Chocolate is NEVER O/T

Mousse au Chocolate

Ok: Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or in a heat proof bowl over/in a pot of boiling water, be casreful not to let any water get into the chocolate as it will turn into a rock hard substance (guess how I know) or melt in the microwave. Separate the eggs, whip the eggwhites with half the sugar till very stiff. Beat the yolks in a separate bowl and slowly add the somewhat cooled down chocolate (it must not be bubbling hot! Your yolks will set and you'll end up with bits of boiled egg in your mousse) beating constantly. When the chocolate and the yolks are combined gently mix it with the stiff eggwhites until it's well mixed. Don't beat too much because you'll remove too much of the airbubbles and end up with chocolate "gravy" ;-) Refrigerate and eat the same day.

You can easiely make less (4 eggs 200g chocolate 1/2 cup sugar) it'll still be really nice but not last as long ;-)

cu nicole

Oh, my goodness! No measuring cups? How are your recipies written up? How would I know my teacup is the same as your teacup? Dianne

I had a terrible time when I came to the USA learning about cups etc. Everything was pounds and ounces, or pints, quarts etc. Now I guess it is grams, liters etc. I think the US is the only placce I have run into this "antiquated" form of measurements. .

Gillian

If you get the dark chocolate ginger you can really convince yourself you're being good.

Elizabeth

My grandmother used her hand or a glass for measuring. She had a special glass for just that purpose, but the recipes were all in her head. My mother wanted to learn some of her recipes and would follow her around and write down what she did and how much of each ingredient. So the recipes called for a handful of something or 3 glasses of something. I found that much of her cooking was really by sight and taste. If it didn't look right or didn't tastequite right she would adjust. She was a great cook.

George

Dc - decagrams and Dl - decilitres is what I remember from Polish recipes.

Elizabeth

Let's never forget that prior to thermostats on electric stoves (not really that long ago) one had to judge the heat of the oven. Some flicked a few drops of water into the bottom, others went by how long it was before a hand shoved in the oven had to be snatched out etc.

How they ever made wonderful cakes and things like Yorkshire Pudding amazes me.

Nice recipe.

It`s not so much the freshness that matters (although, of course, the fresher the better), but whether the hen who laid it carries the salmonella bug or not and whether the egg producers wash them properly as soon as they`re collected.

Pat P

When I get a recipe that uses cups and liters I just measure and weigh as I go, writing my measurements into the recipe.

I think a US measuring cup is 250ml (or 200ml ?) that's about the same as a regular coffee mug (Ok, so I have one that fits 500ml, but it's huge). I measured with one of those (normal ones) and it was definitely too sweet. So I think 1/2 cup should get you close to a nice sweetness that doesn't make your toenails curl up ;-)

It also depends on the chocolate you use, if you use dark chocolate that's not really bitter you won't need as much sugar so it's trial and error anyway ;-) You could omit the sugar in the eggwhites (but I'm not sure if they'll get stiff enough then, I think the sugar helps that) and add it gradually to the melted chocolate, testing as you go until you like the result. Maybe make it slightly sweeter than you'd like because you're adding the whites and those will "absorb" some of the sweetness aswell.

cu nicole - please keep the typos/spelling mistakes, I have too many as it is.

That`s why we prefer to use weight, Dianne - although as long as you use the same cup for everything it shouldn`t make much difference. Most of our cookery books translate the American cups into weights, anyway, thank goodness!

Pat P

I have fond memories of my grandmother doing that kind of cooking. You put in a pinch of this or that and a handful of flour, some sugar, etc., etc. Amazingly most things came out great, but getting a recipe was near impossible.

My FIL, was a professional baker and made the most wonderful, crusty rye bread. People used to go out of their way to buy their bread in the bakery he worked for. When I asked him for his secret he said it was all in the look and feel of the dough and it changed daily because of weather conditions.

I think for the most part that kind of baking is a lost art. At least here in the states it is.

Lucille

Yeah. When I'm cooking I do that, too. I use little turkish Tea glasses for measuring water for sauces and gravies and stuff and for herbs just use the palm of my hand. When I try a new recipe I go by the instructions and after that I just wing it ;-)

Yeah, but I find that the more often you cook something the more it doesn't involve much brainactivity (benefits me greatly, especially when my son is running around telling me stuff, I love when I'm on "autopilot")

But I'm not such a great cook yet. I do alright I guess, I haven't poisoned my family (son and SO) yet *veg* but boy have I stuffed up on occasion. Of course I usually stuff up when we have someone coming over for dinner, so I guess it's no wonder my family (the other part! Parents and brother, not son and SO.) thinks I can't cook. Everytime they come over for dinner or lunch (we usually have the cooked main meal for lunch, dinner here's usually just sandwiches) I mess it up and they either get burnt or underdone food *sigh*

I also used to visit a neighbour of my aunt. She just baked the most awesome cakes! I once got a Schwarzwaelderkirsch Toret (Blackforest cake) from her for my birthday. She didn't have "recipes" she just listed ingridients. I was totally in awe of her! She'd just pour things into the bowl, give them an apraising look and sometimes added a bit more. When I'm "all grown up" I want to be like her ;-)

cu nicole

Anything involving flour is always better weighed.

I know, but the longer the salmonella has had to spread the worse you'll be, and when you use fresh eggs you'll probably not be sick even if they are infected because you won't ingest as many of the salmonella (is it bacteria or virus or something else? I alwys forget *sigh*) and your imune system can usually deal with them. That's why pregnant women, small children and "elderly" folks should not eat raw eggs at all.

I know you can add the yolks to the hot chocolate when it's in a heatproof bowl placed on a pot of boiling water and then stir like your life depends upon it, thus killing off the salmonella, without turning the yolks into scrambled eggs, but I've never done it successfully so I didn't write it down :-( I know that when a professional chef makes mousse au they do it that way, but I guess they've had more training than me ;-) So I recommend using really fresh eggs, refrigerating and eating the lot the same day and/or tossing left overs.

cu nicole

Oh dear! Does that mean I need to send you a package when it cools down?

Hee, hee!

Cheryl

A woman after my own heart!

Cheryl

How many choc cherries do I need to eat to make up one serving of fruit?

Yep, we had a heckuva time putting together a school cookbook of traditional recipes. "Granny, WHOSE handful of sugar? Your little one or Grandpa's huge ones? Just the palm or up to the fingertips?" And then there were the recipes "add flour (or water) until it feels right" aaaaaaaarrrgh!

Quite a few kids were sent to granny's house with measuring spoons and cups. "That's how much is a handful? Throw it in the cup before you put it in the bowl." And writing down how much "a little more" and "a little more" was added "until it feels right", and consulting with me (my grandfather was a professional baker) for the tips that on a rainy day you'll need more or less of certain ingredients than on a sunny day to get to "until it feels right".