Chocolate Mousse CakExtravaganza!

CLASSIC CHOCOLATE MOUSSE CAKE
Ingredients:
For the Cake:
1/4 cup sifted cocoa
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup +2 tbsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
3 tbsps. margarine
2 tbsps. hot water
1 egg
For Filing:
1/3 cup sifted cocoa
1 tbsp. coffee
3/4 cup unflavored gelatin
3 eggyolks
2 1/2 cups fresh milk
2 1/2 tbsps. corn starch
3 eggwhites
Steps:
For Cake:
1. Beat all ingredients, high speed 2 minutes.
2. Prepare 9 1/2" round spring form pan, 3" high.
3. Preheated oven 350F, bake for 16 minutes.
4. Let cool.
For Filling:
1. Use double boiler, mix with wirewhisk until creamy.
2. Remove from fire, add 2 tbsps. rum
3. Beat eggwhites until stiff, fold at high speed
4. Pour into cake, freeze for an hour.
5. Beat 1/2 very cold avoset at high speed 1 to 2 minutes.
6. Loosen sides of pan with spatula.
7. Garnish with cherries, choco curls. You can make curls using vegetable peeler or grater.
8. Keep refrigerated.



WHITE CHOCOLATE ROSE PETAL MOUSSE
2tsps. gelatine
1 1/2 tbsps. water
1 1/2 tbsps. liquid glucose
2 whole eggs
250g. white cooking chocolate, melted
1 1/2 cups (625ml.) cream, very lightly whipped
rind (zest) and juice of 1 lemon
petals of 3 medium roses, different colours, washed.
Raspberry Sauce:
200 g. fresh raspberries
sugar to sweeten
2 1/2 tbsps. cold water
Steps:
1. Soak gelatine in water, gently beat while adding in glucose.
2. Add in eggs to mixture.
3. Stir in melted white chocolate.
4. Add immediately while still chocolate is still warm.
5. Add zest and juice.
6. Add petals.
7. Pour on 9"x11' pan with cling paper. Refrigerate until firm.
8. Cut into 5cm. squares.
9. Top with raspberry puree.



TRIPLE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE CAKE
Ingredients:

Bottom layer:
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
7 ounces bittersweet chocolate (or 4 unsweetened and 3 semi-sweet), chopped finely
3/4 tsp. instant coffee
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
4 large eggs separated
Pinch salt
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 325F with rack in middle.
2. Grease 9 1/2" springform pan
3. Melt butter, chocolate, and instant coffee.
4. Let chocolate mixture cool for 5 min.
5. Whisk in vanilla and egg yolks.
6. In stand mixer with whisk attachment, beat egg whites and salt 30 seconds, till frothy.
7. Add half of brown sugar, beat 15 seconds more. Add remaining brown sugar, beat until soft peaks form, about another minute.
8. With whisk, mix 1/3 of egg whites into chocolate mixture. Fold in rest of egg whites with rubber spatula until no white streaks remain. Scrape batter into springform pan and smooth top.
9. Bake until cake is firm at edges and center has set but is still soft (center should spring back after pressing with a finger), 13-18 min. Put cake on wire rack to cool completely, at least 1 hour. Don’t take cake out of pan.

Middle layer:
2 tbsps. cocoa powder
5 tbsps. hot water
7 ounces bittersweet chocolate (as above, can mix unsweetened and semi-sweet), finely chopped
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 tbsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
Steps:
1. Combine cocoa and hot water in small bowl or cup.
2. Melt chocolate as above, in microwave. Let cool 5 min.
3. In stand mixer with whisk attachment, beat cream, sugar, and salt at medium speed 30 seconds, then high speed until soft peaks form, 15-60 more seconds.
4. Whisk cocoa mixture into melted chocolate till smooth.
5. Whisk 1/3 of whipped cream into chocolate mixture, then fold in rest of whipped cream with rubber spatula until no white streaks remain.
6. Spoon mousse into springform pan on top of cooled cake. Tap to knock out air bubbles, smooth top. Wipe inside of pan with damp cloth to remove drips.
7. Refrigerate to set, at least 15 min, while making top layer.

