Rancho Lemon Mousse

Rancho Lemon Mousse
Source: Maida Heatter's Best Dessert Book Ever (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1997 ed.), pg. 367.

Very light and tangy tart, this is a great dessert to serve during the hot summer. It is made with both sour cream and whipped cream. Fresh lemons are a must!

There is a lot of mixing here (the whipped cream, egg whites, lemon mixture) and it can get hectic figuring out what is what. Do read the instructions closely and have your mixing bowls ready. I have two bowls for my stand mixer - I wish I had a third one for this recipe.

This can be made a day ahead or at least 4 hours ahead.

6 large eggs, separated
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
3 TBS. plus 1/3 cup cold water
1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup sugar
Finely grated zest of 2 lemons
3/4 cup lemon juice
1 cup sour cream
1 cup whipping cream
1/8 tsp. salt

Beat the eggs at high speed for about 4-5 minutes, until they are pale in color.

 

Dissolve the gelatin in 3 tablespoons of water and let it stand.

Dissolve the 1/4 cup of sugar in the 1/3 cup of water until the mixture comes to a boil. Let it boil for 3 minutes. Add the gelatin and remove from the heat.

Add the lemon zest and the lemon juice - stir.

Place the sour cream in a bowl and stir in the lemon mixture.

Add about half of the sour cream mixture to the egg yolks a little at a time.

Then add the egg mixture back into the bowl with the sour cream mixture.

Sit the bowl in a larger bowl of ice water. Stir with a rubber spatula until the mixture starts to thicken (do not let it set). (I wasn't sure if I was stirring this enough but it was okay - just stir for a few minutes until you can tell that it is getting a little thicker).

In a clean, chilled bowl (chill your beaters too!), beat the whipping cream until it holds a shape.
Set aside.

Now, in a separate bowl (also chilled), add the egg whites and slowly add the remaining 1/3 cup of sugar. Beat until the whites hold a shape.

After the sour cream mixture has started to thicken, remove it from the ice and fold about half of it into the whipped cream.

Gradually fold the whipped cream AND the yolk mixture into the beaten egg whites.

Pour into serving bowls or wine glasses and let it chill for at least 4 hours. (I used a plastic bag cut at the corner so that I could pipe it into my glasses).

Frozen Chocolate Mousse

Source: Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2006 ed.), pg. 228.

Here is a dessert sure to make any chocoholic swoon. Silky and decadent, this frozen mousse is like a rich chocolate ice cream. It is really easy to make - all the folding required will give you a workout but it is worth it! The crust can be made with crushed wafer cookies or you could even buy a ready-made crust. If doing your own, the instructions say to apply the crumbs around the sides of the pan (use a springform pan) but I did not do this - I just made a bottom layer. You will have to run a sharp knife around the pan before releasing the catch on the pan.

The mousse is soft (even after freezing) and it will need to be put back in the freezer as soon as possible after serving. Maida Heatter recommends covering the mousse with either whipped cream, strawberries or chocolate leaves. I did not do either, it looks lovely without a topping.

Crust

8 oz. chocolate wafer cookies
3 oz. (3/4 stick) butter, melted

Chocolate Wafer cookies can be purchased or you can make your own (try this recipe) To make the crust: Butter the sides only of a 9 x 3 springform pan. Do not butter the bottom. Crush the cookies to a fine powder and combine with the melted butter. Pat about 2/3 of the cookie mixture around the sides of the pan. Place the remaining crumbs on the bottom of the pan and pat down firmly. Bake for 7 or 8 minutes, remove from the oven and cool.

Chocolate Mousse

1 TBS. dry instant coffee
1/2 cup boiling water
1 1/4 cups sugar
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
4 large eggs, separated
3 cups whipping cream
Pinch of salt
1/8 tsp. cream of tartar

In a 2-qt pan, dissolve the coffee in the boiling water.

Add 1/2 cup (reserve 3/4 cup) of the sugar and stir until dissolved.

Add the chocolate (over low heat) and stir until smooth.

Remove the pan from the heat and allow it to cool slightly.
Add the egg yolks, one at a time, and stir until blended.

