Recipe Redux: Olive Oil Chocolate Mousse

because february means chocolate, that's exactly what we've taken on for this month's recipe redux.

several months ago my husband and i went out on a rare dinner alone to a great tapas spot called mas. as mentioned, going out on a kid-free dinner "date" is rare. even rarer is finding a dessert in a restaurant that is gluten-free. when the waitress mentioned their delicious sephardic chocolate mousse made with olive oil instead of cream, there was no way i could refuse.

so here's my version... other than the dairy-free benefit of this dessert, i also love the use of heart-healthy oil. and because i am not in the mood to take a chance with raw eggs, i decided to give the pasteurized shell eggs a try.

the result was just what i hoped... delicious, rich and utterly chocolate-y.

Olive Oil Chocolate Mousse

11  ounces bittersweet chocolate (i used 60% cacao ghiradelli)
8    large pasteurized eggs, separated
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
3/4 cups sugar, divided
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2    tablespoons coffee or water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt

Melt chocolate in a double boiler over low heat or in 30 second increments in the microwave; cool slightly.

Beat egg whites and cream of tartar with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add 1/4 cup sugar and beat until stiff but not dry. (this may take a while because of the pasteurized eggs... you'll get there.)

Beat egg yolks with 1/2 cup sugar until light. Whisk in olive oil, coffee, vanilla, salt, and melted chocolate. Fold whites into chocolate mixture.

Spoon into a serving bowl, or divide among 8-10 dessert cups or ramekins. Cover and chill for at least 6 hours.
Yield: 8 to 10 servings.

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this recipe was adapted from this recipe published in the new york times.

i'm sure i don't have to suggest too strongly, but feel free to check out the rest of the chocolate recipes...

Cowboy Cake Pops

 

howdy, partner!

this month my little guy turns 4... and today is his rootin'-tootin' cowboy party, so you know what that means.

cowboy cake pops.

these guys were a lot of fun. it's always a happy thing when something you envision actually turns out. it's hilarious that both my mom and some friends said these pops actually look like my kid. if that was intentional, then i'm really good. yeah, it's not. but still cracks me up.

i must say that though this age had its hurdles, i am so grateful for the gift of my son. he is a really great little person, with a kind heart and a hilarious sense of humor. i can't believe he's growing so fast. we are blessed. and i am so glad he's mine.

happy birthday, buddy.

Cowboy Cake Pops

1       box yellow gluten-free cake mix (love betty crocker)
1       (1-pound) bag dark chocolate candy coating morsels
Rolos chocolate-caramel candies

1       (16-ounce) container ready-made vanilla frosting

1       (1-pound) bag vanilla candy coating morsels

Candy coating coloring: Yellow, Pink
Lollipop sticks

Lifesavers fruit candies
Strawberry Fruit Roll-Ups

1       black edible ink pen

(Styrofoam block)

Bake cake according to package instructions. Allow cake to cool completely.

Meanwhile, melt chocolate candy morsels and pipe or spoon 2 1/2-inch rounds onto a piece of wax paper. Freeze until firm. Affix one Rolo onto the top of each round, using more chocolate coating as glue. Allow to set.

Cut the cake into quarters. Finely crumble each quarter of cake in a large bowl. Add half the container of frosting. Mix into cake crumbles until well combined. Mixture should stick together to form a ball, not too crumbly, not too wet. (Add more frosting, if needed.) Reserve remaining frosting for another use.

Shape cake mixture into 2-inch balls, and flatten on one side (this will be the top of the head where the hat sits.) Place on wax paper-lined baking sheet, cover and chill in fridge till firm.

Carefully melt vanilla candy coating in a deep bowl in microwave according to package directions. Once melted, add a tiny bit of yellow and pink candy coating coloring to make pale skin-tone. Start with very little. You can always add more.

Dip 1/4-inch of a lollipop stick into candy coating mixture; insert the stick straight into the cake on the rounded up of the ball, almost half-way. Hold cake ball at the surface of the candy coating, spoon coating evenly over cake ball; and carefully tap off any excess. Work quickly, but not too forcefully or the cake ball will fall off the stick. Slip a Lifesaver candy up the stick at the "neck" of the cake pop. Place end of stick in the Styrofoam block until sturdy and allow to dry. Continue with remaining balls and Lifesavers.

Pipe additional pale skin-tone candy coating to make nose and ears. Pipe additional chocolate candy coating to make eyes and hair. Attach Rolo hats to top of head, using chocolate candy coating as glue.

Cut bandana shape out of Fruit Roll-Ups and wrap around Lifesaver. Attach with a little bit of candy coating, if needed. Use black edible ink pen to make his mouth.

