Falling for Chocolate, once more -- Faiblesse pour le chocolat, encore une fois
What chocolate brand do I use when I bake?
I will not provide a list of hundreds of names. In fact, I am one of these people that like to stick to something when it works well. How did it happen that I solely started to bake with Valrhona Chocolate is purely a piece of luck, or chance. Le hasard. While you all know that I live in the US, you might not all know that finding good quality baking chocolate can be more challenging here. There are not chocolatiers to be found in every town and city. They exist, Dieu merci, but they are just harder to find. Valrhona worked for me when, many years ago, I first bought a piece from places like WholeFoods or Formaggio -- and since I do not fancy paying the high shipping cost from NYC to Boston, from chocolatiers like Maison du Chocolat for example, I stick to what is easily accessible to me. I am lucky too, Valrhona makes excellent chocolate.
It did not take me long to decide what I was going to make. I had wanted to improvise a cake of that type for quite a while now. As a true lover of raspberries and chocolate together, I imagined layers that would complement each other. The cake starts with a génoise-type dark chocolate basis which is simply topped with a layer of fresh raspberries lost in a chocolate mousse which I lightly flavored with freshly grated ginger. To dress it slightly more I finished with more raspberries on top, and chocolate twirls -- and how much fun I had to make these. Eh bien voilà. Nothing else to say. I said it all. The introduction was made to my Dark Chocolate and Raspberry Cake, with its Chocolate-Ginger Mousse. Now I can sit and relax, waiting impatiently to discover the many more chocolate treats that this event will bring to us. Can we do chocolate every month please, pretty please?
Dark Chocolate, Raspberry Cake and its Chocolate-Ginger Mousse
- 2 2/3 oz dark chocolate, 64 % cocoa contents, Valrhona Manjari
- 1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa (I used Scharffen Bergen)
- 3 large eggs
- 1.5 oz confectioner's sugar
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 3/4 oz dark chocolate, 64 % cocoa, Valrhona Manjari
- 1/4 cup (minus 2 tsp) milk
- 1 gelatin sheet
- 1 tsp finely grated ginger root
- 2 Tbsp confectioner's sugar
- 1/2 cup (minus 1 Tbsp) cold heavy cream
- Fresh raspberries
- Dark chocolate, 70% cocoa Valrhona de couverture, for the decoration
- Unsweetened cocoa, to sprinkle
- Mix 5 1/4 oz fresh raspberries (or frozen) with 2 tsp lemon juice and 1.5 oz confectioner's sugar. Place in a fine sieve to remove the seeds.
- To make the chocolate cake serving as a basis, start by melting the chocolate in a double-boiler.
- Separate the whites from the egg yolks.
- Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until white in color, then add the cocoa and cornstarch. Mix well before adding the melted chocolate.
- Whip the egg whites firm with a pinch of salt and add them delicately to the chocolate batter.
- Pour in a mold covered with a sheet of parchment paper and cook in a preheated at 350 F oven for 15 mns. When cooked, let rest and cool down on a rack.
- Take mold rings and cut chocolate cake rounds serving as the basis.
- Line the ring molds with cake strips. Place them on a baking sheet and add a chocolate cake basis in each mold.
- Arrange fresh raspberries on top, pointing up.
- To make the chocolate-ginger mousse, start with heating the milk with the finely grated ginger. Add the confectioner's sugar and mix well. Keep warm.
- Soak the gelatin in cold water for a few min and squeeze out the excess water. Add it to the milk and mix to dissolve.
- Melt the chocolate using a double boiler.
- Pour the hot flavored milk into the chocolate, in 2 to 3 times, mixing well at each time.
- Whip the cold heavy cream firm. Fold it gently into the chocolate batter.
- Pour this mousse on top of the raspberries in each mold. Place in the fridge for 1 to 2 hours, or until the mousses are set.
- When you are ready to serve, remove the ring molds carefully, then the cake strips. Decorate with fresh raspberries and chocolate twirls. Sprinkle bitter cocoa on top and serve with the raspberry sauce.
Note: the cakes can be prepared one day ahead of time.Le coin français
Gâteau au chocolat, framboises et mousse au chocolat-gingembre
- 75 g de chocolat noir à 64 % de cacao, Valrhona Manjari
- 1 càs de cacao en poudre non sucré (j'ai utilisé Scharffen Bergen)
- 3 gros oeufs
- 40 g de sucre glace
- 1 càc de maïzena
- 50 g de chocolat noir à 64 % de cacao
- 50 ml de lait
- 1 feuille de gélatine
- 1 càc de racine de gingembre râpé très finement
- 2 càc de sucre glace
- 100 ml de crème liquide froide
- Framboises fraîches
- Chocolat noir de couverture à 64% pour la décoration
- Cacao en poudre non sucré, pour saupoudrer
- Mixez 150 g de framboises fraîches avec 2 càs de jus de citron et 40 g de sucre glace. Passez au chinois pour rétirer les pépins.
- Pour faire le gâteau au chocolat de base, commencez par faire fondre le chocolat au bain-marie.
- Séparez les jaunes des blancs d'oeuf.
- Battez les jaunes avec le sucre jusqu'à ce que le mélange blanchisse, puis ajoutez le cacao et la maizena. Mélangez bien puis ajoutez le chocolat fondu.
- Battez les blancs en neige ferme et ajoutez-les à la préparation précédente.