Top layer:
3/4 tsp. gelatin powder
1 tbsp. water
6 ounces white chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
Steps:
1. Sprinkle gelatin over water in small bowl, let stand 5 min.
2. Put white chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat 1/2 cup cream to simmer in saucepan. Remove from heat, add gelatin mixture, and stir to dissolve. Pour cream mixture over white chocolate chips and whisk until smooth. Cool to room temp 5 to 8 min with occasional stirring.
3. In stand mixer with whisk attachment, whip other cup of cream at medium speed 30 seconds, then on high until soft peaks form, 15-60 seconds. Whisk 1/3 of cream into white chocolate mixture. Then fold rest of whipped cream into chocolate mixture with rubber spatula until no white streaks remain.
4. Spoon white chocolate mousse over middle layer in pan. Smooth top. Return cake to fridge and chill at least 2 1/2 hours until set.
5. Garnish with curls of chocolate on top. Run thin knife between side of pan and cake to free edge; remove side. Cut into slices (it helps to run hot water over knife between slices).



MARSHMALLOW GALORE MOUSSE CAKE
Ingredients:
150-200g mini-marshmallows (more if really dark chocolate)
50g. soft butter
250g. good dark chocolate (minimum 70% to 85% cocoa solids,chopped into small pieces
60ml. hot water from a recently boiled kettle, or espresso, or coffee
1 x 284ml. tub double cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
(a drop of whiskey or rum)
Steps:
1. Put the marshmallows, butter, chocolate and water in a heavy-based saucepan.
2. Put the saucepan on the hob, over heat, though keep it fairly gentle, to melt the contents, stirring every now and again. Remove from the heat.
3. Meanwhile, whip the cream with the vanilla extract until thick, and then fold into the cooling chocolate mixture until you have a smooth, cohesive mixture.
4. Pour or scrape into four glasses or ramekins, about 175ml each in capacity, or six smaller (125ml) ones, and chill until you want to eat. If they stay until the next day, it will become more of a chocolate cake consistency.



MOUSSE DESSERT
Ingredients:
For the chocolate mousse
2 3/4 oz. chocolate, melted
7 fl. oz. double cream, whipped
For the caramelised oranges:
2 tbsp. butter
3 tbsp. caster sugar
2 oranges, peeled and segmented
Steps:
1. To make the chocolate mousse, melt the chocolate in a glass bowl over simmering water.
2. Whip the cream until soft peaks form.
3. Mix the two together to form a marble effect. Be careful not to overmix them.
4. Put into a tall glass.
5. For the oranges, in a medium saucepan heat the butter and the sugar together to form a caramel.
6. Add the oranges and continue to cook for two minutes.
7. Place in a small glass dish and serve with the chocolate mousse.



CREAMY CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
Ingredients:
120g. packet cream cheese
2/3 cup (150g) caster sugar
2 eggyolks
2 1/2 cups (600ml) thickened cream
125 g. dark cooking chocolate, melted
125 g. white cooking chocolate, melted
Steps:
1. Beat cream cheese, eggyolks and sugar until smooth.
2. Whip cream until stiff, then refrigerate.
3. Fold in melted dark chocolate on beateb cream cheese.
4. Spoon into 6 glasses, top with whipped cream, chill for 30 minutes.



CHOCOLATE MOUSE ON COUPE
Ingredients:
100g. plain dark chocolate bar, chopped
1 tbsp. instant coffee
2 tbsps. brandy or strong black coffee
2 eggyolks
1 1/5 double cream
1 tbsp. icing sugar
Garnishing:
whipped cream, piped
candied violets
chocolate hundreds and thousands
wafer or biscuits to serve
Steps:
1. Melt chocolate over baine marie.
2. Mix eggyolks, coffee, brandy until smooth.
3. Beat double cream until thick & fold into chocolate.
4. Pour in coupe glasses and chill.
Note: Larger eggs give extra bulk, for smaller eggs, add extra milk.



Just how simply moments can turn instantly into festive times with these delectable treats. Exerting extra efforts to make people happy can be our own source of happiness. And nothing can replace that! Baking is hard work, it is a continuous process of learning and re-learning, there maybe struggles sometimes and in-between, but in the final analysis of it all, the fruits of labor are worth looking forward to. A labor of love perfectly making happy souls. Indeed, doing what you love best strengthens a person, transforming him into a happier, more content individual....and any of these positive changes radiates to the outside, and as a result, giving inspiration to those who witness, and it becomes a contagion for optimism. Everything starts in simplest of things....but results can be enormous....





Photos from Flickr.com