mousse Archives - The White Ramekins

What else could be a better way to welcome the new year 2014, other than making something out of luscious and beautiful strawberries. I had already thought about how I am going to start my new year this time, when I saw this wonderful white chocolate mousse with strawberries recipe in Nigella Lawson’s show on TV sometime back.

Chocolate pairs so well with strawberries and we all know that. And it just takes me back to the memory lanes of my childhood, whenever there is a mention of white chocolate. I suppose every kid has a huge crush on that big bar of Nestle’s Miklybar white chocolate, and I was no different.

White chocolate isn’t any chocolate, but does that bother a kid? Nah, it still remains my most loved chocolate from childhood. Kids are like that, carefree with an honest living of life to the fullest.

And that is the spirit, I want to embark this year with. Completely invigorated, living life to the fullest, as the new year brings hope and a meaning to life! A very happy and prosperous new year 2014 to all you wonderful people!

Ingredients

300 gm white chocolate
100 ml milk
2 egg whites
3 tbsp sugar
200 ml cream
1 vanilla bean, slit
400 gm strawberries, hulled and sliced
2 tbsp icing sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
few mint leaves for garnish

Directions

To make, macerated strawberries, toss strawberries, icing sugar and lemon juice in a bowl and keep aside for an hour. Adjust sugar depending upon the tartness of berries.
To make mousse, melt the chocolate with milk and scraped vanilla bean caviar on a double boiler and keep aside to let cool to room temperature.
Beat egg whites to soft peaks. Add 3 tbsp sugar and continue to beat egg whites to form hard peaks, until glossy and smooth.
Beat cream a to make soft peaks.
Gently fold in the egg white mixture followed by cream in melted chocolate.
Divide the mousse into serving glasses and let chill in fridge for an hour.
Top the mousse with macerated strawberries and garnish with mint leaves, when about to serve.

Late last year I brought home a Kamquat plant, then fledgling. I kept it in the balcony, nurtured it with enough sunlight, hoping it to bear the fruits one day and to try out some new delish recipes with it. Passing each day, it grew up more and more with new shrubs coming out.And now it has born three pretty colorful so orange-y fruits. But not enough to be plucked and cooked. And they are so tart and bitter that you wouldn’t dare to eat them straight. But they are so perfect to go into marmalade.

I was having this discussion with Deeba about my silly hope to get the loads of fruit from the tree the other day and how much I am inspired to see her Jam making and other recipes using this tart and bitter fruit. And she is such a kind lady that she sent me a bag full of fruits last Friday.

I was all set to try out cooking with them over the weekend. I decided to make them sugared, as this was the most easy way I could cook them. I served them with this lusciously smooth dark chocolate mousse. It came out to be a really nice combination. I still have some fruit left in my fridge and I am hoping to bake some cake pretty soon, as they can last for a week in fridge.

Ingredients

170 gm bittersweet chocolate
1/4 cup water
3 large egg whites
1/2 cup sliced fresh kamquats
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup whipping cream

Instructions

Chop the chocolate and heat it with water in a heavy bottom saucepan until the chocolate melts through.
Keep it aside to let it cool down a bit.
In a bowl, whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Add 1/4 cup of the sugar and whisk more to form stiff peaks.
Fold in the melted chocolate into the egg whites. Pour the mixture into 4 ramekins and let them set in fridge for at least 6 hours or overnight.
Mix kamquats and remaining sugar into a saucepan. Let stand for 10 minutes and then stir slowly on a low heat until sugar dissolves. Cove and chill for 2 hours.
Beat chilled whipping cream to form soft peaks. Spoon the whipped cream over mousse and top with kamquats and their syrup.

White Chocolate Mousse With Macerated Strawberries

Dark Chocolate Mousse With Sugared Kamquats