Light Stunt: Chocolate Mousse

Chocolate Mousse

As I've networked within the community, I have discovered that women who write food blogs far outnumber men who do which makes me part of a minority. I would also be willing to bet that a woman is reading these very words. Now, I love each of my readers equally but ladies, this post isn't for you to read. I will now ask you to bring your significant others into the room to read between the two lines of asterisks.

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Gentlemen, allow me to quickly introduce myself. I am DB and I have assumed the alias Foodie Stuntman. As you're aware, Valentine's Day was about a week ago. I must admit, I'm not a big fan of it as I discussed previously. So, as opposed to displaying your affection on a holiday manufactured by Hallmark Cards where we're obligated to do so, surprise her when she doesn't expect it. She'll appreciate it more. (And no, don't prepare this dessert because you came home with a door ding on her passenger side rear fender or spent too much money hanging out with the boys at the sports bar the Saturday prior.) To that end, I found this dessert online that's easy to prepare.

Now, this site is called Crazy Foodie Stunts and I always challenge myself, so...

The Challenge

Get us guys in the kitchen to make something for our significant others.

The Source

Adapted from a recipe I found on iVillage

Equipment Needed

(I've attached sample pictures of some of the items.)

1 medium saucepan
1 baking spatula
1 heatproof (stainless steel or Pyrex) bowl medium size
3 additional large preparation bowls
1 hand mixer or stand mixer if you're lucky to have one.
1 whisk
4 cocktail, wine or martini glasses

Ingredients

3 1/2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, broken into pieces
1 tablespoon whole milk
2 large eggs, separated (You'll need 2 of the 3 additional bowls for this)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup heavy cream
whip cream, for serving
Chocolate shavings or chips, for garnish

Method

1. Fill the saucepan halfway with water. Place the heatproof bowl on top of the saucepan. If the water touches the bottom of the bowl, pour a little bit of the water out enough so that the water does not touch it. Bring the water to a simmer over medium heat. Add the chocolate and milk in the heatproof bowl, then place the bowl back over the simmering water. Stir with the baking spatula until melted, then remove the bowl from heat and let it cool off for a minute or two. (By the way, if you want to sound sophisticated, this is called a double boiler set up. Yes, you could melt the chocolate in the nuclear oven, but I've never found radiation very tasty.)

2. While the chocolate is cooling, add the sugar to the bowl with the egg yolks. Use the whisk to stir until thick and creamy. Then add the chocolate from the heatproof bowl and stir everything using the whisk until just combined.

3. Add the heavy cream to the remaining preparation bowl. Using your mixer, whip the cream until stiff peaks form. (Only the first three minutes of the video I've provided are relevant.) Add the chocolate mixture to the cream and stir until just combined.

4. Clean the beaters from your mixer and re-attach. Whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form using the same procedure in step 3. Stir in some of the egg whites then fold in the rest of the egg whites. Spoon a portion of the mousse into each of your serving glasses, cover with either plastic wrap or aluminum foil and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours. While you're waiting for it to set, be sure to clean up the kitchen and wash the dishes before grabbing a beer and watching the game. When you're ready to serve, top each glass with whip cream and garnish it with chocolate shavings or chips.

5. Enjoy the appreciation from your significant other.

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So ladies, you've seen the picture above. However if your guy presents this dessert on you suddenly, please accept the gift at face value and appreciate it as a token of affection. No, he isn't softening you for some bad news later on.

In other news, Mrs. Stuntman and I did celebrate Valentine's Day but we decided to do so on Sunday the 16th at Frances in San Francisco. You might recognize it because it was awarded one Michelin star in 2011, 2012 and 2013. The dishes we ordered were:

Roasted Turnip Empanada-Sultana Raisin, Salsa Verde

Tuscan Kale & Butter Bean Soup-Farro, Crostini, Roasted Chicken and Garlic Broth

Winter Vegetable Casserole-Hen of the Wood Mushrooms, Buttermilk Biscuits

Sonoma Duck Breast-Pumpkin Seed Dukkah, Roasted Winter Squash, Blood Orange

Crisp Bintje Potatoes & Charred Broccolini, Taleggio di Peghera

Chocolate Espresso Gelato



Chocolate Espresso Gelato

No, I haven't forgotten about you. With such a busy month of May (at least, for me) I recently just realized that I hadn't published here in the last couple of weeks. I actually cooked last week with the intention of posting the recipe here but the result was not well and ultimately it's not something I'd recommend.

Meanwhile, Siri Pinter of SIRIously Delicious recently published a Homemade Chocolate Chip Ice Cream recipe where she linked an instructional blog post by David Lebovitz. Also as I've been reading the blogosphere lately, I've seen a lot of ice cream recipes now that summer is upon us and I wanted to contribute however, anyone can make a custard and throw it into an ice cream machine, but churning manually? Like I've stated before, quick and easy is not my style. My readers ought to know me by now: I love a challenge.

The Challenge

Prepare homemade gelato without an ice cream machine.

The Source

The gelato base is taken from page 207 of Michael Chiarello's Casual Cooking by Michael Chiarello with Janet Fletcher. The freezing and churning process is taken from David Lebovitz from the link above.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup white sugar
1 vanilla bean
2 teaspoons ground espresso roast coffee
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup (approximately 2 1/4 ounces) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Method

1. Combine the milk, cream, sugar, vanilla bean, and espresso in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over moderately low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks until well blended. When the milk mixture simmers, gradually whisk about 1/2 cup of the hot milk mixture into the eggs to warm them, then pour the warmed eggs into the saucepan, stirring constantly. Cook over moderately low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the mixture visibly thickens and reaches 175⁰ Fahrenheit on an instant read thermometer. Do not let the mixture boil or it will curdle.

3. Immediately remove from the heat and strain the custard through a fine sieve into a bowl. Add the chocolate, whisking until it melts. Then chill it over an ice bath.

(It is at this point where I start using Chef Lebovitz's instructions. If you have an ice cream machine, use it here according to the manufacturers instructions.)

4. Put a deep baking dish, or bowl made of plastic, stainless steel or something durable in the freezer, and pour your custard mixture into it.

5. After forty-five minutes, open the door and check it. As it starts to freeze near the edges, remove it from the freezer and stir it vigorously with a spatula or whisk. Really beat it up and break up any frozen sections. Return to freezer.

6. Continue to check the mixture every 30 minutes, stirring vigorously as it’s freezing. If you have one, you can use a hand-held mixer for best results, or use an immersion blender. You can also use just a spatula or a sturdy whisk along with some modest physical effort.

7. Keep checking periodically and stirring while it freezes (by hand or with the electric mixer) until the ice cream is frozen. It will likely take 2 to 3 hours to be ready.

Successful?

After the first 30 minutes, I noticed the custard had barely frozen so I checked on it every 45 minutes thereafter. It took a little longer than advertised (about 4 hours), but my freezer is near my stovetop and I had to cook dinner while the custard sat in it. It was a little warm in the home too.

Ultimately, yes. Not only was I successful in churning the gelato, but the espresso gave the dessert depths of flavor and I highly encourage you to try this recipe.