Layered Chocolate Mousse Cups

We were walking around Harris Farm Markets the other day and wandered past a giant container of Belgium chocolate mousse. Though I resisted the temptation to buy it that day, I've been dreaming about it ever since and had to make it this weekend. Chocolate mousse is such an easy thing to make, it's one of the first things my brother and I learnt how to make during our early baking experiments (the others being sticky date pudding, chocolate chip cookies, orange cake, self-saucing chocolate pudding, vanilla cupcakes and a year obsessively trying to make the perfect vanilla pannacotta). As a result I became the 'folding master' of the house, because I was the only person who had the patience to fold the cream and egg whites gently into the mixture without losing too much volume. It's kinda funny that it turned out to be a skill I use constantly these days.   

I was keen to make something a little more fun than just plain chocolate mousse. I followed a pretty basic recipe for the mousse, but added a generous pinch of sea salt. It's got a rich chocolate flavour and a fluffy, cloud-like texture as you would expect and the mousse isn't really sweet at all with the dark, bitter chocolate, salt and no added sugar. It makes it the perfect mousse to pair with lots of sweet, fun toppings. If you wanted to make the mousse just on its own I'd make sure you use a less bitter dark chocolate and skip the added salt. But it's more fun (and more pretty) to add lots of toppings instead.

For the toppings I went with a simple vanilla bean blackberry compote on the bottom, rainbow sprinkles in the middle (of course), and some popping candy on top. The popping candy had an unfortunate blue tint to it, not sure why, but it was really fun to eat with the mousse. If I did them again I think I'd hide the popping candy under some fairy floss or Persian fairy floss to make it even prettier. And you could replace the blackberry compote with any other berry, or try something a little more decadent like peanut butter or dulce de leche. There are heaps of different combinations that would work really well.

I didn't really mean to jump on the dessert-in-jar bandwagon again, but I really wanted to present these mousse cups in some tall, narrow glasses and these were the best I could scrounge up at the time. But in the end it turned out to be a really fabulous way of presenting the mousse, since you could clearly see all the different layers and I could screw on the lids and bring it along to the cinema as an awesome movie snack. Imagine how great these would be if you brought it along in an esky for a picnic! I love the colourful layers that make it look like a chocolate mousse parfait.

Layered Chocolate Mousse Cups

(makes 4 large serves or 6 small serves, adapted from this recipe by Gourmet Traveller)

For the blackberry compote:

300g (about 2 cups) blackberries (frozen of fresh, I used frozen)

55g (1/4 cup) sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract

For the chocolate mousse:

Note: if you are worried about the raw eggs in this recipe, try this recipe instead)

180g good quality dark chocolate (50-70% cocoa, I used 70%)

3 large eggs (fresh and uncracked shells), at room temperature and separated

A pinch of salt

225ml (a bit less than 1 cup) thickened cream (heavy cream)

To decorate (optional): sprinkles, popping candy or fairy floss

Prepare the compote first (you can use any berries you like, or replace it with dulce de leche or even peanut butter if you prefer). Place berries, sugar and vanilla in a medium saucepan and place on low-medium heat, stirring regularly. Simmer until the sugar completely dissolves and the mixture thickens slightly, about 5-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and strain seeds if you prefer. Set aside to cool.

For the chocolate mousse, carefully beat thickened cream in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer to soft peaks. Place in fridge until ready to use. Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water and stir until chocolate is completely melted. Remove from the heat and add yolks and salt and stir to combine. Fold whipped cream into mixture. Place egg whites in a separate, large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on high to soft peaks. Carefully fold egg whites into chocolate mixture until combined. The mousse should be smooth and even in colour.

Spoon about 1 tbsp of cooled berry compote into the bottom of each serving glass. Spoon a layer of chocolate mousse over the top of the compote, followed by a layer of sprinkles. then another layer of chocolate mousse to finish. Chill in the refrigerator for three house or until set. Top with more berries or popping candy or fairy floss right before serving.

