Chocolate mousseline
SERVES 8-10
We infuse our chocolate mousseline with vanilla vodka and pipe it
into chilled pot de crème pots. When ready to serve, we add a dollop
of whipped cream and a dusting of cocoa powder.
250 ml (1 cup) pouring cream
225 gm dark chocolate
(at least 70% cocoa solids),
finely chopped
½ tsp cocoa powder,
plus extra for dusting
225 gm unsalted butter, diced
and at room temperature
1 tbsp vanilla vodka (see
note) or orange liqueur
5 large egg yolks
100 gm vanilla sugar (see note),
plus 1 tsp extra
3 large eggwhites
1 Whisk the cream in a bowl
until it holds soft peaks. Cover
and refrigerate until needed.
2 Place the chocolate in a
heatproof bowl. Set the bowl
over a saucepan of barely
simmering water (don’t let the
bottom of the bowl touch the
water) and melt the chocolate,
stirring with a rubber spatula,
until completely smooth.
Remove from heat; reserve
the barely simmering water.
Sift the cocoa powder over
the chocolate mixture, then
slowly add the butter, stirring
with a rubber spatula until
completely smooth. Stir in
the vanilla vodka.
3 In another heatproof bowl,
whisk the egg yolks, vanilla
sugar and ⅛ tsp salt until thick
and pale yellow. Place the
bowl over the pan of barely
simmering water and whisk
until the mixture is thick and the
sugar has completely dissolved
(3-4 minutes). Remove from
the heat, then transfer to a
large bowl, being careful not
to include any cooked egg or
solid pieces that may be stuck
on the sides of the bowl.4 In a clean, preferably copper
bowl, whisk the eggwhite with
1 tsp extra vanilla sugar until
it holds soft peaks.
5 Slowly add the chocolate
mixture to the egg yolk mixture
and stir until well combined.
Keep ½ cup chilled whipped
cream refrigerated until ready to
serve, and gently fold the rest
into the chocolate mixture. Add
a large spoonful of eggwhite to
the chocolate mixture and gently
fold to lighten it, then add the
remaining eggwhite and fold just
until there are no streaks left.
Cover and refrigerate until set
(at least 1 hour).
6 To serve, transfer mousse to
a piping bag with a large round
tip and pipe into chilled pot de
crème pots or small ramekins.
Top with a dollop of whipped
cream and dust with cocoa.Note When we use vanilla
beans, we prefer to use whole
beans and keep them stored
in a jar filled with vodka. The
vodka softens the beans, and
the alcohol helps to preserve
them. The vanilla-infused vodka
can be used in place of vanilla
extract. For vanilla sugar, after
using a vanilla bean (if it hasn’t
been steeped in milk or another
liquid), we let the pod dry out
by leaving it in an open jar
for a few days before adding
it to a jar of white sugar. As we
continue to add dried vanilla
pods to the sugar it becomes
infused with vanilla flavour,
creating vanilla sugar. ●