Bake at 400°F, allow to cool, grab everything,… and throw it all away!

which is more or less my mood right now. I was so excited when i saw this, and i was even more when lovely Holly helped me find the recipe. I had to try it. it’s almost pure chocolate, who wouldn’t love it?

(i wonder why the hell i keep asking myself stupid questions, questions whose answers btw i already know, deep inside of me)

my excitement was killed hip and thigh. i’m so frustrated that i’m not even sure about posting this. i’m angry, too.

whatever

 

Chocolate mousse cake

adapted from here

 

Ingredients

for a 8-inch (20,5 cm) round pan* – serves 8

 

1/4 pound (115 g) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

1/3 cup hot brewed espresso or strong brewed coffee

7 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

2/3 cup (133 g) sugar

2 pinches of salt (i used 1)

4 large eggs, separated

 

cocoa powder for dusting

whipped cream of vanilla ice cream to serve with

 

 

Method:

(i’ll tell you how i did it)

generously butter the sides of a cake ring, then place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (tip: to prevent parchment paper from moving or slipping, slightly butter the corners of the baking sheet, or “draw” a sort of internal the perimeter 2 inches away from the edge of the baking sheet, then press the paper against the baking sheet, so the little butter you used will act as glue and allow the paper to stay where it’s supposed to) ; preheat oven to 400°F (200°C);

in a microwave safe bowl put chocolate, and allow to melt (it’ll take it around 90 seconds to melt, stop the microwave every 30 seconds and stir the chocolate to keep it from burning);

meanwhile prepare the coffee (i made it with a machine – of course mine is way more essential and simple, and the amount was about one scant coffee cup – it equaled 3-4 coffees of the kind you get in italian cafees, which, let’s say it, is quite an invisible amount of coffee – just complaining, i’m stopping, right);

when the chocolate is completely melted add the hot coffee and then butter, tablespoon by tablespoon, stirring well to incorporate it evenly;

gently whisk in sugar, a pinch of salt, and the egg yolks, one at a time;

in a separate bowl whisk the egg whites (the should be firm but still glossy);

Very gingerly whisk about ¼ of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Switch to a rubber spatula, and gently fold in the rest of the whites.

Scrape a generous third of the mixture into the buttered ring on the baking sheet. Cover and refrigerate the remaining mousse.

Bake the mousse in the ring for 15 minutes, at which point it will be puffed. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack, and allow the cake to cool to room temperature. There will be a dip in the center of it. Place the cake, still on the baking sheet, in the refrigerator. (opss i skipped this, i actually didn’t have time – and my cake didn’t actually have any dip in the center either – it was right at this stage that the “omg i’m sure i’ve done something wrong and this cake will never ever turn out as it’s supposed to” feeling started. I tried to be confident – cakes can perceive your fear – and went on as if nothing {wrong} had happened)

 

Now you have a choice:

TO SERVE BAKED AND CHILLED (recommended – and actually my only option – can’t even stand the thought of eating raw eggs):

Chill the base of the cake for at least an hour (as i said above, skipped).

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Scrape the chilled mousse onto the chilled base (still on the baking sheet). Bake for 30 minutes or until top is puffed and dry (30 minutes were fine, maybe i could even have baked it for a little less time – the surface showed some little “burnt” spots). It will crack, and a knife inserted inside a crack will come out almost dry.

Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack, and cool to room temperature. Chill for at least four hours or overnight. Remove the sides of the springform pan (already done, before placing it into the refrigerator). (Run a blunt knife around the edges – i did so - or warm the pan with a hairdryer – mmm no… hairdryer should stay where they are – bathroom zone.) Carefully transfer the cake to a serving plate, and dust with cocoa. If you think there’s nothing wrong about it, well then do serve with whipped cream or ice cream. I… let’s say i wished i could save myself some calories – and i was too lazy to get down to the basement to get the spray cream.

 

or you can:

SERVE BAKED AND WARM: Bake as for "baked and chilled" (above). After you have transferred the baking sheet, with the cake on it, to a cooling rack, wait five minutes, then run a blunt knife around the edges of the cake and remove the sides of the pan. The cake will sink, so just let it settle for another five minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, and dust with cocoa. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream if desired.

SERVE CHILLED: Let the base of the cake chill thoroughly. Scrape the remaining mousse over the base. Cover and refrigerate at least six hours, or overnight.

Transfer the springform pan to a serving plate and remove the ring. (Run a knife around the edges or warm the pan with a hairdryer.) Dust with cocoa. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

    

 

enjoy (hopefully more than people did here)

i was so extremely happy with succeding in making the cake! (i had really thought it would have been a complete disaster), but as i said, now i’m just feeling like grabbing the plate and “gently fold it into the… rubbish”… :(

 

S.

