolate to a bowl that can hold all the ingredients. Using a whisk, stir the egg yolks into the chocolate one at a time.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or in a bowl with a hand mixer, beat the egg whites with the salt until they start to form peaks. Beating all the while, gradually add the sugar. Continue to beat until the whites are shiny and hold medium-firm peaks.
Spoon about one quarter of the whites over the melted chocolate and stir with the whisk until the mixture is almost smooth. (Stirring in a bit of the whites lightens the chocolate and makes the next step easier.) Spoon the rest of the whites over the chocolate and, using the whisk or a large rubber spatula, very carefully fold them in. Be as thorough as you can without overworking the mixture—it’s better to have a few white streaks than to beat the bubbles out of the mousse by over mixing.
Spoon the mousse into a serving bowl or individual bowls and serve it now, or cover it and keep it in the refrigerator until you’re ready for dessert. Serve with whipped cream or crème fraîche.
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