Tokyo Desserts

Creamy chocolate mousse with raspberry gelatin

Winter is my season of choice for baking with chocolate. My house is not well insulated so it is chilly even with the heat on so basically a good place to work with chocolate.

In this recipe you need to combine the warm chocolate with the warm anglais - keeping both at about the same temperature - and the room temperature can effect how these two mix together.

This recipe does have several steps to it but you can make it a day ahead if you want to have it for a special dinner.

I used an 18 cm x 6 cm baking ring to make this cake.

Cake

This cake has several steps to it so you may be a bit hesitant to tackle this, however, if you can find a kitchen helper then the process will fly by. The cake has four steps - bake the cake, make the mascarpone mousse, coffee chocolate mousse and lastly the chocolate mousse. The finished product is very delicious and is a great dessert to impress your friends and family.

The recipe below is enough for a cake that fits a cake ring 18 cm x 6 cm.  Overall, the cake will take about 2 hours or less to put together. Each step is done separately so it is easy to do other activities around the house while making the cake. Please allow about 3 hours for the cake to set in the refrigerator before serving.

To use a baking ring for a mousse cake, you can either line the inside of the ring with mousse film for easy removal or if you don't use the film you can remove the cake by heating the outside of the ring with a kitchen torch which loosens the mousse and allows the ring to be lifted off easily.

You can put the cake together as you finish each step. For each of the mousses, once the gelatin and chocolate are combined the mixture can become firm quickly so be ready to use the mousse once you make it.

Here is the full recipe. Please feel free to use short cuts or substitutions as you like.

1. Mix the egg yolk and sugar in a small bowl.
2. Soften the gelatin in cold water. Heat the cream to lightly boiling with coffee then add to the egg yolk mixture and mix. Put back into the sauce pan and heat lightly on low heat to thicken. Lastly, add the gelatin and melt.
3. Pour the cream mixture over the chocolate and mix well with a small whisk. Allow the mixture to come to room temperature.
4. Fold in the whipped cream using a spatula.

Who can't resist the two great tastes of chocolate and marshmallow. Whoopie pies are an easy way to get your homemade cake craving satisfied but without too much fuss in the kitchen. Also, they are easy an dessert to put together if you don't have the right baking pan for a full cake.

There are all sorts of flavor combinations, but here is my winter recipe for chocolate Whoopie pies with homemade marshmallow filling. Obviously, if you need to save time please substitute the homemade marshmallow for marshmallow fluff, Nutella or any flavor of your favorite jam.

Whoopie Pies
120 grams butter milk (add a few drops lemon to milk if you don't have buttermilk)-room temperature
130 grams room temperature butter
30 grams room temperature shortening
130 grams sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
200 grams flour (sifted)
1 teaspoon baking powder
60 grams cacao powder

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Sift together, the flour, cacao powder and baking powder.
3. In a large bowl, mix the butter, shortening and sugar using a hand mixer on low speed (or stand mixer) until well mixed. Add the egg in portions and mix well. Lastly, add the vanilla.
4. Add the dry ingredients and milk to the butter mixture alternately and continue to mix on a low speed with the mixer until everything is well blended.
5. Scoop the dough into a piping bag fitted with plain nozzle and pipe small mounds of dough onto the parchment paper. Tip: dip a small round cookie cutter in flour and then tap on the parchment to provide a guideline for piping the dough. Do this to make a guide for all of the pieces you need to pipe.
6. Bake 12 - 15 minutes. After removing from the oven cool completely before filling.

Whoopie pies on a silpat sheet ready for baking Flour circles are a guide to size each piece

Marshmallow Filling
25 grams gelatin
120 grams water
80 grams water
120 grams sugar
40 grams corn syrup or equivalent (in Japan use mizu ame)
80 grams egg white
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Soften the gelatin with the 120 grams water in a bowl.
2. Whip the egg whites in a bowl until soft peaks form.
3. Heat the 80 grams water, sugar and corn syrup in a small saucepan until it reaches 110 degrees Celsius. Slowly pour this mixture into the whipped eggs and continue to mix with the mixer (or stand mixer).
4. Add the gelatin water to the saucepan and heat lightly so that the gelatin dissolves completely. Add this to the egg whites in portions and continue to mix with the hand mixer for a few minutes and then add the vanilla. Mix with the hand mixer until the mixture starts to become cool.
5. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a decorative nozzle and pipe a round circle on one side of a whoopie pie. Use another piece of whoopie pie to make a sandwich with the first.
6. Tip: after step 4 the mixture will become firm quickly since it contains a lot of gelatin so have the piping bag and whoopie pies ready. You can pipe leftover marshmallow pieces onto a baking sheet that has been dusted with cornstarch. The cornstarch will keep the marshmallow pieces from sticking to each other.