 

Notes:

the recipe didn’t actually call for a cake ring. Originally it called for a springform pan without its bottom. But i didn’t have a pan of the required size, and i had read something about “not quite right” sizes and the resulting cakes. I really didn’t want my cake to be as thick as a crepe, so i wanted something with the right diameter. Seems like the cake ring worked just fine. It really is a helpful tool, because this way you always have “the right-sized pan”. So i highly recommend buying one if you have the chance to.

Here’s the scientific evidence of what i was saying before

you do not have to own an ice cream machine to make a wonderful, yummy ice cream

 

here is the most amazing, creamy, chocolate ice cream, made w/o any ice cream machine! don’t believe me? try it!

Ingredients:

it makes a huge batch, of course you can halve or quarter (as in the original) the recipe

 

adapted from here

 

1 quart (4 cups) of milk (better whole milk)

8 egg yolks

400 g  (14 oz.) dark chocolate (chopped up very finely) – i used one with 74% cocoa solids

1 1/2 cups + 1 tbsp granulated sugar

50 g (1/3 cup + 2 tbsp) unsweetened cocoa powder

vanilla extract

---

2 egg whites

4 heaping tbsp granulated sugar

 

Method:

beat egg yolks and sugar until fluffy and pale;

meanwhile bring milk to a boil, with the chopped chocolate and cocoa (stirring every now and then, so you allow chocolate to melt evenly);

gradually pour milk onto the beaten yolks and sugar, whisking constantly, until you get a nice and smooth mixture;

place over heat again, and allow to cook on low heat stirring constantly until the mixture coats the back of a spoon; do not allow it to boil or it will scrumble;

remove from heat and allow to cool completely (best overnight);

add the vanilla to the base;

start whipping the egg whites en bain marie (that’s a way to pasteurize them); gradually add the sugar and beat until stiff peaks form;

after about 10-15 minutes, when the bain marie water is hot, remove the bowl with the meringue from heat and continue beating egg whites until the bowl (and the meringue) has cooled down;

fold this into the base;

pour this mixture into a shallow, freezer safe container (better if it’s a steel bowl or so), and mix using a hand mixer every 45 minutes for the following 3 hours or so; (i personally “churn” it 2 times on the first day, and one last time after 24 hours after the second “churning”, and allow to set completely in the freezer – see also my notes here).

And there he was, tempting her, for all this time…

Until one day, finally the girl with the whisk gave in to the temptation. You win. And Chocolate Sorbet be it.

 

 

I had wanted to try it for ages. One day I told myself “go to the kitchen and get started!”. And so did I. But wait, get started with what? what recipe will i be using? there are so many out there!

Why getting things more complicated, if you can have them the easier way?

For a start, therefore, I picked his recipe. His recipes are never wrong, his a master of not just ice creams, but frozen treats and sweets in general! So it must be a success, i thought.

And it was indeed.

I have to say, though, that what really convinced me were the words written by Smitten Kitchen and referring to that Sorbet. (

This stuff is better than brownies. It’s awesomer than the fudgiest chocolate ice cream. It makes chocolate truffles taste like they’re not trying hard enough. It could send that brandied ganache home with its tail between its legs.

A little bold, isn’t it? ;)

Well, the Sorbet was indeed delicious. Dunno if it really was better than brownies and truffles and chocolate ice cream (which i all love btw). But sure it was awesome :)

David Lebovitz’s Chocolate Sorbet – no milk, no cream, no eggs, and yet delicious (perfect for allergies and stuff)

adapted from Smitten Kitchen

 

Ingredients

yelds a quart (1 liter) – I quartered the ingredients so it served 1 [my adaptations in red]

 

2 1/4 cups (555 ml - 375+180) water [93+45 ml]
1 cup (200 g) sugar [40 g]
3/4 cup (80 g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder [regular unsweetened cocoa powder, 20 g]
Pinch of salt
6 ounces (170 g) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped [42 g]
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Method:

In a large saucepan (do it: use a large one!) whisk together 1 1/2 cups (375 ml – 93 ml) of the water with the sugar, cocoa powder, and salt. Bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Let it boil, continuing to whisk, for 45 seconds.

Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate until it’s melted, then stir in the vanilla extract and the remaining 3/4 cup (180 ml – 45 ml) water. Transfer the mixture to a blender and blend for 15 seconds (i didn’t do that). Chill the mixture thoroughly (i chilled it overnight, covered with aluminum foil) [If the mixture has become too thick to pour into your machine, whisk it vigorously to thin it out.], then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Allow to set for 4 hours in your freezer to get a nice and scoopable consistency.

  

 

Variations:

Mexican Chocolate: Use Ibarra chocolate and add 1 tsp cinnamon.
Espresso-Chocolate: Use coffee in place of water, add chopped chocolate-covered coffee beans.
Aztec Chocolate: Add 1/2 tsp red pepper.
Chocolate Mint: add a splash of Creme de Menthe or a drop of peppermint extract.
Chocolate Coconut: Use coconut milk in place of the water, add 1/2 tsp coconut extract.