Friday, July 8, 2022

A Light Summer Dessert

 One of the yummiest and lightest desserts is chocolate mousse>it's like a puff of sweet air in the mouth>it's silky and airy, perfect for summer. its a great end to any summer meal.

Food writer and regular contributor Genevieve Ko wrote about this classically French dessert in Wednesday's New York Times Food section.Mousse is the perfect end to any hot weather meal.It's light , not dense like cakes and cupcakes, and doesn't heave an aftertaste like ice cream does. She looks to French home chefs for the recipe where it's treated the same way American home chefs treat their chocolate chip cookie recipe. The recipe followed is usually on the back of cheap candy bars.Every family has one. It's not the elegant dessert we have elevated it to. Order mousse in a restaurant and it comes in a martini glass, , topped with whipped cream, chocolate curls and a sprig of mint. In France it's served like any family dessert in a big bowl where people can scoop out as much as they like.It's also not perfect, The French sometimes leaves pockets of  unblended egg white that can be easily mixed in.

Ms. Ko received the recipe from her Gallic friend , Cecile. Hers has foamy egg yolks and extra airy egg whites. The eggs should be completely separated in two bowls so not to have yellows in the whites and vice versa.Mousses should have richness , some add butter but this will make the texture too dense. Ms. Ko advises stick with a heavy cream. Of course chocolate is a big ingredient. Use a dark chocolate meant for eating or confections and not baker's chocolate. The last has a higher proportion of cacao solids which will make for a dense and possibly gritty mousse. Use a bar with a seventy to seventy-four percentage cacao however you can use the one you love to eat. It'll make for a tastier flavor.Cook the chocolate and cream together and then add the egg yolks afterwards one yolk at a time. The whites should have been whipped in a standing mixer . Sugar is added to them to create a meringue. Fold the two mixtures together using smart gentle folding.Fold the whites over the chocolate and don;t over do it. It will give you a light texture. Run the bowl clockwise for even folding and mixing.

A good summer dessert should be airy and light like this mousse. Try it for a lovely , fluffy bite. It's the perfect end to any not weather meal.