Christmas and cookies, the two just go together. It is hard for me to decide my favorite cookie, however, at Christmas I really love anything that tastes like gingerbread. Even though these cookies aren't gingerbread, they are a close second. Not only do they taste delicious but they look so darn delicious as well. The white sugar powder looks like chocolate buried in fresh snow.

I know you are eager to get baking so let's skip the story and get right to baking. Preparation time for these cookies is only about 30 minutes - just add a little more time for the dough to chill in the refrigerator and then they will be ready for a quick bake.  Happy Baking & Merry Christmas to you and you and your family.

1. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, and other dry ingredients including the sugar.
2. In another bowl, mix together the eggs, instant coffee and vanilla using a small whisk.
3. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering hot water. After melting, remove from the heat and add in the butter in pieces and mix with a whisk.
4. Add the egg mixture to the melted chocolate in portions using a small whisk. Next, add the flour mixture in several portions and mix with a spatula.
5. Cover and put in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or until the mixture becomes firm.
6. Remove from the refrigerator and use a teaspoon to scoop a small amount of dough - about 10 - 12 grams - and roll into a ball. Roll each ball in granular sugar and then the powdered sugar before placing on the baking sheet.
7. Bake at 170° C for 15 – 18 minutes. Remove from the baking sheet to cool before serving.

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In Japan everyone loves Christmas cakes with BIG decoration. Fresh fruits, whipped cream, chocolate and other decorations are usually used for these special cakes. Gingerbread and fruit cakes are not so popular in Japan at Christmas.

For some early Christmas practice, I baked a chocolate cake and decorated with cream cheese icing and chocolate topping. The chocolate is tricky to get the right temperature so that it drizzles down the cake with the right mouth watering look. The cake was a little cool so the chocolate cooled down as soon as it hit the icing which slowed down the chocolate flow.

The cake is a basic chocolate cake recipe which is easy to put rather together quickly. The cream cheese icing is also quite fast to make, however, if you aren't familiar with icing a cake that can be challenging. A palette knife can make the job of icing much easier. The chocolate has a small amount of gelatin so that it stays firm.

Chocolate Cake

200 grams sugar
200 grams flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
100 grams butter
180 grams sweet chocolate (chopped)

1. In a bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder. In a separate bowl, measure the butter and melt over a saucepan filled with hot water.
2. In another bowl, put the chocolate over a saucepan of hot simmering water and melt.
3. In a large bowl, whip the eggs with a hand mixer and gradually add the sugar. Mix on medium speed until the batter is a light yellow color and slightly thickened. This may take a few minutes but don't skip this step.
4. After the batter is well mixed, add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until well mixed. Next add the melted butter in portions and mix on low speed.
5. Lastly, add the chocolate in portions and mix with a spatula.
6. Prepare 2 round baking pans (20 cm round) and lightly butter and flour each of them.
7. Pour the batter evenly between both pans and bake at 180 degrees Celsius for about 40 minutes. Check if done by using a toothpick.
8. When finished baking, cool thoroughly.

Cream Cheese Icing
200 grams cream cheese (room temperature)
40 grams butter (room temperature)
125 grams powdered sugar

1. In a large bowl, mix the butter and powdered sugar with a hand mixer on low until well mixed. Then gradually add the cream cheese in pieces and continue to mix.
2. You can add some flavoring to complement the chocolate like vanilla.

Chocolate Topping
40 grams water
40 grams milk
45 grams sugar
25 grams cocoa powder
2 grams gelatin (softened)

1. Heat the water, milk, sugar and cocoa powder in a saucepan until just lightly boiling. Turn off the heat and add the gelatin. Pour into a bowl to cool. The chocolate should be a little thickened to when pouring on the cake.

Putting everything together
1. Put the bottom piece of the cake on a plate cut the top so that it is flat. Spread some icing on the top add a little strawberry jam on top of the icing (don't spread the jam to the end of the cake though).
2. Place the second piece of cake on top and then spread the remaining icing on the cake using a palette knife. Recommendation is to icing the cake once with about half of the icing and then place in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes. Remove from the refrigerator and use the rest of the icing to icing the cake.
3. Starting from the center of the cake, start pouring the chocolate and use a spoon to distribute it evenly on top of the cake and so that it gradually starts to drip down the sides.
4. Decorate the cake with fresh cream and fruit as you like.

For a delicious jump into spring, this white chocolate mousse cake is highly recommended. There is a light cake at the bottom as well as in the middle. The white chocolate mousse encircles the cake and  the tangy lemon curd tops it all off.  The flowers decorating the top are actually edible, but not sure if they are readily available where you live.

