Paper Palate

This weekend, many families are planning their special Mother’s Day menus. Considering these preparations will likely include several extravagantly detailed dishes to be served, dessert needs to be simple. In this week’s Chicago Tribune, Wolfgang Puck gives us a brief primer on making chocolate mousse at home.

Chef Puck provides helpful hints, including the best way to beat the egg whites to ensure perfect chocolate mousse every time. It is important to beat clean egg whites with the sugar and to use cream of tartar to aid in their stiffening. It is equally important to use very cold cream when making the whipped cream to be folded gently into the egg white and melted chocolate mixture. Finally, it is necessary to allow ample time to chill the mousse before serving. Using Chef Puck’s very easy for Bittersweet Chocolate Mousse, you can present a classic, yet simple dessert that any Mom will enjoy! (I dusted mine with confectioner’s sugar.)

BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
(recipe courtesy of The Chicago Tribune)

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 3 minutes
Yield: 6 servings

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups whipping cream plus more for garnish
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
4 whites of pasteurized eggs, see note
1/8 teaspoon each: cream of tartar, salt
1/4 cup sugar

Heat half of the cream to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat; pour the cream over the chocolate in a large bowl, making sure all of the chocolate is covered with cream. Set aside 1 minute. Slowly stir the mixture together with a heatproof spatula until blended; set aside.

Beat the egg whites with a mixer on medium speed until whites begin to foam, about 2 minutes. Beat in the cream of tartar and the salt, beating until soft peaks form, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle in the sugar, beating just until stiff (but not dry) peaks form, about 4 minutes. Gently fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture with a spatula until blended.

Add the remaining cream to the bowl used to beat the egg whites; beat on medium speed until soft peaks form, about 3 minutes. Gently fold the whipped cream into the egg white-chocolate mixture.

Spoon the mousse into individual parfait glasses, ramekins or small bowls. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate until well chilled and firmly set, at least 2 hours. Garnish with whipped cream, if desired.

Note: Due to the possible presence of salmonella, pasteurized eggs are recommneded for mousse. They are available in large supermarkets in the egg department.

Nutrition information per serving: 382 calories, 66% of calories from fat, 29 g fat, 18 g saturated fat, 81 mg cholesterol, 29 g carbohydrates, 5 g protein, 115 mg sodium, 0.3 g fiber. Copyright ©2006, Chicago Tribune