White Chocolate & Raspberry French Toast

It was one of those weekends where I didn't feel like baking. Not one little bit. A lazy Sunday morning (after catching up on the sleep that I lost during the week) needed French toast. It had to be done. I had a loaf of day-old brioche, a bar of white chocolate and a punnet of raspberries. Raspberries are totally out of season in Australia at the moment and stupidly expensive, but you know when you see something in the store that you just can't resist? I'm so glad I didn't fight the urge in this case because it led to this White Chocolate & Raspberry Brioche French Toast. So ridiculously good.

I didn't realise until I started looking at the photos just then how they look a bit like grilled cheese sandwiches, which I admit is a little gross. It's a pity because this was such an indulgent, delicious dish that I wouldn't want anyone to be put off by mistaken appearances. The similarity couldn't really be helped since I used white chocolate, you could probably use milk or dark chocolate and it would taste great. But I think white chocolate works the best with all the other flavours going on here.

The French toast mixture that I used was perfect, just like Martha promised. It's lightly fragrant with spices and fruit flavours, and when you bite into that thin, crisp outer layer (that I fried in some damn good cultured butter), you will want to do a little dance. The hit of cinnamon, the sweetness from the melted white chocolate and the burst of tangy raspberries, what a combination.

I'd definitely recommend going to the trouble of getting your hands on some brioche if you want to make this, store bought or homemade. Though regular white bread will work it doesn't have the same lightness of texture and beautiful richness that brioche bread has. This particular version doesn't even need any maple syrup on top, there's enough sweetness from the white chocolate. And make sure not to soak the bread for too long or it will still be soggy in the middle even after you fry it up. Have it for a very indulgent breakfast for a special occasion, or have it as dessert. Either way you won't be sorry.

White Chocolate & Raspberry Brioche French Toast

(adapted from Martha Stewart's Perfect French Toast, serves 2)

4 slices brioche, preferably day-old, sliced 1 inch thick (I bought mine this time, but you could make your own too)

3 large eggs

3/4 cups milk

Juice of 1/2 an orange (about 2-3 tbsp)

Zest of 1/2 a lemon (about 2 tsp)

1 tbsp pure vanilla extract

1 tsp brown sugar

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Pinch of freshly ground nutmeg

Pinch of salt

Butter for frying

100g good quality white chocolate, melted (either zapped in the microwave 30 secs a til melted or over a double boiler) - can replace with milk or dark chocolate

About 1/2 punnet raspberries (about 60g, fresh or frozen) - can replace with other berries

Icing sugar to dust
 

(If making a bigger batch, preheat oven to about 95°C (200°F) and keep toast warm in oven on a wire rack while making the rest of the batch) Whisk together eggs, milk, juice, vanilla, sugar, zest, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a shallow baking dish. Place skillet or non-stick frying pan over medium heat and melt about 1 tbsp (15g) of butter in the pan.

Dip one slice of bread in mixture and allow to soak for 20 seconds. Place slice dipped side down in the pan and fry for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. While frying, spread a layer of melted white chocolate on the top side of the bread and place a small handful of raspberries over the top. Dip another slice of bread in mixture and allow to soak for 20 seconds again. Sandwich this slice over the raspberries, dipped side facing up and press down to seal sandwich together slightly. Carefully flip over and fry the other side of the sandwich for the same amount of time, until golden brown. Repeat with remaining slices of bread, adding another tbsp of butter to the pan for each sandwich. Serve immediately, dusted with a light coat of icing (confectioner's) sugar. You can add maple syrup if you really want to, but it probably doesn't need it.

