I should have titled this post "Triple Chocolate Mousse... Three Times Over". Remember when I posted about cleaning the freezer and making tarts with leftover doughs? It was perfect timing because a week later, I found myself with a freezer full of soggy, thawed out desserts and these mousses were some of them.
One of the reason why I cleaned out the freezer was so I could make more room for new desserts such as this one. I made a large batch of triple chocolate mousse last week and wanted to play with different presentations. Until I was ready to photograph them, I decided to store them in the freezer. Sunday morning, when I went out to the garage to pull them out, I was shocked to see that I had left the freezer door slightly open the night before. It doesn't take much to thaw out a freezer in a hot garage in Florida in the middle of summer. Everything that was on the bottom shelf was covered with water. I was able to salvage the shot glasses which were on the top shelf, but everything else was ruined.
I must admit it took me an entire day to get over the disaster, but the next day, I decided to make the mousses again. This is a recipe that is simple but requires getting messy in the kitchen and dishes are not my favorite chore, that's for sure. But I did it and here it is.
I made the mini spheres by sticking two half spheres together, after the mousse is frozen, and then rolling them in chopped pistachios and grated white and dark chocolate. 
Pate a Bombe
4 oz sugar
1 oz glucose
2 oz water
3 egg yolks
Cook the sugar, corn syrup and water to 240 degrees Farenheit. In the meantime, whip the yolks until they turn fluffy and pale. Add the cooked sugar to the yolks while the mixer is on low speed. Pour the sugar on the side of the bowl so you don't create spun sugar while doing this. Turn the mixer back to high and continue beating until light, thick and the bowl has cooled.
Dark Chocolate Mousse
1 oz pate a bombe
2 grams gelatin leaves
1.5 oz 70% chocolate, melted and cooled
4 oz heavy cream, soft peaks
Soften the gelatin in ice water for 5 minutes. Squeeze out excess water and mix with 2 Tbs of the heavy cream (it's ok if it's already whipped to soft peaks). Melt them together in the microwave for about 7 seconds. Add this mixture to the soft peak whipped cream and whisk together until mixed. But be careful not to overmix. Add the cream to the pate a bombe and fold. Add the melted and cooled chocolate to the base and fold. Place the mousse in a pastry bag and pipe into molds.
Milk Chocolate and White Chocolate Mousse
Same amounts and same procedure as before but use milk chocolate and white chocolate instead.
Post Script: For all of you bloggers out there... Martha Stewart is having a blog contest. For more info, please visit her blog "The Martha Blog".
9.18.2008
Triple Chocolate Mousse... Three Ways
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89 comments:
My oh my oh my. Absolutely exquisite. Marry me? ;-)
i can't believe you had to make these again, but what a treat! and your photography just gets better and better!
Aran, I'm so sorry for your loss of these wonderful mousses! It's a sad story, I feel you pain. But the second batch looks fantastic! Great photography!
I might be a little selfish here, but I'm really happy you took the time (and kitchen cleaning) to make the mousses again, because the look downright perfect.
I've been looking for a reliable white chocolate mousse and the use of a pâte à bombe is genius.
xx fanny
don't you hate when your effort is wasted? these are beautiful despite the discouraging mishap.
wow chocolate overload. Yummy all look so deliciously creamy. hmmmmmm
So sorry about your disaster! I just had that happen to me a couple weeks ago. The chocolate mousses did turn out fantastic though! I love the spheres...what a great idea!
I can't decide if I love your photos, recipes, or determination more! Despite the thaw in your freezer, I have to say that what you salvaged and what you recreated are stunning and inspired. Lovely.
Les photos, elles n'ont pas souffert du désastre, ces mousses sont à tomber.
What a pity about the door being left open...I would have grouched forever & wept copious tears. Good for you Aran...to make such beautiful stuff a second time over. *BOW* to you, you are the Queen of perfect * gorgeous desserts.
Vaya con la nevera! Eso me paso una vez con el congelador pero en el trabajo. Llegue por la mañana y tenia todos los helados liquidos. Yo queria llorar, jejejeje!
Que bueno que las has repetido! Pero solo tu para hacer 3 presentaciones! Si es que ere la mejóóóóó! (lo digo con todo mi acento sevillano).