If you need to save time, you can buy the lemon curd at the store, however, curd made with real lemons is just wonderful. It is recommended to only use fresh lemons, do not use the bottled juice when making lemon curd since the taste is so different.

The cake has 3 steps but overall it goes fairly quick. This recipe fits an 18 cm x 6 cm ring.

Cake

Chocolate Brioche 

The trick to incorporate the chocolate into many layers of the dough is to fold the chocolate into the dough as if you are making puff pastry.  The chocolate should be well chilled before spreading it on the dough though otherwise it becomes difficult to work with.


2.   Add the milk mixture to the flour and use a bench scraper to mix and coat the flour thoroughly.  Put on a flat surface and knead for about 10  minutes. Dough should be soft but not sticky. Let rest under a bowl for about 10 minutes.

3.   Put the butter on top of the dough and use a bench scraper to incorporate the butter by slicing it into the dough. Knead again so that the bread is soft & supple. If tough, add a tablespoon or so of milk and knead again.  Put in a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in warm place for 50 minutes.

 4. Flatten the dough & divide it into 2 equal weight pieces. Roll each piece into a nice smooth ball. Place on the kneading board and cover with plastic and let rise for 20 minutes (bench time).


1. Finely chop the chocolate with a grater or with food processor.

2. Mix the sugar, flour, cocoa and egg whites in a bowl.

3. Heat the milk until just boiling. Slowly pour the milk into the cocoa mixture while stirring. Mix until well blended. Put everything back into the saucepan over low heat, stir until thickened.

4. Add the salt, butter and chopped chocolate and stir until everything has melted.

5. Pour the mixture into a bowl and let it cool completely. Spread the filling into two rectangles of oven paper about 25x20cm, cover each of the sheets with film and put it in the freezer until they are solid.

Putting together
1.  Take one of the dough halves and roll out into the shape of a rectangle of about 30 x 21 cm. Put the frozen dough in the center and remove the plastic wrap. Let the chocolate warm up a few minutes then use a palette knife to ensure it is spread evenly over the dough.

2. Fold the dough in thirds. Fold down the top half and then the fold the bottom half so that it is overlapping the top half. Flatten with a rolling pin and fold again using the same method. Finally, fold up the dough from the long end (like making cinnamon rolls) and then cut the 'log' into about 7 pieces.

3. Place each piece into a baking cup and brush with egg. Place in a warm place to rise until about doubled in size.

4. Repeat the same process for the other half of dough.

5. Bake at 200 degrees Celsius for about 20 minutes.

Top the tart with your favorite nuts

I really like this recipe since the  tart has a deep chocolate flavor and a creamy texture. I've topped it with walnuts but pecans would match very well also.

Cover the dough with baking paper and baking beans before baking



Ready for Dessert?



Checkerboard Cake Just add Milk and Serve!

I always thought this cake looked a bit too complicated to make so I never got around to making it. After one try though, it didn't turn out too bad.

It actually only takes a couple of hours to put together and some of that is waiting time so give it a try!


Cake:

6 eggs
200 grams sugar
200 grams flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
100 grams butter
120 grams sweet chocolate (chopped)


1. In a bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder. In a separate bowl, measure the butter add melt over a saucepan filled with hot water.
2. Put the chocolate in another bowl and melt over a saucepan filled with simmering hot water.
3. In a large bowl, whip the eggs with a hand mixer and gradually add the sugar. Continue to mix on medium speed until the batter is yellow and fluffy. This may take about 10 minutes so don't skip on this step. After the batter is well mixed, add the flour mixture gradually and continue to mix until everything is well combined.

Cakes after Baking

4. Add a little of the batter into the bowl with melted butter and mix well with a spatula then add to the bowl filled with the batter. Mix for a few seconds with the hand mixer.
5. Evenly divide the mixture between 2 bowls. Add the melted chocolate to one of the bowls and mix using a spatula.
6. Pour the batters into separate baking pans that are lightly rubbed with butter and dusted with flour. I used 2 20 cm round pans.


Putting Together:

Now you need to cut the cakes to put them together. Don't panic :)

Use a guide to cut your cake evenly

 First, you should cut your cake in half. I had these  
 wooden dowels at home so that I used them as a
 guide to cut the cake evenly. If you have a cake
 cutter, you can use that.

Guides for the cutting the cake circles

Secondly, find a piece of paper and outline the cake on it. From the outer edge of the circle, measure points at 4 cm then at 8 cm. Cut out 3 circles from the paper and place them on one of the cakes. Cut the cake based on the circles.

Mix alternate pieces of the cake circles then place alternate layers of cake on top of each other (i.e. alternate layers based on the outer cake color).

Ready for the last step!