Finding ourselves falling behind schedule due to injuries, work travel, and life in general, we decided to take the show on the road with us to Scottsdale, AZ. Special thanks go to Grandma Lena for sharing her kitchen with us, and also to our sous chef, Houdini.
We were able to turn the ingredients for chocolate mousse with chili and mango into a tasty dessert, but we might need to work a bit more on our technique since what we made could hardly be called a mousse.
Everything started out great...ish.
Melt butter and infuse with red chilies for 30 minutes or so. Check.
Remember to wash your hands thoroughly so you don’t burn your eyeballs while taking out your contacts later. Fail.
Pour infused butter (chilies strained out) over 72% dark chocolate and melt over a double boiler. Check.
Remove chocolate and combine egg yolks and sugar over the double boiler. Beat with an electric mixer for 10 minutes or until your hand feels like it’s going to fall off. Check and check.
Fold egg mixture into the melted chocolate, along with hand-whipped cream. Fail.
(Why, yes, that is an In-N-Out cup you see on the counter)
This is where we realized things had gone awry. The mixture was either overcooked or over-beaten, causing it to be somewhat chunky, for lack of a better word. It’s not really as bad as it sounds, but there was less folding and more stirring needed to get the lumps out, which made it difficult to keep the mousse fluffy.
Nevertheless, finally satisfied with the texture, we spooned the mousse into serving dishes and let it chill in the fridge for a couple hours while we went wine tasting at Scottsdale’s first (and only) winery.
Houdini had it under control so when we came back all we had to do was top it with slices of fresh mango and serve to our eager diners, Mom and Pat.
The lumps managed to work themselves out of the finished product but the consistency was more like ganache than mousse (some fancy terminology I picked up from Iron Chef). Letting it sit out for 15 minutes to soften up made it taste much more moussey (moussier?). The chili butter gives just the right level of heat and the mango cuts through the richness of the chocolate. Who knew mangoes and chocolate would make such a great team?! And, since it’s got fruit, this chocolate mousse is good for you too!** Yeah, I would try this one again.
Continuing with desserts, Gordon’s rice pudding is coming up next.
**This statement has not been verified by the FDA.
We were able to turn the ingredients for chocolate mousse with chili and mango into a tasty dessert, but we might need to work a bit more on our technique since what we made could hardly be called a mousse.
Everything started out great...ish.
Melt butter and infuse with red chilies for 30 minutes or so. Check.
Remember to wash your hands thoroughly so you don’t burn your eyeballs while taking out your contacts later. Fail.
Pour infused butter (chilies strained out) over 72% dark chocolate and melt over a double boiler. Check.
Remove chocolate and combine egg yolks and sugar over the double boiler. Beat with an electric mixer for 10 minutes or until your hand feels like it’s going to fall off. Check and check.
Fold egg mixture into the melted chocolate, along with hand-whipped cream. Fail.
(Why, yes, that is an In-N-Out cup you see on the counter)
This is where we realized things had gone awry. The mixture was either overcooked or over-beaten, causing it to be somewhat chunky, for lack of a better word. It’s not really as bad as it sounds, but there was less folding and more stirring needed to get the lumps out, which made it difficult to keep the mousse fluffy.
Nevertheless, finally satisfied with the texture, we spooned the mousse into serving dishes and let it chill in the fridge for a couple hours while we went wine tasting at Scottsdale’s first (and only) winery.
Houdini had it under control so when we came back all we had to do was top it with slices of fresh mango and serve to our eager diners, Mom and Pat.
The lumps managed to work themselves out of the finished product but the consistency was more like ganache than mousse (some fancy terminology I picked up from Iron Chef). Letting it sit out for 15 minutes to soften up made it taste much more moussey (moussier?). The chili butter gives just the right level of heat and the mango cuts through the richness of the chocolate. Who knew mangoes and chocolate would make such a great team?! And, since it’s got fruit, this chocolate mousse is good for you too!** Yeah, I would try this one again.
Continuing with desserts, Gordon’s rice pudding is coming up next.
**This statement has not been verified by the FDA.
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