Yield: about 24 Cowfolk.

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Flourless Chocolate-Pomegranate Cake

today i have the privilege of guest-posting at my talented friend, debra's, lovely design blog, cocoon home. you may remember this delicious dinner she shared on my blog several months ago.

well, turnabout is fair play... and of course, i've brought dessert. this cake is one i've been waiting to share for a while. please, jump over to her site for more...

Flourless Chocolate-Pomegranate Cake

16    ounces semisweet baking chocolate (i used ghiradelli)

1      cup unsalted butter

1      tablespoon fresh pomegranate juice

1/8   teaspoon salt

8      large eggs, separated

1 1/2 cups sugar

Fresh pomegranate seeds

Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine chocolate and butter in a saucepan. Cook over low heat until chocolate and butter melts together, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, stir in pomegranate juice and salt, and let cool a bit.

Beat egg whites in a large mixing bowl with high speed of an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Beat egg yolks and sugar in another large mixing bowl with medium speed of an electric mixer until thick and pale.

Fold one-third chocolate mixture into egg yolk mixture. Gently fold in one-third of beaten egg whites. Fold in remaining chocolate mixture and egg whites. Pour batter into a greased 10-inch springform pan.

Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until edges are set and center is still wobbly and not set. Cool to room temperature in pan on wire rack. Cover and chill 8 hours. Remove sides of springform pan before serving and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds.

Yield: one 10-inch cake.

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Gluten-Free Ratio Rally: Strawberry Cream Cheese Popovers

this month the gluten-free ratio rally has decided to take on popovers.

popovers are those fantastic eggy, hollow, buttery breads that warrant their own pan, but can also be made in a muffin tin. when i was a teenager, my mom and i grabbed lunch a handful of times at neiman marcus' cafe. they always served warm popovers with butter and strawberry jam. that was my favorite part of the meal.

i am lucky enough to have a popover pan and was excited to use it this month. my husband's music teacher and dear family friend, marga, gave it to me. marga was one of the first people my husband wanted to introduce me to when we met and realized this might just be "it". despite scarring disabilities as a result of childhood polio, marga was so incredibly full of life. she and her dear, kind husband, dan, never had children of their own, so she would handpick students to "adopt". my husband and his brother were two of those. lunch at marga's was always thrilling... she loved to cook, feverishly supported arts and music, beamed while telling quirky, silly jokes or discussing politics, and gushed with pride over those boys that she loved. i was thrilled when marga gave me an enormous boxful of odd kitchen gadgets that were hers for our wedding gift. she said she knew i'd use them and adore them as she did. several years ago, marga lost a brave battle against cancer. we so miss her, but she will certainly never allow us to forget her.

the ratio for popovers is 2 parts liquid : 1 part egg : 1 part flour.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Popovers

2       tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces

2       large eggs (room temperature)

1       cup milk (room temperature)

140   grams (1 cup) kumquat's all-purpose flour

1       teaspoon golden flaxmeal

1/2    teaspoon salt

6       teaspoons strawberry cream cheese*

Preheat oven to 400°. Drop a piece of butter in each cup of a popover tin or muffin tin. Place pan on a baking sheet.

In a small bowl, beat eggs until pale. Add milk; stir to combine. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, flaxmeal, and salt. Add milk mixture to flour mixture and whisk until almost smooth.

Place popover tin and baking sheet in the oven for 3 minutes. Remove tin from oven and evenly divide batter between cups. Drop a teaspoon of strawberry cream cheese into each cup of batter. Bake for 30 minutes or until popovers are puffy, with brown crusts and hollow centers. Serve immediately.

Yield: 6 popovers.

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this recipe is a combination of a popover at epicurious and one i developed years ago. if you don't have strawberry cream cheese on hand, you can easily forgo it and bake up some plain popovers like the one below. so pretty and delicious...

this month's rally was generously hosted by mrs. r of honey from flinty rocks. please check out all of the other puffy popovers of the month...

mrs. r of honey from flinty rocks made gluten and dairy free popovers 

brooke of b & the boy made chocolate and sweet potato popovers

charissa of zest bakery made lemon vanilla popovers with minnesota raspberries

claire of my gluten free home made chai popovers

erin of the sensitive epicure made popovers

ginger of fresh ginger made chive & black pepper/ toasted onion & aleppo pepper popovers

heather of discovering the extraordinary made basic popovers

jenn of jenn cuisine made chocolate popovers

jonathan of the canary files made cinnamon & star anise popovers

mary fran of frannycakes made honey coconut popovers

morri of meals with morri made little bitty popover bites

rachel of the crispy cook made corny popovers

tr of no one likes crumbley cookies made sweet cherry popovers