On Thursday, I’m heading off on my first adventure of 2018, a 10-day jaunt to Nicaragua. I have been stocking up on dubious “necessities” like a new beach bag and espadrille flats and some swim cover-ups for awhile now, but it’s really here and I cannot wait to hike some volcanoes, eat some delicious food and generally just be horizontal the vast majority of the time.
But before I go, how about one more no-chew dessert for old times’ sake?
This is the last of the puddings and mousses, I promise- I’ve already moved on to flour and baking powder and ovens. But this last mousse I made is just too tasty and special not to share. I found this recipe in the book The Sweet Life, which is chock full of amazing – and sometimes kind of unusual – dessert ideas. A lot of the recipes are also a little bit of a technical challenge, which I sometimes appreciate when I’m looking to undertake a Sunday afternoon project / pretend I’m on the Great British Baking Show (these two things typically go hand in hand).
A few weeks prior to attempting this, I made David Liebovitz’s absolutely insane caramel-chocolate mousse. It was delicious, obviously, and incredibly rich, but also very light in texture because its leavening comes from egg whites. That is pretty customary for chocolate mousse. This recipe, however, uses a different technique- gelatin and whipped cream.
As you might imagine, this makes for a much thicker, sturdier mousse. But when it’s paired with flavors like caramel and cinnamon, which aren’t as rich as chocolate, it works exceptionally well. It also tastes impressively like caramel, which can be a subtle flavor, and tough to capture. Combined with the cinnamon (a little unusual, right?) it almost hints at coconut, but when you really think about it you realize it’s burnt sugar and spice.
My piping skills certainly leave something to be desired (another 2018 kitchen resolution, perhaps) but I still think these little pudding cups look pretty adorable with some dark chocolate shaved on top. This is a great after-dinner treat for company, and also a great after-work treat for yourself. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of getting home after a long day and realizing there’s a little personal pudding waiting for you in the fridge.
I’ll try to post here throughout my time in Nicaragua, and as always, you can follow along on Instagram (@the_kitchen_chronicles) if you don’t already!
Ingredients
- 6 egg yolks
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin
- 1 cup sugar
- Pinch of cream of tartar
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 2 cups heavy cream
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the egg yolks and salt on medium speed. In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over 1/4 cup of cold water and let this mixture sit while you prepare the caramel.
- Combine the sugar, cream of tartar, cinnamon sticks and 1/4 cup water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cover and bring to a rapid boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, uncover the pan and cook the sugar until deep golden brown. Turn off the heat and very carefully pour 1/4 cup water into the hot caramel. Stand back- the caramel will hiss and bubble and spurt.
- Once you have added the water the caramel syrup will come back to a rolling boil from the residual heat. Remove the cinnamon sticks with a fork and discard. When the caramel syrup stops boiling, slowly pour it into the egg yolks with the mixer running on high speed. With a rubber spatula, scrape the gelatin into the empty saucepan in which you cooked the caramel and let it melt into a syrupy liquid. Pour the gelatin into the egg yolk mixture and whisk at medium-high speed until it triples in volume and cools to room temperature.
- Remove the bowl with the mousse base from the mixture. In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream until it has soft peaks. Scrape the whipped cream on top of the mousse base. Fold the two together with a spatula or bowl scraper: place your spatula in the center of the bowl, scrape the bottom and bring the bottom over the top. Rotate the bowl 45 degrees and continue folding until all the whipped cream is incorporated.
- If you want to serve the mousse in a casual manner, let it chill and gel in a large bowl or plastic container for at least 2 hours before dolloping it out onto individual plates. Alternatively, for a more finished look, pour the mousse into 6 to 8 small serving dishes and let it sit in the refrigerator, covered, for at least 2 hours before serving.
Notes
https://www.thekitchenchronicles.com/2018/02/20/caramel-cinnamon-mousse/