Whip the cream until it holds a shape but it not dry. (Chilling your bowl and beaters helps)
Set the whipping cream mixture aside for later.

In a separate bowl (or clean the one you just used), beat the egg whites until they are foamy. Add the salt and cream of tartar and beat until the egg whites hold a soft shape. Add the reserved sugar a little at a time on low speed.

Increase the speed and beat until the meringue is firm, but not stiff or dry. The meringue will be firm and glossy.

Pour a little of the chocolate into the egg whites and fold together. Do this in several additions. Leave some of the chocolate in the bowl.

Now fold the batter into the remaining chocolate.

Add the whipping cream mixture to the chocolate and fold in.

Pour the batter over the crust and smooth the top. Sit it in the freezer for an hour and then cover airtight with plastic wrap. Freeze overnight or up to 2 weeks.

Chocolate Applesaucers

Chocolate Applesaucers
Source: Maida Heatter's Cookies (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1997 ed.), pg. 43.

Spices and chocolate always seem like an odd mixture to me but these cookies make it work. They are large cookies (you could probably make them smaller). They are very soft and chewy. The icing is also quite delicious but use it fast because it thickens quickly. They keep well in an airtight container or ziploc bag. Since they are so soft, they crumble easily, so this is not a cookie that travels well.

2 1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. instant coffee
2 TBS. boiling water
1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
1 1/2 cups smooth applesauce
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup walnuts, cut into small pieces

Preheat oven to 350 and line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Dissolve the instant coffee in the boiling water and set aside.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves. Set aside.

Beat the butter and add the sugar. Mix well.

Add eggs, one at a time, until well mixed.

Add the cocoa.

Add the coffee.

Add the applesauce.

Add the sifted flour mixture, scraping the bowl as necessary, until well blended.

Add the raisins and the nuts.

Use a 1/4 measuring cup to measure the dough for each cookie and place 5 mounds on each cookie sheet. (These are large cookies) Bakes for 20-25 minutes, reversing the sheets in the oven about halfway through. Transfer cookies to cookie rack to cool. Prepare the icing.

Chocolate Icing

1/2 cups confectioner's sugar (sifted)
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
Pinch of salt
5 1/3 tsp. unsalted butter, melted
3 TBS. boiling water

Place sugar, cocoa and salt in bowl of an electric mixer (I used a hand-held mixer for this). Add the melted butter and the boiling water and beat until smooth. Add more sugar if the icing is too thin or more hot water if it is too thick.

Spoon the icing on each cookie, spreading it over the center of the cookie. Let the cookies stand until the icing has set.

86-Proof Cake

86-Proof Cake

Source: Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2006 ed.), pg. 47.

One of her more popular recipes, Maida describes this cake as "moist and luscious". It is dense and rich and there is no need for icing. The liquor (I used scotch whiskey) is potent and compliments the chocolate flavor very well. She recommends using a fancy pan for it. I just used my plain Bundt pan. I did not add the confectioners sugar but would do so if serving to guests.

• 5 ounces (5 squares) unsweetened chocolate
• 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup espresso or dry instant coffee
• Boiling water
• Cold water
• ½ cup bourbon (or rum, amaretto, scotch whiskey, Cognac)
• ½ pound (1 stick) sweet butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 3 eggs (large or extra large)
• Additional bourbon (optional)
• Confectioner's sugar (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325 (use the lower rack). Butter a 9" Bundt pan and dust with fine, dry bread crumbs.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over hot water.

Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In a 2-cup measuring cup, dissolve the expresso or coffee in a few tablespoons of hot water.

Add cold water up to the 1 1/2 mark.

Add the boubon. Set aside.

Cream the butter and add the sugar.

Add the vanilla.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until smooth.

Add the melted chocolate. Beat until smooth.

On low speed, add the flour mixture alternately with...

the liquid mixture.

The mixture will be thin - pour it into the prepared pan.

Rotate the pan briskly to level the batter.

Bake for 50 -65 minutes (or until a tester comes out clean). Cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Carefully invert and remove the cake and place it on a cooling rack to cool completely. You can sprinkle with a bit more liquor if you like. Before serving, dust with confectioners sugar (if desired).

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