Oh, sorry for the loss ! But those mousses really look yummy !
a very sad end for delicious frozen things :(
Well ... not it's empty and you can fill it again :!!!!
I really don't know how you do it Aran. These are amazing. I'd love to hear you blog about how you come up with the concepts for your recipes some time.
Thanks everyone! the freezer is half full again.. yay!
Marc- you know, that's a good question. how do I come up with my ideas... I really don't know. Sometimes I will see a photo or I will go to the store and find good fruit and things just come to me. Sometimes I even visualize a plated dessert and its forms and then I will come up with flavors and textures to fit into it. Sometimes I hear a song and it reminds me of a moment in my life and I draw inspiration from that. Who knows... it works in magical ways and I love it like that!
I hate it when that happens with the freezer. Luckily for us readers, you made the mousses again - YIPEE!!
Brilliant!
Sorry to hear about your freezer.. how frustrating. You've inspired me and I've started freezing my leftovers too. Usually I just end up throwing them out (wasteful I know). It will probably make my life easier too having stuff on hand!
I am so happy you made the mousses again so that we could see these beautiful pictures! Aran, I know Nigella already has the title, but you are also a Domestic Goddess! :)
where you do get glucose? I work in a specialty grocery store and we carry fructose but not glucose. do you have to order it special?
I had a similar event with my freezer, but fortunately only my ice cream was ruined.
ouch...to the open freezer door. I am paranoid with our refrigerator in the garage specially when I have macaron orders sitting in there to make sure that it is closed properly. I remember leaving our wine cooler's door ajar and it ruined many bottles of wine as the garage was steaming hot in the summer - hubby was not happy.
But I am glad you got to make these again as they look fantastic and delicious!
I admire your tenacity, because if that happened to me, not only would it take me a day to get over it, but I would probably have moved on from the idea of mousse!
I especially love those mini spheres :)
Oh, the freezer story made me cringe. I think most of us have done that at some point. The mousse looks unbelievable! The photographs are stunning.
I find it very difficult to make the perfect chocolate mousse - just bookmarked this post for further use. Awesome photos, Aran. I'm about to grab one of those spoons!
I love chocolate mousse, and with that presentation, is even harder to resist!
They all look perfect, Aran!
Como me suena a historia conocida lo del congelador!!! Y lo peor de todo es la cantidad de agua que tienes que limpiar y que aparece por todos lados... y la comida que hay que tirar...arrgg!!!!
En casa somos muy chocolateros y suelo hace una tarta de 3 chocolates, probaré con tu receta!!!
Besos,
Ana
Beautiful! And I'm so sorry about your freezer incident - the same thing has happened to me, and it can be very upsetting.
These are so beautiful! I understand the freezer frustration- living in New Orleans- we actually have to keep our freezer close to empty during hurricane season (after Katrina there was a whole frozen turkey in our freezer that had turned to pure liquid- even the bones were gone!)
Every time I come here I am so blown away by how creative and amazing you are! I could just stare at those photos all day! Chocolate mousse is one of my most favorite desserts ever!
Thanks everyone. I know the freezer fiasco has happened to many of you so you feel my pain! :)
Ardentdelirium- glucose can be found in many cake decorating stores and craft stores that have a cake decorating section. I get mine from L'epicerie.com. You could also use light corn syrup instead.
Gorgeous!!!!!
I experienced many fridge disasters and I hate doing the dishes too!
I love the picture with the little spoons: they scream "pick me!pick me!" :)
yum! these photos made my day, especially the ones with the spoons lined up!
Wow, loving all that chocolate.
It looks so beautiful!
Your blog and photos are incredible!! This winter when I am not spending so much time with the vegetables, I'm going to do some more baking. I hope you don't mind if I steal a few of your ideas
and again, i am amazed! i specifically love those little white pots with the cute spoons!
Oh, I love your blog! Your photos are amazing and you completely inspire me to get in my kitchen!
Where do you live in Florida? I recently escaped from there and moved to Chicago.
Your pictures are always so beautiful... so delicious... and so peaceful!!!
I love the triple mousse presentation!
Allaboutgrowingup- I live in Palm Beach County. Where did you live?
