Monday, June 3, 2013

Chocolate Mousse (Eggless)

My mom asked me the other day how I choose which recipe to make when I decide to bake/cook.

I replied surprisingly cogently, given the long time it sometimes takes me to pick the perfect recipe to try. Since I'm not home in a well-stocked, well-equipped kitchen that often anymore, it's a treat, and one I try to use to its fullest.


But I told her there are basically two kinds of recipes I like to make: experiments and old standbys. Sure, there's crossover. A new variation on a oatmeal raisin cookie is not that much of an experiment, but it's a recipe I've never used before. But generally I either try a crazy layer cake that takes hours to make or something like learning how to temper chocolate, or make these chocolate chip cookies which never fail to make people happy.

An empty cup, and a full tummy!
The former are often things on my bucket list. And so we perch on the edge of discovery with this recipe for chocolate mousse, a fancy, rich dessert I have really only ever eaten at a restaurant. It's an experiment. Even more so for the recipe's lack of eggs, a usual backbone ingredient in mousse.

But this recipe toed the line while I was making it. A short list of ingredients and easy instructions made me feel like I had already made the recipe--it was comfortable.

The kitchen counter--a knife and cutting board for my Dad's incredible bread, the newspaper clipping with this recipe, and a cup of coffee from needing a couple of tablespoons for this recipe
After making it once, I have firmly decided it falls in the "old standby" category. Yes, I'll make this for friends when they come over, with no sweat. Heck, we can make it together. (Stay tuned for another recipe in this category soon!)


A couple of other notes on this recipe:
It's excellent food for recovering wisdom tooth patients (me).
It makes a mess of the kitchen, requiring many bowls, but really takes hardly any time since there's no cooking involved.
It looks adorable in teacups, though you could also use ramekins if you have them.

Chocolate Mousse
Yield: 6

Ingredients:

  • 7 oz chocolate, chopped (as good quality as possible, and dark is good but not more than 62% cacao)
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • pinch kosher salt
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons prepared coffee
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup heavy cream, cold
Method:
  1. Finely grind chocolate in food processor.
  2. Bring milk, sugar, and salt to a simmer in small saucepan, stirring to dissolve. Start food processor and slowly drizzle in milk to melt chocolate. Process until smooth, about 10 seconds.
  3. Add oil, vanilla, and coffee, then process again to combine. Pour mixture into large bowl to cool for about 10 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile, beat cream with an electric mixer (handheld was my choice, to make less cleanup) to soft peaks.
  5. Fold 1/3 of cream into chocolate mixture, then gently fold in the rest, just to combine. It'll look like this...          

          Then it'll look like this...

Love ya!
     6.  Scoop into pretty glasses, ramekins, or teacups. Refrigerate for 1.5 hours, serve and enjoy.
          (Optional: sprinkle with a pinch of fleur de sel or bit of ground pepper before serving)

Recipe courtesy of the Wall Street Journal.

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