Apple Crumble Loaf

Whenever I'm really missing my Mum (who lives in Malaysia), I get the urge to make this cake. I blogged about my Mum's Apple Crumble Cake in the early days of my blog, and it will always have a special place in my heart. It's one of the few cakes my Mum still bakes these days, and was one I would constantly ask her to make for us. There's so much nostalgia associated with it.  Being in the kitchen with my Mum preparing the cake mixture, licking the beaters, arranging slices of Granny Smith Apples, getting my hands covered in flour while we made the crumble, and the wonderful smells and anticipation as I hovered in front of the oven waiting for the cake to be done. This cake gives me the warm and fuzzies.

As I mentioned in the original post, it's a cross between an apple tea cake and an apple crumble. The best of both worlds. I decided to change up the presentation a bit this time, increasing the amounts and baking it in a loaf tin, to make it easier to slice up into portions and smother with copious amounts of brown sugar vanilla bean custard. I think I didn't quite get the ratio of apple to crumble right this time around, so I've increased the amounts in the recipe below. You want a buttery, moist cake, a decent layer of apple slices baked golden brown in brown sugar and cinnamon, and a gloriously crunchy crumble top.

This is one of those cakes that smells so great while it's baking, you will get all twitchy and impatient waiting to taste it. I had to stop myself from tucking right into the cake while it was still in the pan straight after it came out of the oven. But it was worth the time to stop and make a batch of fresh homemade custard (the carton stuff is never good enough), this cake really benefits from a topping like a custard or a good slathering of butter or cream, or even a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. I think that's why it made a lot more sense for me to bake it in as loaf rather than a round cake. And then I drowned a piece of cake in custard and went to my happy place.

Apple Crumble Loaf with Brown Sugar Custard

(makes one medium loaf cake, serves about 8-10) 

For the cake:

225g self-raising flour (about 1 & 3/4 cups)

125g butter, softened

120g sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 tbsp milk

3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

1 tbsp brown sugar + 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

For the crumble:

125g self raising flour (approx. 1 cup)

90g sugar

45g butter

1.5-2 tbsp water for mixing

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

For the custard:

3 large egg yolks

75g brown sugar (about 1/3 cup packed, can replace with 75g golden syrup)

300ml pouring cream (about 1 & 1/4 cups)

150ml milk (about 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp)

1 vanilla bean pod or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Grease and line a 20cm x 10cm (8x4inch) loaf tin with baking paper. Prepare the cake batter; preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Place sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on high speed until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, then add vanilla and beating until combined. Reduce mixer speed to slow and gradually add flour and and milk and mix until just combined. Pour batter into prepared tin and smooth surface with a spatula. Layer apples slices over the top of the batter, there should be enough for two layers of slices. Mix brown sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl and sprinkle evenly over the top of the apple slices.

Prepare the crumble; place butter, flour, cinnamon and sugar in a bowl and rub the mixture gently between the tips of your fingers to combine them, until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Gradually add a 1/2 tablespoon of water at a time, while still combining with your fingertips until the mixture starts to form fairly bit clumps of around 0.5 cm diameter, rather than fine breadcrumbs. I added about 2 tbps water.

Bake in oven for 50-60mins, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean and the crumble on top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool completely in tin. Serve while still warm (and should be heated before serving always).

Prepare the custard; place milk, cream and vanilla (pod split and seeds scraped) in a medium saucepan and bring just to the boil. Set aside to cool for a minute. Place egg yolks and sugar in a medium mixing bowl and whisk until pale and sugar has dissolved. While still whisking, gradually add hot mixture to the bowl until completely combined. Return mixture to the saucepan and place on low heat, stirring continuously. (And I mean continuously, unless you want to end up with scrambled eggs.) Stir until mixture thickens and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Remove from the heat and transfer mixture to a bowl. Cover surface of mixture with clingfilm to prevent a skin forming. Chill in the fridge until ready to serve. Cut cake into slices and serve warm with custard or cream or ice cream. Trust me, it's not even half as good at room temperature. Can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for several days.

