Recipe: 00155 Title : Chocolate Mousse Author: Christopher L Tate Date : June 1995 _________________________________________________________________________ 8 oz. fine bittersweet chocolate. 3 eggs, separated 6 TBSP unsalted butter, very soft 1/4 cup superfine sugar (*not* confectioner's sugar) 1 cup whipping cream 1/4 cup Chambord (black raspberry liqueur) Actually, the original recipe called for strong coffee instead of Chambord. I myself would rather use espresso than plain brewed coffee, but the mousse would be quite good with a variety of flavorings - Chambord, espresso, Kahlua, use your imagination. :-) Melt the chocolate smoothly with the Chambord. Gradually whisk in the butter, then whisk in the egg yolks one at a time. Beat the egg whites, gradually adding the sugar, to stiff, shiny peaks. Beat the cream, preferably in a chilled bowl or over ice, until the whisk leaves traces on the surface. Don't turn it into butter! Pour the chocolate mixture down the side of the egg-white bowl, and fold it into the egg whites until it's almost mixed. Fold the whipped cream in, very gently, just until the color is uniform. Pour into serving dishes (small wine glasses work well), or into a soufle mold or other attractive dish, and chill thoroughly. Serve with whipped cream to garnish. COMMENTARY: The choice of chocolate is critical; the mouse will taste like whatever you use. Once I didn't have enough good chocolate to make the mousse, so I added a little bit of Nestles Toll-House morsels. It didn't work right; the mousse ended up a little gritty, and oily. Last night, I used Valrhona Equitoriale, a very fine French coverture. I would have used their "Le Noir," but it was nearly twice as expensive. :-) Someday I'm going to use the Carre de Guanaca 1502 (60% cocoa!), but then I'm funny that way.... :-) I've used Lindt Excellence and standard Lindt Bittersweet, and they both turn out very well. The only tricky things are: 1. Melting the chocolate. Overheating it is *deadly*; watch it carefully as it melts. You probably want to *almost* melt it, then take it off the heat and stir until it's smooth. 2. Beating the egg whites and the cream. Don't overbeat. 3. Folding the chocolate into the egg whites, and the cream into the rest of it. This is mostly a matter of practice. If you're not familiar with it, scrounge up "The Way to Cook" by Julia Child and read what she has to say about it. That's the book that this recipe comes from, BTW. :-) -=-=-=-=-=-=- _________________________________________________________________________