Darina Allen: Whip these recipes up for National Mousse Day
Rory O'Connell's Leek Mousse with Mussels an Sauce Bretonne
Today, to coincide with National Mousse Day (who dreamed that up?), we’ll have a celebration of a few of my 1970s favourites – time-honoured classics that have stood the test of time, and are still high on the list of special requests on the Ballymaloe House menu.
How about a leek mousse? Leeks are at their best just now, I’ve been digging the smaller ones from the vegetable garden, I can’t bear to waste a scrap.
I use the young leaves for soups or melt them in butter to add to a bowl of fluffy mashed potato.
Avoid the big specimens, they may look tempting but believe me, they’ll be tough, so go along to the Farmers’ Market and choose small, new-season leeks instead. They’ll be tender and sweeter.
These little leek mousses make a gorgeous starter but best of all they can be cooked earlier (dare I say, even the day before) and gently reheated in a bain-marie.
I’m also sharing the secret of this Bretonne sauce, a deliciously buttery sauce that transforms many simple foods into a feast. It’s a gem to have in your repertoire, and not least because it is literally made in minutes.
Add a few morsels of lobster, plump mussels or shrimp and hey presto, the dish takes on a swanky cheffy appearance… a few wisps of chervil and wait for the 'oohs' and 'aahs' when you serve it to your guests.
This leek mousse is rich as you can see from the ingredient list, so serve small portions for starters but increase the size for a lunchtime main course.
Serve a salad of fresh crunchy leaves and a few fresh herbs tossed with a little dressing of extra virgin olive oil, a few drops of freshly squeezed lemon juice, lots of freshly cracked pepper and a few flakes of sea salt.
A really good chocolate mousse is yet another recipe that stands the test of time.
We’ve got a few versions, but I think this is my favourite, irresistible with just some Jersey pouring cream and — guess what!—I’ve discovered that it keeps for over a fortnight in your fridge, maybe longer. How brilliant is that?
Use really good chocolate; we like 54% cocoa solids and rich cream.
I also do lots of riffs on it, a little crunchy hazelnut praline sprinkled over the top is sublime while a spoonful of candied kumquat compote is a delicious foil to the richness of the mousse.
Last but certainly not least, I love a spoonful of plump Pedro Ximénez soaked raisins, spoon over a dollop of softly whip cream on top.
Make a batch before the festive season and you are sorted for any eventuality and who doesn’t love chocolate mousse?
This orange mousse is deliciously tender and light as a feather. It looks super impressive.
We decorate it with diamond shaped slivers of chocolate and ruffs of orange flavoured cream for extra deliciousness.
Unless the oranges are organic, give them a good wash and use a Microplane or very fine grater to grate the zest.
All of these recipes can be whipped up the day before for ease of entertaining.
Happy National Mousse Day.
This mousse is rich and delicious and should be served in small portions. The mussels can be replaced with shrimp or lobster. Servings Preparation Time Cooking Time Total Time Course Ingredients 20g butter 450g leeks, sliced and washed 3 eggs 300ml cream sea salt and freshly ground black pepper For the sauce: 2 egg yolks 1 tsp Dijon mustard, preferably green mustard flavoured with tarragon ½ tsp white wine vinegar 110g butter 1 tbsp chopped herbs; chives, parsley, thyme, chervil, tarragon 36-48 fresh mussels You will need 6-8 ceramic or metal moulds, approx. 100ml each Method Preheat the oven to 170˚C/Gas Mark 3. Brush the moulds with melted butter and line the bottoms with a disc of non-stick baking paper. Melt the butter in a small low-sided saucepan and allow to foam. Add the leeks, toss in the butter and season with salt and pepper. Cover with parchment paper and a tight-fitting lid. Cook on a very gentle heat until the leeks are just tender. Drain the leeks and press off all excess liquid. Reserve the excess liquid for later. Allow to cool for a few minutes and place in a blender and add the eggs and cream. Purée until smooth and taste to correct seasoning. Place the mousse mixture in the prepared moulds, filling the moulds to the top. When ready to cook, place the mousses in a bain-marie. Half fill the bain-marie with boiling water and cover tightly with a sheet of parchment paper. Place in the preheated oven and cook for about 20 minutes or until the mousses are just set. Remove from the oven and keep warm. Place the mussels in a clean frying pan. Cover with a lid and place on a low heat. They will gradually start to pop open and release their own cooking juices. Remove the shells from the pan as soon as they open. Reserve the cooking liquid. When all the mussels are cooked, remove the beard and carefully remove from the shells and add to the mussel cooking liquid Place the egg yolks in a Pyrex bowl with the mustard and vinegar. Melt the butter and bring to a boil. Slowly drizzle the boiling butter onto the eggs, whisking all the time. The sauce will gradually begin to thicken. Continue until all of the melted butter has been added. Add the chopped herbs. At this point I add a little of the reserved leek cooking juices to the sauce. Add the cooked mussels and some of their cooking juice to the sauce. The sauce should be quite thin. To serve, unmould the mousses on warm plates. Drizzle a little sauce and some mussels around and over each mousse. Garnish with a relevant herb, like fennel, dill or chervil.Rory O’Connell’s Leek Mousse with Mussels