Ice Cream Cone Macarons

How's everyones week been? I managed to tire myself out so much that I caught a cold by the end of the week, so my weekend was mostly spent sleeping with a little bit of baking mixed in. I always want to bake when I'm feeling under the weather, I guess it's a comfort thing. It's been a while since I baked up some macarons, and this weekend I decided to make Ice Cream Cone-Shaped Macarons filled with Vanilla Ice Cream & Waffle Cone Icing. I think we've firmly established the fact that I am shamelessly willing to make macarons in any wacky shape I feel like. I was inspired after seeing a recipe for an icing that actually used melted ice cream in it from Cookies & Cups. I thought it would be the perfect filling for a cute macaron shaped into an ice cream covered with rainbow sprinkles. Pretty freakin' cute.

Shaping the macarons shells into ice cream cones was pretty tricky. It is not an easy shape to get right because it's so irregular, and this makes the shell surface more prone to cracking. About half my batch of shells cracked in various places (sad face), mostly because I forgot that weirdly-shaped macarons need a LOT more drying time before they go into the oven. And the ones that didn't crack were still a little lumpy and funny looking, far from perfect but still cute! Sprinkles always help. I even found these nifty mini rainbow chocolate chips in my cupboard (my cupboard full of sprinkles is getting pretty huge), and used the red ones as the 'cherry' on top of each ice cream cone.

As mentioned in the original ice cream frosting recipe, the melted ice cream doesn't make a noticeable difference to the flavour of the icing, but it's just fun to have it in there. I used a strong flavoured French vanilla ice cream so the vanilla came through quite well. You could use any flavour you like really. I bet mint chocolate chip flavour with green shells rather than pink shells would be fantastic. I also decided to stir in some tiny pieces of crushed up waffle cone into the icing, so give it the whole flavour of an ice cream cone, not just the ice cream. I think it adds an interesting flavour and texture to the filling.

I probably wouldn't recommend this recipe for beginner macaron bakers, getting the triangle shapes right for the cone portion of the macaron shell is a pain in the butt. But if you're keen to do someone along the same lines, an easier alternative is to bake regular round macarons covered in sprinkles to look like the 'scoops' of ice cream, skewer 2 or 3 of them on a lollipop stick and place it in a mini ice cream cone. It would still look super cute and work well with the icing recipe.

Between all the sleeping and baking I did this weekend, I finally started to plan our honeymoon in Europe! We'll be there for about 3 weeks in Autumn, and we're planning to visit London, Paris, Barcelona and Amsterdam. I. Cannot. Wait. So feel free to drop me an email or a comment with any suggestions you might like the share for must-sees, must-dos or must-eats! I would appreciate any help :)

Ice Cream Cone Macarons

(makes about 15 macarons, ice cream frosting recipe adapted from Cookies & Cups)

For the macarons: (if you are a beginner with macarons, read up and practice plain macarons first. BraveTart has lots of useful advice and info on the subject)

100g aged egg whites (you can use fresh eggs too, just make sure they are room temperature. I always use fresh these days, and zap it in the microwave on defrost for 10 seconds)

110g almond meal, at room temperature and well sifted

200g icing sugar

50g caster sugar

Optional: 1 tsp powdered egg whites (available from The Essential Ingredient), helps to stabilise egg whites but is not necessary

To decorate: pink food colouring (powdered or gel), 1/2 tsp cocoa powder sifted, rainbow sprinkles (I used mini rainbow chocolate sprinkles for the 'cherry' on top)

For the ice cream & waffle cone icing:

100g unsalted butter

2 cups (about 250g) icing sugar, sifted

1/4 cup completely melted ice cream (any flavour you like, I used French vanilla and left the right amount to melt in the fridge overnight)

1 medium waffle cone, crushed into small pieces

Prepare the macarons first; line two baking sheets with baking paper. Place icing sugar in food processor and pulse for a minute to remove any lumps. Stir in almond meal and pulse for about 30 seconds to combine. Place in a large mixing bowl and set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites and egg white powder in a medium mixing bowl until the egg white powder dissolves and it reaches soft peaks. With the mixer on high speed, gradually add sugar and beat until it reaches stiff peaks.

