Recipe:
Dessert: Chocolate Mousse
Serves 8, adapted from
The Silver Palate Cookbook
1 ½ pounds semisweet chocolate chips
½ cup prepared strong black coffee –
espresso is best
½ cup Grand Marnier (or other flavored liqueur
of your choosing)
4 egg, separated plus 4 additional egg whites
2 cups cold heavy cream
¼ cup sugar
pinch of salt
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
shaved white or dark chocolate (or a combination
of both!) for garnish (optional)
Melt chocolate in a heavy
saucepan over very low heat, stirring; stir
in coffee until combined. Stir in Grand
Marnier until combined. Let cool to room
temperature.
When cooled, add egg yolks,
one at a time, beating thoroughly after
each.
Whip half (1 cup) of the cream
until thickened, then gradually beat in
sugar. Continue to whip until cream is stiff.
Beat all 8 egg whites with a pinch of salt
until stiff peaks form. Gently fold egg
whites into cream.
Stir about 1/3 of cream mixture
into chocolate, stirring thoroughly until
well-combined. Then add remaining cream
mixture to chocolate and fold together gently.
Pour into 8 individual bowls or a serving
dish. Refrigerate for at least two hours.
When ready to serve, whip
remaining 1 cup of cream until thickened.
Add vanilla and whip until soft peaks form.
Top each individual dish with a dollop of
cream, or serve alongside in a separate
serving bowl. Garnish with shaved chocolate
if desired.
Although there is some "controversy"
over just how well chocolate and red wine
really match up, we like it. Which is all
the reason we need, frankly. We particularly
like California
Cabernets and Zinfandels
with our chocolate – something about
the rich red cherry that dominates so many
of these wines just works beautifully with
chocolate. To be sure, the darker and more
bittersweet the chocolate, the better it
works with red wine. The more a dessert
is milk chocolaty, creamy, or light, the
more it will tend to make the wine taste
bitter and bone dry. The other obvious choice
here is Port.
from Party Planning, february
2003
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