The Cook's Corner Blog: questions

Showing posts with label questions. Show all posts

Wednesday

An Economical Chocolate Mousse Recipe

A READER from South Africa asks for an economical chocolate mousse recipe.

It's hard to know which of the usual chocolate mousse ingredients are expensive in other countries: Is it butter? Cream? Chocolate? Sugar? Eggs? Vanilla?

Is it the equipment?

It just so happens that my favorite chocolate mousse recipe (which is different from the one in my chocolate mousse cake – though you could certainly use it there) calls for no cream and no butter, and that's just about as economical as you can get, at least on this continent.

As far as equipment is concerned, if you don't have an electric mixer, a whisk will certainly do.

And not only that, but it's absolutely delicious, and it's the one I served in all my restaurants, in little pots. In my San Miguel de Allende (Mexico) restaurant, we used to put a surprise in the bottom – a chocolate-covered coffee bean, maybe, or a mint chocolate candy, or just a small chunk of chocolate. We also played with different liqueurs. Both the liqueur and the surprise changed every week.

Here is that chocolate mousse recipe:

For 5 or 6 small pots

4 or 5 very fresh eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup plus 1 TB sugar (40 g)
6 squares (6 oz) semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate (180 g)
3 TB strong coffee OR liqueur* OR brandy (45 ml)
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

MELT chocolate in top of double boiler; add coffee or booze, stir, add vanilla. Don't stir too much. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

SEPARATE the eggs, putting the yolks in the top of a double boiler or a bowl that fits over a pot with hot water in it. The whites go in a squeaky clean bowl, or in the mixer bowl, for whipping.

ADD the 1/2 cup of sugar to the yolks and beat until light and fluffy. Put over water (the bottom must not touch the water and if the water is boiling, take the pot off the heat). Leave for 3 or 4 minutes, or until lukewarm right through and the sides of the bowl are sticky. (I remember that the latter detail was added by my cook, after she'd made the mousse for several years, as a clue for apprentices.)

MOVE yolk-sugar mixture to an ice bath (a larger bowl with ice cubes and water in it), and stir until cool and thick.

ADD chocolate mixture to yolk mixture, stir well. Make sure it's cool before proceeding with the next step.

BEAT the egg whites until stiff, adding the 1 TB of sugar about halfway through.

STIR 1/4 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture to loosen it, then gradually fold in the rest of the egg whites with a spatula, in 5 or 6 batches.

SPOON or pipe into individual pots or into one beautiful serving bowl.

SERVE decorated with a dot of whipped cream, an edible flower, a sprig of mint, a dusting of icing sugar – or nothing at all.

REFRIGERATE for at least 3 hours, and preferably overnight.

ENJOY the compliments!

* Some of the liqueurs we have used include: coffee, orange, mint or chocolate; but a shot of very strong coffee works just as well.

CLICK HERE FOR THE PRINTABLE VERSION (PDF)

Monday

Readers' Questions 4

Q. My beef stock isn't brown. Why? (From South Yarra, Australia)

A. Did you brown the meat and vegetables enough, as specified in the recipe? Afterwards, did you scrape the brown bits at the bottom of the pan when you added the water? It's that caramelization that provides the brown color and the deep flavor to the stock.

Q. Do I stir the boeuf bourguignon in the stock pot? (From San Francisco, California, USA)

A. In a word, No.

Q. Why don't you add salt to beef stock? (From Davenport, Iowa, USA)

A. Because the stock reduces so much during cooking that it would end up too salty, or ruin the dish that you're adding it to.

This is a good place to apply the saying, "When in doubt, don't!"

Readers' Questions 3

Q. Why is my beef bourguignon too dry? (From Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA)

A. That's a very complicated question. You don't say what cut you used, how you cooked it and for how long. All those have a direct effect on the result. Please write again, and be more specific.

Q. My homemade noodles are very heavy. (From White Plains, NY, USA)

A. If you're using an all-semolina recipe, try my recipe, it's 50% semolina and 50% flour, which makes it lighter. Pasta made with semolina has more body, and you may not be used to that. In that case, switch to an all-flour recipe.

First, check the thickness of your pasta. If you're using a pasta maker, switching to a higher number may solve your problem. I use No. 5 for fettucine and lasagna and No. 6 for ravioli and won ton.

Q. My beef bourguignon didn't thicken. Why? (From Williams Lake, British Columbia, Canada)

A. You don't say what you used as a thickener. If you rolled the beef in flour before browning it, chances are you'll have to use a thickener at the end. Beurre manié is the traditional one (I use it in my own recipe).

Have you ever tried thickening a sauce with corn starch? You dilute a few spoonfuls of corn starch in some water and add it bit by bit to the sauce, stirring all the time, until you get the thickness you want. Simmer for one minute to cook the starch and that's it.

This new slow cooker recipe recommends minute tapioca, but you have to add it at the beginning. It worked beautifully when I cooked that boeuf bourguignon in the crock pot, and I'm sure it would work equally well in the classic oven-baked version.

Sunday

Saturday

Questions From Our Readers

Q. How much water must you add on a cube of beef stock? (From Bahrain)

A. Have you tried reading the label? I checked at the store and every single brand of beef, chicken and vegetable bouillon had very precise directions. I happen to have a package of Knorr chicken cubes at home. Each cube weighs 12 grams and the directions read: “HOW TO PREPARE: Dissolve 1 cube in 2 cups (550 mL) boiling water.” There’s also a phone number and a website URL. So, if your cubes weigh 12 grams, you should dissolve them in 2 cups or 550 mL of boiling water.

Q. What is the best cut of beef for beef bourguignon? (From New York, NY, USA)

A. The chuck, from the shoulder, has the ideal texture and marbling. I sometimes use cross-rib because my butcher often has it at a discount; it has a texture that I like but you have to watch it because it can dry out. Avoid any cut that is too lean. You need some fat and gristle for the long, slow cooking.