Chocolate Mousse and Caviar

copyright bill mccaffery, all rights reserved

Valentine’s dinner. 

I just had to share with you a perfectly decadent dessert that would be perfectly decadent for Valentine’s day. Whether serving an entire dinner or just wanting to indulge in sweet, this mousse is what I remember Chocolate mousse to be. Thick, pillowy, bitter-sweet and other worldly.

If you wanted to have one dish before this mousse, I recommend a lavish one dish…

Caviar and Pasta. The pasta must be fresh. The caviar, black, Sevruga. One heaping teaspoon of caviar to three ounces of pasta.

Recipe: Caviar and Pasta

Glorious Food cookbook

 Serves 2

6 to 8 ounces fresh fettuccine ( the caviar hugs the flat fettucine nicely)

4 ounces clarified butter

grated zest of 1 lemon

7 ounces fresh Sevruga caviar

In a 5-quart pot, cook the pasta in unsalted water until al dente. Fresh pasta cooks much faster than dried. It’s good to have everything ready to go. Never, ever rinse pasta.

Drain the pasta in a colander and return to the pot. Toss with the butter and lemon zest.

Place a portion of pasta in the middle of a warm plate and nest the caviar in the center.

Chocolate Mousse with Whipped Cream recipe: tastingtable.com

Serves 6

3 hours for refrigeration

6 ounces semisweet chocolate

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 eggs separated

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided

salt

2 ½ cups heavy cream, divided

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract, divided

1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

Cacao nibs or mini chocolate chips

Melt the chocolates and butter in a medium bowl over a pot of simmering water. Stir until melted. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a medium bowl, with a hand mixer, whisk together the egg yolks, brown sugar and ¼ cup of granulated sugar until pale and frothy, 5 to 7 minutes. Fold into the melted chocolate mixture, a little bit at first.

In a medium bowl, with a hand mixer or standing mixer, whisk together the egg whites with the remaining 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar and a pinch of salt until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes. Fold the egg whites into the melted chocolate mixture.

In a separate medium bowl, use a hand mixer to whisk 1 cup of heavy cream and 1 teaspoon vanilla until stiff peaks form. Fold the whipped cream into the melted chocolate mixture until there are no white streaks. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 3 hours and up to overnight.

In a medium bowl, whisk the remaining 1½ cups heavy with the confectioners’ sugar, and the remaining ½ teaspoon vanilla. Continue whisking until soft peaks form.

Remove the chilled mousse and using an ice-cream scoop to form balls of chocolate mousse, place in individual dessert  dishes. Top with whipped cream and garnish with chocolate nibs.

Happy Indulgences!

As Always,

xxoo Sheila