Add meringue to your dry mixture and mix, quickly at first to break down the bubbles in the egg white (you really want to beat all the large bubbles out of the mixture, be rough!), then mix carefully as the dry mixture becomes incorporated and it starts to become shiny again. As it just starts to mix together, place about a third of the mixture in a separate bowl. This smaller amount will be used to pipe the 'cones'. Add 1/2 tsp of sifted cocoa powder to this and then mix to the correct consistency. Take care not to overmix, the mixture should flow like lava and a streak of mixture spread over the surface of the rest of the mixture should disappear after about 30 seconds. Place mixture in a piping bag with a narrow tip, about 3mm wide. Add pink food colouring to the remaining 2/3rd of mixture and mix to the same consistency. Place mixture in a separate piping bag with a 1cm round piping tip.

Using the cocoa powder tinted mixture, pipe tall, skinny 'V' shapes to create the triangle shapes for the 'cones' on the prepared sheets. I piped them about 3cm long and 1 cm wide at the widest part. If you want to neaten up the edges of the shapes, use the blunt tip of a wooden skewer dipped in a small amount of hot water to fix up the edges. Pipe 2cm circles of pink mixture for the 'scoop' part of the ice cream cone macarons. Tap baking sheets carefully and firmly on the benchtop a couple times to remove any large bubbles. Decorate with rainbow sprinkles. Leave to dry for AT LEAST an hour, so that when you press the surface of one gently it does not break. This will help prevent any cracking and help the feet to form on the macs. These macarons seem to need a longer drying time than regular round ones as they are prone to cracking. Preheat your oven to 140-150°C (285-300°F), depending on your oven. Place on top of an overturned roasting tray or another baking sheet if your sheets are not professional grade, for better heat distribution. Bake for 20-25 minutes, depending on the size of your shells. Carefully test if the base of the shell is ready by gently lifting one and if it's still soft and sticking to the baking paper, then it needs to bake for a few minutes longer. Remove from the oven and cool on the tray for a few minutes, then gently remove from the sheet and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

Prepare the icing; remove the butter from the fridge about 30 mins before starting. Place butter in a large mixing bowl and beat on high with an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy. Reduce speed to low and gradually add icing sugar. Add melted ice cream and increase speed to high. Beat until smooth and combined. Fold crushed waffle cone pieces into the mixture, then place in a piping bag. Pipe and sandwich macarons with the icing. Place in an airtight container in the fridge overnight. Remove from the fridge and allow to come back to room temperature before serving. Can be stored in the fridge for several days.

Milk & Chocolate Chip Cookie Cupcakes

I was in desperate need of comfort food after the week I had. I'm a stress eater, it is not a good thing. This time I couldn't decide between chocolate chip cookies and cupcakes. So I decided that I deserved to have both! In one neat little calorie-laden package. I'm sure this idea has probably been done many times before in many different ways, but I really wanted to bake these. Chocolate chip cupcakes filled with (eggless) chocolate chip cookie dough and topped with milk icing (sweetened condensed milk icing to be exact, my favourite!) and tiny little milk bottle lollies and mini chocolate chips on top.

I couldn't resist topping them with the miniature milk and cookies. It's so damn cute! I have always had a love of miniature versions of food, whether it was mini food toys when I was young or miniature food jewellery during my teens. I still have many, many cupcake necklaces lying around. Also a waffle necklace (it smelt like maple syrup), pancake stack necklace, pie necklace, multiple doughnut earrings, chocolate covered banana slice ring, a giant mint chocolate chip ice cream scoop ring and other assorted rainbow sprinkle covered accessories that I searched high and low to find before Etsy came along. Now I'm feeling guilty because I haven't worn any of it in years, I'm totes wearing my waffle necklace tomorrow. Anyway, my point is that I love miniature food and I think it makes these cupcakes super cute. And everyone loves milk and cookies, they are meant to be together. Which reminds me, how amazing is this milk & cookies bar that I saw on Pinterest?! What the heck, I wish I could have come up with something that perfect.

