Ahhhhh...... Chocolate Anything!

It's the weekend and I've got a couple of days off from culinary school (Le Cordon Bleu) and I am enjoying being able to sleep in a little and not to be rushing out the door. It's also nice to not have to stand all day long while I work on new skills, especially knife skills which are quite something. But I sit drinking some coffee while I have brunch (fried eggs topped with Hollandaise and a side of cottage fried potatoes, very yum...) as I begin to ponder on wonderful desserts to make for the upcoming holiday.

I've posted some great ideas for holiday food on my sister blog http://belinadventures.blogspot.com where you can find the main points of holiday food, turkey done several ways, side dishes and even a lovely sweet potato pie, but it just doesn't seem enough somehow and I'm now thinking that something chocolate might be just the ticket. So I'm dreaming up something smooth and decadent to top off a wonderful holiday (or any meal for that matter, because after all when is chocolate not appropriate, yes?)

One of the easiest and most delectable desserts is Chocolate Mousse. It's also very flexible in that you can serve it alone in a nice martini glass or ramekin, use it as filling for a cookie crust pie and top with whipped cream, or you can turn it into filling for a wonderful dark chocolate cake (look in belinadventures for this too, I have a fantastic no fail recipe for double chocolate cake here that you will love) or you can fancy it up and put in metal rings (the kind where the bottom is separate) so the body is mousse and you can top with chocolate ganache (hard chocolate covering, yum!) and it looks super elegant when you serve it. But even if you put it in a jelly glass it will still be amazing, requires little ingredients and is fast to make (which means you will eat it much faster too if you can withstand the temptation).

Basic Chocolate Mousse.- If you want a heavy-duty dark chocolate taste make as is or if you need some sugar, adjust as you like, just make and enjoy!

1 3/4 cups whipping cream
12 ounces quality semi-sweet chocolate chips (or heavy duty dark)
3 ounces espresso or strong coffee
1 tablespoon dark rum
4 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon flavorless, granulated gelatin

Chill 1 1/2 cups whipping cream in refrigerator. Chill metal mixing bowl and mixer beaters in freezer.

In top of a double boiler, combine chocolate chips, coffee, rum and butter. Melt over barely simmering water, stirring constantly. Remove from heat while a couple of chunks are still visible. Cool, stirring occasionally to just above body temperature. If you can be really gentle, you might use a microwave, but go easy!

Pour remaining 1/4 cup whipping cream into a metal measuring cup and sprinkle in the gelatin. Allow gelatin to bloom for 10 minutes. Then carefully heat by swirling the measuring cup over a low gas flame or candle. Do not boil or gelatin will be damaged. Stir mixture into the cooled chocolate and set aside.

In the chilled mixing bowl, beat cream to medium peaks. Stir 1/4 of the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture to lighten it. Fold in the remaining whipped cream in two doses. There may be streaks of whipped cream in the chocolate and that is fine. Do not over work the mousse. Spoon into bowls or martini glasses and chill for at least 1 hour. Garnish with fruit and serve.
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Here's a sweeter version:

1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
1 tablespoon cold water
2 tablespoons boiling water
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
chocolate curls

In a small bowl sprinkle unflavored gelatin over the cold water; let stand 1 minute. Add the boiling water, stirring, until gelatin is dissolved.

In a separate bowl combine the sugar, cocoa, whipping cream, and vanilla; stir to blend. Beat on medium speed of electric mixer, scraping the bottom of the bowl a few times, until the mixture is stiff.

Add the gelatin mixture and beat until well blended. Spoon the chocolate mousse into dessert dishes or glasses. Sprinkle mousse with chocolate curls, if desired. Chill for at least 1 hour before serving.
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Hard Chocolate Ganache Topping.- Makes a lovely topping for mousse, cake, candies or just about anything else...

Makes about 4 cups

2 pounds dark chocolate, finely chopped
2 cups heavy cream

Place the chocolate in a stainless steel bowl. Bring the heavy cream just to a simmer. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate, and allow to stand for 1 minute, stirring until the chocolate is thoroughly melted.

The ganache can be used immediately, or it can be covered and stored under refrigeration, then warmed prior to use.

Pour it over the mousse (the one in the ring or dish with a rim) and allow to harden in the fridge. Pop it out gently and smooth the sides before serving.
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To completely cover a cake with ganache (like in bakeries):

Keep in mind a cake's height when you are ready to glaze (so double the recipe above). A shorter cake will need less ganache to cover the top and sides than a taller cake. The ganache should feel slightly warm to the touch, between 100 and 110 degrees F, for glazing. This temperature ensures that the ganache will be fluid enough to flow over the cake, but it will not lose its shine or melt the buttercream coating underneath. For a professional appearance, make some buttercream frosting and frost the cake with a nice thin and very even layer using a spatula, this is a "crumb topping" and will insure a smooth finish and no crumbs.

Place the cake on a cardboard circle that is the exact size of the cake. If necessary, trim the cake circle to fit the cake. Place an inverted cake pan, or similar object that is slightly smaller than the cake itself, on a baking sheet. Position the cake on top of the inverted pan. If you have a cooling rack, use this so the ganache can drip past it (you can save the excess for later use and the cake won't sit in it).

Prepare a hard ganache (see above). Once all the chocolate has melted into the cream, allow the ganache to cool to between 100 and 110 degrees F.

Using a ladle or a 1-cup measure, pour 2 cups of chocolate ganache onto the center of the top of the cake; 2 cups is enough to cover a short 6-inch cake. When covering larger cakes, it is better to use more ganache than you think you will need because excess ganache will drip onto the baking sheet and can be reused.

Using a large offset palette knife or spatula without ridges, push the ganache from the center of the cake over the sides. Make sure the top of the cake has a thin and even coating.

If the ganache does not cover all of the sides of the cake, use a small knife or offset palette knife or spatula to spread some ganache onto those areas.

Allow the ganache to drip off the cake onto the baking sheet. Once the ganache has set, hold the cake from the bottom (remember, there is a cake board that you can hold onto) and trim any excess ganache with a small offset palette knife or spatula to insure you have a nice even edge all around, don't forget that presentation is a BIG deal.
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There you have it, some professional looking desserts which anyone can make and are perfect for the holidays to come. So go ahead and tackle these, you'll be proud of your results and will want to perfect these basic techniques, but whatever the results, they will taste amazing!!!!!