Phenomenal looking. I'm blown away by your presentations. Photography too.
What a horrible shame...but they look absolutely fantastic. I'm getting up now to go eat some chocolate dessert of my own! :)
Between your freezer and my oven we have all of the disasters out of the way, fingers crossed. The mousse, in all their forms are spectacular.
They look like amazing little mousse truffles. I love the presentation, I am sorry it came with such hardship. It's never good when that happens with the freezer. You recovered marvelously
Oh that's luscious! If I'd been around there wouldn't have been any left to photograph...
What a shame! It's a sad day when good chocolate has gone to waste! ah well. At least you have more room in your freezer now. Your mousses look divine. Your food styling is so appealing to me in every way. Lovely pics, as usual!
These jewels looks so yummy. It's sad for the food you had in the freezer.
My hips are getting bigger by just looking at your pictures! Yum, yum, yum!
Aran, i'm such a sucker for all things chocolate. N mousse makes me weak in the knees.Absolutely stunning bombes !
Nuestro congelador de -80ºC del laboratorio se estropeó hace dos días. No resultó sencillo encontrar un congelador de un colega con espacio de sobra para trasvasar todo el valioso material (biopsias, secciones de cerebros, células tumorales, anticuerpos, bacterias, etc.) antes de que subiera demasiado la temperatura. Esta vez hubo suerte y éxito.
¡Qué rico está todo en tu blog!
marido- dios mio! donde trabajas que tienes tal "material" en el congelador?
I am amazed. Really nice. Simply beautiful.
...Do I have to make 3 Pate a bombe for all three chocolates? Or just 1 Pate a bombe and divide that one among 3 chocolates?
And what does 2 oz means?
I really like your blog. It's one of the best ones!
Can I contact you on your e-mail? I hava a few questions....:)
Greetings,
ana
This looks absolutely amazing!
ohhhh la la mmmmmh very nice pictures!
Yikes, so sorry to hear about the freezer mishap. I've been lucky to notice when my stupid fridge and freezer doors don't fully close (which seems to be pretty often lately), but I would certainly be beside myself.
These mousses (moussi?) look fantastic. I love your food styling sensibilities--these photographs look very professional.
you knock me out everytime..if you need a freezer maintenance person, i;'m your woman...( i will make lots of room for new desserts).
And yes please be the patissier at our new little inn...would be fantastic!!
That is beyond beautiful. I love combinations of different types of chocolate! Very very nice pictures.
Your blog—and this entry—are so beautiful. Saw your link on Oh So RB and am entranced.
Sorry about the freezer incident. Ours doesn't always close if we're not careful (especially if it's super full) and this is exactly what I'm afraid of.
oh my...this looks amazing, amazing...
thanks for the comment on my blog earlier. i am a big fan ;-)
What a wonderful recovery from your disaster! Our refrigerator door tends to not close properly unless you PUSH it shut, so I've had my hard lessons too! I love love love all your creations! Do you shoot in a lightbox - how do you get your lighting so even?
How frustrating! And yet you are able to recover with such elegance. Our garage fridge is hard to close and I always have to careful that the kids close it properly. Your mousses look delectable. And I love the spheres!
Thank you everyone for taking the time to comment on my blog.
Ana- yes, you can most definitely email me with questions. my email is a_goyoaga@hotmail.com. also, an oz is an ounce or 28.375 grams. make one recipe of pate a bombe and use that for the individual layers of mousse. thank you!
Anita- no, i do not use a light box. i'm actually really lucky with the natural light i get in my living room so that's where i shoot. but i have to wait until noon, so that's when i do it. i did buy a small lightbox once but it just didn't work for me.
thank you!
These have to be the most beautiful photos ever. Remind me not to visit when I'm hungry!!!! Lovely blog by the way!
oooooo....I swear I can taste this one through your perfect images...I am so sorry to hear about the initial disappointment...however, it looks as if everything turned out perfectly after that! perfect as always my friend.
Oh my does that look heavenly!
¡¡ Eres mi heroína !! Justo necesitaba recetas de mousse y tú ¡¡ me pones 3 !! Y con estas fotos que son verdaderas obras de arte... Casi da pena comerse estas cosas pero deben estar tan buenas que han de ser irresistibles.
