Cooking Corner: Chocolate Mousse

Ok, I took a few breaks from the 52 week challenge on my blog because the meals were either total failures (Offal Week - Chicken Kidney Dirty Rice, we ordered pizza), or have already been featured (coconut shrimp), but I'm back with week 6, chocolate! I knew I didn't want to bake, but it's hard to make savory chocolate - so I decided to do chocolate mousse, which mostly utilizes cooking skills.

You'll Need:
3 Tablespoons Butter
6 oz. Semi Sweet Chocolate
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons sugar
3 separated eggs
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

So to start, you need to cube up 3 tablespoons of butter into pretty small cubes and then break into pieces 6 oz of semi-sweet chocolate. Throw all these into a metal bowl that you can use for a double boiler and put them over a pan of boiling water, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water. I was TERRIFIED the first time I used a double boiler and did my best to avoid it, but I promise, it's super easy and not scary, and you won't get burnt!  Let this melt and stir it with a wooden spoon until smooth. Then, one by one, whisk in those egg yolks, returning to the heat as you do. When you're done, it will look like the picture below. Set it aside.

Melty, Chocolatey Goodness!

OK, so now turn to the egg whites. Put them into a bigger bowl than you think you need, because these little suckers grow. Seriously, cooking science is AWESOME! Grab your electric mixer and start beating these puppies up (I stayed on the low setting for better control). When those egg whites get nice and foamy, add your 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar. That's going to help them stiffen up. Keep beating until soft peaks form. When I say "soft peaks" - that means you can see the ripples, but when you turn off your beater, those ripples go away. When you have soft peeks, gradually beat in that sugar, little by little, and keep beating until hard peaks form. These will NOT go away when you turn your beater off. It looks a little something like the picture below. When you finish, set this mixture aside

See the ripple-y peaks?

OK, finally, grab that CHILLED heavy cream. Pour it into a CHILLED bowl (I took a metal bowl and threw it in the freezer for a few minutes). Grab your electric mixer again and start beating that cream until it starts to stiffen. This will take longer than the egg whites!! When it's stiff, add in your 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla and 2 teaspoons of sugar. Then keep beating until you get those hard peaks again!  Do NOT over beat, or you'll get some awkwardly sweet butter!

Got it? Ok. Good. Now grab all three mixtures. Slowly and gently FOLD your egg white mixture into the chocolate. I used a wooden spoon, but a spatula can work well too. Now this is not stirring or beating. Take your spoon and scrape it along the bottom of the pan and bring it up over the mixture.  Think about when you get a Blizzard from DQ (not paid for this reference) and you have to scoop the bottom up over the top so the topping gets fully incorporated! I did about 1/2 the egg white mixture at a time. Keep folding until fully incorporated, but do not over work your mousse or it will become too thick. Next, fold in your whipped cream. Can you believe it? You're done! You've created professional-grade mousse, at home, and you didn't even break a sweat!  And it should look like this:

It looks sooo good!

Cover it up and throw it in the fridge for about an hour to let it set. Then grab a spoon and dig in! Or.. ya know.. put it in cute little cups and share with others (but sharing is SO overrated).

Cooking Corner: Shrimp Linguine with Vodka Sauce

OK y'all, I am SUPER proud of this one. Like, ridiculously proud! The inspiration for week three was alcohol. My mom has been in love with pink/vodka sauces since she first tried it recently (it's not a common sauce in Idaho for some reason). Therefore, I knew the minute I saw the word alcohol that it was what I was going to do. While vodka sauce also goes well with chicken, I feel its calling is seafood, so I decided to make some jumbo shrimp with it.

Now, the only problem with this recipe is I decided to go all "real cook" and not use measurements. It's fine though because I can give you approximations. I started by peeling and deveining the shrimp - like a legit person! It's super easy, especially when your shrimp are as jumbo as mine were! Peel off all the shell above the tail. Slice that nekkid shrimp down the back and use a toothpick to pull out the poopshoot and any veins you can find.

Next, melt four tablespoons of butter in a flat, high pan.  Like, a sauce pan, not a sauce pot.. if that makes sense. --AS IT MELTS, GET YOUR POT OF WATER BOILING AND YOUR PASTA MEASURED OUT -- Add a can of crushed tomatoes and a little can of tomato paste when it's melted and stir it together. Take this chance to flavor your sauce! I used basil, oregano, tarragon, and garlic powder, GENEROUSLY, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Remember, start small and add more - stir and taste!  When you've gotten your general tomato sauce tasting good, throw in somewhere between 1/2 and 3/4 cups of vodka (or glug it til it looks good, remember start small and add more). Mix that in. At this point, I threw my shrimp in the sauce. Cover and let boil/simmer. As the vodka cooks out, the shrimp will cook up.  --AT THIS POINT YOUR WATER SHOULD BE BOILING, THROW IN YOUR PASTA!--

When your shrimp is beginning to pink and your sauce tastes less boozy, throw in 1/2 cup to a full cup of heavy cream. I kinda swirled til it looked pretty. Lower the heat a smidgen, stir it til the heavy cream is thoroughly mixed in, and COVER because it will get messy.  Your sauce will begin to thicken. --KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR PASTA, IT'S GETTING CLOSE TO DONE NOW!!--  When your shrimp are done and your sauce has thickened a bit, add about one to two handfuls of shredded parmesan, because it's not unhealthy enough! Stir it in til it's melted.  Drain your pasta, dish out your shrimp, cover with the sauce, and eat up!! I did my best with plating, but I kinda screwed up the nesting that I had intended.. but look how the shrimp almost stand up!!

My dear mother was licking her plate - proof that I succeeded! I may have ruined restaurant pink sauce for her - and it's SO MUCH CHEAPER than eating out. I think this ended up yielding around 4 servings. We ate two and have frozen about half of it.