Chocolate Orange Mousse, with Berries

Ingredients

6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2T unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
¼ cup orange liquor
3 large egg whites, room temperature
pinch of salt
3T super fine sugar
1 cup cold heavy cream
1 cup raspberries, washed
Confectioner’s sugar for dusting

1. Place the chocolate in a medium-size heat-proof bowl and set the bowl on top of a pot of boiling water. Turn the heat off. Stir until the chocolate is melted, remove from heat, stir in the liquor and the butter. Stir until the chocolate is completely mixed and smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.

2. In a bowl of your mixer, over medium speed beat the egg whites with salt until they form soft peaks, about 2 -3 minutes. While still beating, sprinkle in the sugar by the spoonful and continue beating until soft, shining peaks are formed, about another 2-3 minutes. Set aside.

3. In a clean bowl, whip the cream until it is fairly thick and holds a soft peak.

4. Using a large spatula, gently fold about 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mix until slightly incorporated. Fold in the remaining whites. Now fold in the whipped cream gently folding until all the cream is blended in.

5. Spoon or pipe the mousse into serving dishes and refrigerate for at least an hour to firm up.

6. When ready to serve, sprinkle a few raspberries on top of the mousse. Dust with confectioner’s sugar and serve with meringue kiss cookies on the side.

TIPS & TRICKS

• Use a good dark 60% cacao chocolate.
• You can use Grand Marnier, triple sec, or Cointreau for the orange liquor. I prefer the Cointreau; it adds a clean, light orange flavor.
• Egg whites separate best when they are cold. They beat up best when they are room temperature. They can sit on your counter for hours.
• Take care when separating the egg whites to insure that there is no egg yolk in the whites. Egg yolks have fat, and fat will cause the whites to not whip up. Make sure your mixing bowl is really clean.
• Chocolate mousse can be made two days in advance. Just cover the dishes with plastic wrap. Remove the mousse from the fridge 30 minutes before serving to remove a little of the chill.

This is a Companion recipe to
Meringue Kisses recipe.
Click photo below to go to recipe.

Orange, Fennel, Black Olive Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette

Ingredients

Vinaigrette:
3T lemon juice
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp. salt
4 -5 grinds of pepper

Salad:
5 heads of fennel
4 oranges
½ cup black olives pitted
4 cups arugula

1. Vinaigrette: In a small glass jar with a lid, add the lemon juice, and olive oil, salt and pepper. Put on the lid and shake until the dressing is emulsified.

2. Salad: Cut the fennel bulbs from the tough fronds. Reserve a few fronds for decoration. Slice the fennel bulbs in half, remove the core; using your food processor with the thin slicing blade, slice the bulbs into thin slices and then place into a large salad bowl. Reserve

3. Peel the oranges, removing any pith and seeds. Slice into ½ moons. Place in bowl with sliced fennel.

4. Add the pitted olives and arugula. Add just enough dressing to coat the salad. Add salt and pepper if necessary to taste.

5. Place the dressed salad on a platter or individual plates. Serve immediately.

TIPS & TRICKS

• You can substitute a white wine or champagne vinegar for the lemon juice.
• You can use orange or blood orange olive oil for a little added orange flavor.
• Try to buy olives with the pits in them. The pits help keep the olive flesh firm, not squishy. Remove the pit by pressing the olive with the side of your chef’s knife. The pit will pop out.
• The vinaigrette, fennel, and oranges can be prepared the day in advance. Just toss everything together right before serving.
• I find the best way to toss a salad is with your hands. Always add just a little dressing and then toss. You can always add more dressing if needed.
• You could add goat cheese, feta, chopped nuts, dried cranberries, or pomegranate seeds for a pop of flavor and will complement the salad nicely.

Raspberry & Peach Short Cake

Ingredients

Pastry
2½ cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1T baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. zest of orange
4 oz. butter cut into pieces, chilled
1 cup heavy cream
1egg, beaten
sugar to sprinkle on top

Topping
2 cup raspberries berries, washed
2 cups peaches peeled and sliced
3T granulated sugar
½ cup Amaretto Liquor
2 cups heavy cream
¼ cups Confectioner’s sugar
1tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 400° F.

2. Pastry: In a large bowl add the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and orange zest mix, until combined.

3. With a pastry blender, a fork or your fingers work the butter into the dry ingredients until it is small pieces

4. Add the heavy cream and stir just until the mixture come together, don’t over mix.

5. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface; roll dough out ½ inch thick. Cut with a 3-inch biscuit cutter and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush with the beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar.

6. Bake at 400° F for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

7. Topping: In a small bowl, toss the berries and peaches with the sugar and Amaretto and allow to sit and hour.

8. In a mixing bowl, beat the heavy cream, confectioner’s sugar, and vanilla until soft peaks form.

9. Assemble: Spilt the short cake biscuits in half, place the bottom on plate or platter, top with boozy fruit, whipped cream and then the top with biscuit top.