GRACIAS.
Aran, I have to apologise for commenting too late on your post this time. I've gotten so busy these past few days I haven't had time to visit the blogosphere at all!! Ah, imagine the horror!!
I admire your determination and your tenacity in making a second batch pf those gorgeous chocolate mousse. I just wish the first batch hadn't been ruined so there would be plenty to share around with all the rest of us not so blessed with exceptional baking skills!
But anyway, your post is exactly why I love creating and making sweet food. First, I can always freeze it; and second, when an incident like that happens, it only takes me about a week or so before it pack it full again.
Beautiful shots and immaculate styling!
I'm sorry you had to deal with the freezer. But, you overcame the event with such gorgeous photos and mouth-watering mousse!
That happened to a friend of mine when I lived in southern CA, but she was away for a week before coming home to the discovery...eek.
Wow, I can only imagine how divine it is to take a gorgeous little sphere and let it fill your mouth will a cloud of chocolate goodness! Sorry to hear about the little disaster you went through, I think it'd take me a day to get over it too...
Your pictures are exquisite. Do you use a special light? It is getting dark where I am and I am looking for light help! That is so sad the your freezer stayed open, all that hard work. But wow, what you did save is breath taking.
robin sue- thank you! no, i don't use special lights. i'm lucky to have great natural light in the afternoon so i take advantage of it!
your photos are absolutely amazing. this looks so rich and decadent..i am amazed by what you are capable of creating in the kitchen!
wow wow! these are awesome! I love it!
Sorry to hear about your freezer... what a nightmare!
The mousse are beautiful though--such exquisite photographs! And I'm thrilled to have found a small quantity pate a bomb recipe. I didn't like to try scaling down a recipe in case it all went terribly wrong.
Hats off to you, Aran. And your photography is simply captivating.
I actually felt that heart sinking feeling of opening the freezer to find that stuff was thawing or already thawed. The worst is when you can't even blame anyone but yourself. You came through like a trooper. Love the paper cone presentation....so cute and very versatile
It is unfair. I was already craving for a dessert and chocolate is hard to resist. These pictures look so tempting. I am taking notes.
ooooooooooooooh so pretty.
Oh goodness. Nothing worse than a freezer full of water. Ick! However, your second batch looks wonderful and the pictures completely cheer me up after a really BAD week...actually, is chocolate not supposed to be wonder food that makes you forget all things unpleasant?
Oh no, what poor misadventure! But what great results with the mousses. It makes my mouth water now....
Beautiful! I love the lineup of the 3 ramekins of mousse
I am running around my house wanting something deliciousperhaps even sinful! - and all i think about is these mousses.....gorgeous! the photograph with the bombe on the cone wow!
I really HAVE TO ask... where are the creamic spoons from? Please?
MGU- the spoons are condiment spoons from Crate and Barrel.
Thanks Aran. Funny to find out you're Basque. I'm Catalan :)
The texture of these mousses looks absolutely perfect!
omg! AMAZING! MUST TRY...lol
I have a question, I dont have 2 grams gelatin leaves....I dont really know what they are...could i substitute it with powdered gelatin? and how much?
and is glucose just plain old Corn Syrup?
Thanks!:) **great blog btw!**
Zahra- The conversion from sheet gelatin to powdered gelatin is a bit strange and not always the same although there are some guidelines like 1 oz of powdered gelatin equals 2 grams sheet gelatin. But all sheet gelatin isn't equal. There are different potencies so just try it once and see if you need to make adjustments for the next time. Hope that helps!
I hate Florida. But I can't wait for my girlfriend to make this for me :X
this looks fantasic.
just wondering instead of using the gelatine leaves can i use powdered gelatine? i cant seem to find the leaves anywhere. if i can use to powdered gelatine how much do i use and in how much water?
thanks. looking forward to making the mousse cups for a dinner party tonight!
Anonymous- you can definitely use powdered gelatin but I have never done it with it so I have never converted the recipe. In general, one gram of sheet is equivalent to 1 gram of powder but it is not always true as it varies with the strength and bloom of the sheet gelatin. Good luck!
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