We
must apologise. Lynne always tests a recipe before publishing it and that is
what we should have done this week. The chocolate Mousse cake is indeed a
wonderful rich delight but there were a couple of problems with the recipe we
printed, which Lynne discovered when she made it on Saturday..
Sugar
was in the ingredient list, but nowhere in the recipe was it mentioned. You add
it with the ground almonds
The
chocolate we used was very dark and had almost no sugar. When Lynne made the
mousse, she realised that it was too bitter and dry without the addition of a
little sugar, so if you make the mousse, do taste it and, if it needs it, add a
small amount - to your own taste - of icing sugar when adding the eggs. Also,
chocolate should not ever be melted without some liquid or it can seize. So she
has adapted the recipe slightly to prevent this and allow you to make a lighter
mousse. Here is the revised recipe
Chocolate
Mousse Cake Revised
125g
dark bitter chocolate – 100g butter – 100g caster sugar – 15ml rum or brandy -
15ml strong black coffee -100g ground almonds – 3 eggs, separated
Break
up the chocolate into a glass bowl, add the butter, rum or brandy and the
coffee and heat gently in the microwave or over a pan of hot water until
melted. Take off the heat and stir in the ground almonds and the sugar. Beat the egg yolks well, then stir them into the
chocolate mix. Stiffly whip the egg whites and then fold them gently into the
mixture. Take a 23 cm spring form cake tin with a removable base, line it with
a disk of baking paper and lightly grease the sides with butter, or with a ring
of baking paper. Pour in the mixture, put the tin on a baking sheet and bake in
a low oven, 150ºC for about 45 minutes. This cake is very fragile. Leave to
cool in the tin.
Optional
but recommended: Just before you add the mousse topping, sprinkle over a small
glass of Framboise liqueur or another fruit flavour you like. We used Pear
William. You can also use Frangelico or Amaretto. If you do not use alcohol,
you can use a little fruit syrup.
The
Mousse
300g plain dark chocolate, broken into pieces - 1 T brandy - 2 T of the cream - 4 eggs, separated - 300ml whipping cream - Optional: 20 to 50g icing sugar
For
the mousse, melt the chocolate in a large bowl in the same way, with the brandy
and cream and allow to cool until lukewarm. Use another 1T of cream if not
using alcohol. Using an electric beater, whisk the eggs whites to stiff peaks. Then
softly whip the remaining cream in another bowl until thickened but not as far
as soft peaks.
Stir
the egg yolks into the chocolate, then fold the cream into the mixture. Taste
and if the chocolate you are using is very dark and has very little sugar, you
may at this stage like to add a little icing sugar. Gently fold in a quarter of
the eggs whites, then the rest, and then spread the mixture over the cake base
and keep in the fridge overnight. Release the sides of the spring form tin and
using a pallet knife carefully smooth the sides of the mousse if untidy. Very
carefully transfer to a pretty cake plate and sprinkle with a little dark cocoa
powder and top with a few raspberries or chocolate curls
©
John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus
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