This mousse has retro appeal, and I love its theatrical appearance, particularly the contrast of the vivid orange segments and the dramatic pointy chocolate diamond wafers. Servings Preparation Time Total Time Course Ingredients For the mousse: finely grated zest and juice of 2 large oranges, plus extra if needed 4 large eggs, 2 separated 70g caster sugar juice of 1 lemon 4 gelatine leaves 225ml softly whipped cream For the chocolate wafers: 120g dark chocolate (62% cocoa solids) for the orange-flavoured cream and assembly 3 large oranges 225ml whipped cream pinch of caster sugar Method To make the mousse place the 2 egg yolks with the orange zest into the bowl of an electric mixer (keep the whites for later). Add the remaining 2 whole eggs and the caster sugar and whisk on high speed until the mixture quadruples in volume and becomes light and pale in colour, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, measure the volume of the combined orange and lemon juices: you need 300ml. If necessary, bring up the volume with the juice of another orange. Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for 5 minutes. Warm one quarter of the juice in a small saucepan, add the soaked gelatine leaves and stir to dissolve. Blend the gelatine mixture back into the remaining juice and transfer to a mixing bowl. Set the bowl in an ice bath and stir to chill. As the mixture cools it will begin to thicken slightly – this is the gelatine beginning to set; at this point remove the bowl from the ice bath. Fold one quarter of the egg mousse into the gelatine mixture to lighten it, followed by the remaining three quarters, mixing thoroughly and ensuring no liquid juice layer remains in the bottom of the bowl. Now fold in the softly whipped cream. Finally, whisk the reserved 2 egg whites to stiff peaks stiffly, making sure they do not turn grainy, and then gently fold into the mousse. Pour the mousse into the serving bowl and place in the fridge to set, about 4 hours. To make the chocolate wafers, melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of hot water, then remove from the heat. Spread the melted chocolate on baking paper in the shape of a large square. Leave in a cool place until set, then cut into diamond shaped wafers. To make the orange-flavoured cream, grate the zest from half of one of the oranges, then mix with the whipped cream in a bowl and add a pinch of caster sugar to taste. To assemble peel and segment the three oranges. Arrange the orange segments in a circular pattern on top of the set mousse. Pipe a border of the orange-flavoured cream around the segments and position the chocolate wafers decoratively and dramatically around the edge of the bowl.JR Ryall’s Orange Mousse with Chocolate Wafers
These little pots are very rich so extra crème fraîche may be welcome. This mousse will taste different depending on the chocolate, for a richer mousse use 62% chocolate or 34% milk chocolate for a sweeter mousse. Servings Course Ingredients 110g good quality dark chocolate (we use 54% Callebaut) 110ml cream 1-2 tbsp Jamaica rum 2 eggs, separated 100g plump raisins or sultanas 60ml of Pedro Ximénez sweet sherry crème fraîche, to serve Method First, make the chocolate pots: Chop the chocolate finely. Bring the cream up to the boil, turn off the heat, add the chocolate to the cream and stir it around until the chocolate melts in the cream. Add in the alcohol, if using, and whisk in the egg yolks. Whisk the egg whites until just stiff, then stir in a quarter of the egg white, fold in the rest, gently, being careful not to knock all the air out. Divide between 6 pots or espresso cups. Cover and chill and allow to set for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight. Meanwhile, warm the Pedro Ximénez. Pour over the raisins and allow to plump up and macerate. To serve: Put the little pot or espresso cup on a small plate or saucer. Spoon a generous teaspoon of boozy raisins on one side. Place a blob of crème fraîche on the other side, add a teaspoon and serve.Bitter Chocolate Pots with Pedro Ximénez Raisins
The Farming for Nature Handbook written by Emma Hart, Brigid Barry and Brendan Dunford has just been published at last.
An exciting but deeply practical, down to earth guide on how to protect and restore nature on your farm.
It is jam packed with answers to frequently asked questions and much, much more.
- For more information and to order, see www.farmingfornature.ie
Looking for a Christmas Party night out in Cork City?
Of course, there are many temptations, but we’ve been hearing lots of good things about Proby’s Kitchen located at Proby’s Quay, now open for dinner on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evening from 5-9pm.
- For more information, see www.probyskitchen.ie
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