These cupcakes are an adaptation of my usual foolproof cupcakes with chocolate chips, which I hollowed out the centre of and filled with cookie dough. The cookie dough filling is exactly how you want it to be, buttery, chewy and with no eggs so there's less to freak out about. To be honest you could skip the chocolate chips in the cupcake batter since there's plenty in the cookie dough filling but I like the idea of the whole cake tasting like the cookie while the icing tastes like the milk. And this icing is soooo sooooooooooooooooooooo good. I've been going on about the magic of sweetened condensed milk icing for years and I'm not going to stop anytime soon. It's very sweet and very naughty but it's so fluffy and so good with anything chocolate flavoured. If you're really worried about all the elements being too sweet together, just replace the unsalted butter with salted butter in the recipe, or add a little salt to taste. It was just the right amount of sweet for me and my cravings.

Milk & Chocolate Chip Cookie Cupcakes

(makes 12-15 cupcakes, cookie dough filling recipe from Annie's Eats)

For the cupcakes:
125g (1 stick plus about 1 tbsp) unsalted butter, at room temperature
155g (3/4 cup) sugar
2 eggs
225g (about 1 + 3/4 cups) self-raising flour + 1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup milk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Optional: 1/2-2/3 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (or finely chopped chocolate)

For the cookie dough filling:

55 g (4 tbsp) unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 tbsp light brown sugar, packed
1 cup plus 2 tbsp (about 135g) all-purpose flour
1/2 can (200g/7 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips (or finely chopped chocolate)

For the icing:

350g (3 sticks) unsalted butter, chopped into cubes

400g (about 3 1/4 cups) icing/confectioner's sugar, sifted

1/2 can (200g/7 oz) sweetened condensed milk

To decorate: milk bottle candies, mini chocolate chip cookies

Prepare the cookie dough filling. If you want to bake the dough into the actual cupcake batter, then you will need to freeze it the night before. If you are like me and just want to hollow out your cooked cupcakes and fill them with the cookie dough filling then it only needs to be done right before baking. Place butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on high until smooth and fluffy. Add flour, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla and beat again until combined. Stir in mini chocolate chips. Wrap mixture in cling film and refrigerate until it firms up a bit.

Make the chocolate chip cupcakes; Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Place sugar and butter in a food processor and pulse until smooth, then add milk, eggs, flour, salt and vanilla and pulse until just smooth. (If you don't have a processor, cream butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer at high speed, beat in eggs one at a time and then fold juice, flour, salt into the mixture until smooth.) Stir chocolate chips into the mixture with a spatula and then spoon into a 12-hole cupcake tray lined with papers. (If you are baking frozen cookie dough into the batter, fill cases less so you end up with about 15 cupcakes and place a 2 tbsp ball of frozen cookie dough into the centre of each, I did not do it this way so no guarantees it will turn out the same!) Bake for about 20 minutes or until cupcakes are golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre of a cupcake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool in tin for 5 minutes and then cool completely on a wire rack.

If you didn't bake the dough into the cakes, hollow out the centre of each cupcake using a small knife, then fill each centre with about 2 tbsp of the prepared cookie dough filling. Prepare the icing; remove the butter from the fridge about 30 mins before starting. Place butter in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on high until smooth and fluffy, then reduce speed and gradually add icing sugar. Beat again on high until well combined. Add condensed milk and beat on high until fluffy. Place in a piping bag fitted with a 1cm round tip and pipe swirls on top of cupcakes. Use a spoon that you have heated under hot water to flatten the centre of each icing swirl. Decorate top of cupcake with milk bottle candies and mini choc chip cookies. Can be served immediately or stored in the fridge in an airtight container for several days. Remove from the fridge 30 mins before serving.