10. Serve and enjoy!

TIPS & TRICKS

• Shortcake is best made the day you will eat it.

• I like to stir in the heavy cream with a spoon, but finish incorporating it with hands which seems to work better for me.

• Rolling out the dough to a ½ inch thick will yield 10 cakes, then gather the remaining dough bits and shape into 2 additional cakes. If you wish thicker short cakes, just roll out the dough not as thin.

• I topped the short cakes, with Swedish pearl sugar, which doesn’t melt in the oven. It adds a nice crunch and looks pretty. You can purchase it at: www.kingarthurflour.com You can also top the cakes with turbinado, demerara, or even plain granulated sugar. It will give you a little sweetness to the top of the cake but will melt away and not add the pretty white crystal.

• The fruit is best tossed with the liqueur and sugar 1-2 hours before serving, any longer and the fruit will macerate into small pieces, which tastes good but isn’t really attractive, any left over fruit/sauce is great on yogurt or ice cream.

• Substitute any summer fruit for this recipe. Berries and stone fruit are wonderful.

• You can also use frozen fruit. Defrost on a baking sheet, this way the fruit keeps its shape.

• You can substitute different liqueurs too. Cointreau, Cassis, or rum are delicious.

Orange & Pistachio Semifreddo

Ingredients

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla 

4 egg yolks, room temperature
4T granulated sugar

¼ cup Cointreau
1T orange zest
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon shelled pistachios, medium chop/dice

4 egg whites, room temperature
pinch of salt
¼ tsp. cream of tartar

¾ cup granulated sugar
½ cup water

1.    Line a 9x5-inch loaf pan with a 12x20-inch piece of plastic wrap; the wrap should hang over the long edges by 4 inches, and it will not completely cover the short ends. Press the plastic into the corners. Set aside.

2.    Cream: Place the bowl and beaters of your mixer in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to chill. Then, beat the heavy whipping cream on high speed until the cream forms stiff peaks, about 4-6 minutes. Gently fold in the vanilla. Place back in the refrigerator. 

3.    Zabaglione: Place a medium saucepan filled with about 2 inches of water on the stove and bring to a boil. In a heat resistant medium-size bowl, beat the egg yolks and 4 tablespoons of sugar with a whisk or hand mixer until combined.

4.    Place this bowl on top of the water-filled saucepan and turn the heat to medium (water should not touch the bottom of the bowl). Beat continuously until mixture is thick and pale yellow. The batter should make ribbons as it falls off the beater/whisk, about 5 minutes. (You may need to remove the bowl occasionally from the heat to prevent the eggs from scrambling.)

5.    Remove from heat and gently fold in the Cointreau, orange zest, and the ½ cup of pistachios. Set aside.

6.    Meringue: In a clean mixing bowl with the beater, slowly beat the egg whites until foamy, about a minute. Then add the salt and cream of tartar. Increase the speed slightly and beat until soft peaks are formed, about 3-4 minutes. Turn off the mixer.

7.    In a small saucepan with a lid, over medium-high heat, add the granulated sugar and water.  Bring the mixture to a boil, swirling the pan until the sugar is dissolved. Do not stir!  Cover with the lid and boil to the thread stage*, about 5 minutes, to make sugar syrup.

8.    Turn the mixer back on to low and slowly add the sugar syrup. Once the syrup is incorporated, increase the speed to high and beat until the mixture is cool and shiny, stiff peaks are formed.

9.    Using a large spatula, gently fold in ¼ of the meringue into the zabaglione. When almost completely incorporated, add the remaining meringue. Continue folding the mixture until fully incorporated.

10.    Fold in the whipped cream.

11.    Place the mixture into the prepared loaf pan and smooth out the top with an off set spatula. Cover the top with the plastic wrap and place in freezer for 8 hours.

12.    To serve, unwrap the loaf and invert the loaf pan on to a platter. Pull down slightly on the plastic wrap as you lift the loaf pan. Remove the plastic wrap. If there are wrinkles, dip a knife or offset spatula into a little warm water and run over the surface to smooth them.

13.    Garnish with the tablespoon of pistachios. Cut into slices and serve immediately.

TIPS & TRICKS

•    *We are cooking the sugar and water together to make a sugar syrup. To test if your syrup has cooked enough, take a small amount of the syrup and drop it into a cup of cold-water. Little threads should appear. 
•    Carefully add the sugar to your egg whites, trying not to hit the beater as you add the hot syrup. 
•    You can test the temperature of the meringue by placing your hand on the bottom of the mixing bowl. When it is cool to the touch, the meringue is ready.
•    This is called an Italian meringue. It also makes a fantastic icing for cakes & cupcakes.
•    This semifreddo can be made several days in advance. Store in your freezer until ready to serve.