- Versez dans un moule recouvert de papier sulfurisé et enfournez au four préchauffé à 180 C pendant 15 mns. Sortez et laissez refroidir sur une grille.
- Prenez vos cercles et découpez les bases de vos gâteaux de la taille des cercles.
- Chemisez vos cercles avec des feuilles de rhodoïd. Placez-les sur une plaque et dans chaque cercle, placez une base de gâteau.
- Disposez les framboises par dessus, pointe vers le haut.
- Pour réaliser la mousse au chocolat au gingembre, commencez par chauffer le lait avec le gingembre finement râpé. Ajoutez le sucre glace et mélangez bien. Gardez au chaud.
- Faites tremper la gélatine dans de l'eau froide pendant quelques minutes, essorez-la et mettez-la dans le lait pour la dissoudre.
- Faites fondre le chocolat au bain-marie.
- Versez le lait chaud dans le chocolat fondu, sous forme de petit filet d'abord, puis en 1 à 2 fois, en mélangeant bien avec une maryse à chaque fois.
- Montez la crème liquide froide en chantilly. Mélangez-la délicatement au mélange précédent.
- Versez cette mousse sur les framboises et placez au frigidaire pendant 1 à 2 heures, jusqu'à ce que les mousses prennent.
- Au moment de servir, retirez les feuilles de rhodoïd, décorez de framboises et de décor en chocolat. Saupoudrez de cacao amer et servez avec le coulis de framboises.
98 Comments
M Michel ·
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FoodieFroggy, merci.
Patricia, ahahh, made you more hungry? ;-)
EliFlo et Audrey, merci!
Caroline, gelatin sheets are commonly used in France, and also by pastry chefs here in the US. They are easier and more precise to use than gelatin powder. There are equivalences but can also be very approximate. I know it is not easy to find them here, although you can online. Approximately, a 1/4 oz bag of powdered gelatin, roughly 1 Tbsp = 4 gelatin sheets. If you use ceramic molds, I suggest lining them all the way to the bottom too to make unmolding easier. As to the chocolate twirls, you have to spread some chocolate on a piece of cake strip for example, run lines in it with a fork and fold the cake strip in the shape of a twirl, keep it like this until it dries. Then it is easy to get the twirls when the chocolate hardens. Hope this helps! Good luck!
Sophie, ma pauvre ;-)
Lydia, oh nice, thanks for the info Lydia! I will have to check it out! I am sure they must have nice Italian ones.
Michel, ahahh!
Debo, c'est vrai!
Veron, thank you! See the answer I gave to Caroline in the comment above ie the chocolate twirls. Let me know if this is clear enough.
Britt, ahahh, thank you!
Fabienne, alors la, c'est un vrai compliment! ;-)
David, ah mais oui, c'est parfait! Merci d'avoir organise ce theme. J'adore!
Mimi et Adeline, merci.
LyB, thank you! Glad to hear you have the "wow' word there!
Lisa and Nika, merci!
Chantal, merci bien a toi.
Sylvie, tu es trop gentille. Cela me touche vraiment! Surtout venant de tes mains de patissiere.
Kate, merci.
Kim, oh nice. I am glad to hear that you enjoyed the rice pudding!
Peabody, ahah this is a good question. I guess I must be a lucky one ;-)
Chellie, thank you!
Annellenor, merci, trop gentil.
Susan and Kat, thank you
Thalie, merci bien. C'est sympa de savoir que tu aimes.
Sue, nice of you. I am not trained to do this, you know, but I guess lucky to be able to express my passion for all of these together. This blog is a great place to express it, all in one place.
Isabella and Kristen, thank you. Glad you like them.
Mercotte, merci bien! Contente que cela te plaise
Joey, really no, I am not a pâtissière, trust me, I would know it ;-)
Helene, merci.
Ingrid, merci beaucoup.
ahah Bron, you are just too funny!
Helen, thank you! See the explanation for the chocolate twirls in one of my first response.
Loukoum, merci de ton gentil mot. Je suis heureuse de lire que tu aimes revenir!
Brilynn, thank you! I can pretend that I am one ;-)
Claude, je t'assure, ca a l'air plus complique que ca ne l'est vraiment.! Mais merci quand meme ;-)
Gattina, thank you! Good to stick to chocolate that works, eh?
Astrid, oh nice. I hope you make good use of your molds. I love mine!
Fanny, I bet this is a Fanny's cake ;-) Glad to hear that you also like the new look! Merci!
Helene, merci. C'est une question avec plein de reponses. J'imagine que tu dois essayer de jouer avec la lumiere. Peut-etre tu peux me dire ou tu as des problemes et je peux mieux y repondre?
Anita, thanks my dear. Coming from you, I want to believe it ;-)
Ellie, ah yes. I will definitely keep you posted, a big promise!
Helen, un grand merci ! As to photograph your creations, yes! Then I can eat your cakes. I am in for the job! ;-)
Jacelyn, thank you.
Danielle, thank you. Glad to hear you like it.
Tarzile, merci bien a toi.
Linda, thanks!
Connie, yes Valrhona is certainly a great help in the outcome of these cakes.
Sha, oh you are such a sweet heart! Thank you very much. I am also so glad to see you back in the blogosphere!
Mickymath, merci beaucoup.
Ivonne, thank you my dear!
Rasa Malaysia, thanks. Nice note of yours!
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