Salted Butter Caramel Chocolate Mousse (David Lebovitz)

Hello Decadence, I'm in love with you.




I'm a big big fan of David L. I don't own a single book of his but follow his blog like a religion. When 'My Paris Kitchen' came out, I read up on all the articles about the book, including the one he'd written in his blog about how he wrote the book. The best part about scouring all those articles online - free recipes from the book!!! I was in 7th heaven when recipes started popping up here and there. This one seemed so simple to make and yet so decadent.


Here's what I do everyday when I get back from work. Doesn't matter that some days its after 11 at night. I have exactly one BIG spoonful of the mousse bit by bit, savouring every delicious bite/lick and go into a semi-swoon.

OK. I lied. I can't stop at one.





I bottled up the mousse into 4 jars, distributed 3 of them and kept the biggest jar for myself. I made this on Thursday night, and its Monday night as I type this. Despite my worries about raw eggs, nothing's gone off as yet and I feel quite alright, if a little fat. But that's understandable when you religiously indulge in such decadence. Muchas love David, you bring a lot of joy to my life.




This is the same recipe as from the book, except I've changed measurements into grams and cups which is what I use in general.

Equipment

1 Saucepan, 3 bowls, 1 whisk, electric beater, measuring cups & spoons, weighing scale.

Ingredients

1/2 cup    granulated sugar
40g          salted butter (Amul) diced
3/4 cup    cream (Amul)
170g        dark compound chocolate chopped (Van Leer)
4              large eggs (separated)
1/4 tsp     sea salt ( I got a canister a while ago. Don't remember the brand. Found it on Zansaar.com)

Method

Spread the sugar evenly over a saucepan and heat over medium flame. As the sugar begins to liquefy around the edges drag it to the centre with a spoon. Do not let the edges burn before the center is liquefied. Continue to cook occasionally stirring till all the sugar has melted and starts to caramelize.

Wait for the caramel to turn into a deep amber colour, starts smoking and has a slightly burnt smell. Take off flame and whisk in butter rapidly till its melted. Slowly whisk in cream till the caramel has melted and blended in ( I had a very tiny layer of caramel stuck to the side bottom edges of my pan which I conveniently ignored).

Strain the caramel directly onto the chocolate. Stir gently till you get a smooth mixture. Once it cools down to room temperature add egg yolks and whisk.

In a separate bowl, whip egg whites till stiff. Fold 1/3rd into chocolate mix, sprinkle with sea salt, gently fold in the rest of the egg whites till no white streaks can be seen. Divide into serving bowls of your choice. Chill for atleast 8 hours.

Indulge.