“This recipe is special for me as I love chocolate, and this combines chocolate and physalis together,” says private chef Michel Bru, who is based in Hastings.
“I created this dish for my friends three years ago when I was living in Scotland, and because they loved it I’ve decided to share it with everyone.”
How to make milk chocolate mousse in a dark chocolate circle, shavings of dark chocolate, white chocolate tuile and physalis sauce
Chocolate mousse
Preparation: 1 hour
Serves: 4
Difficulty: Medium
Ingredients:
100ml milk
20g caster sugar
40g egg yolks
300g milk chocolate (40%)
325ml double cream
200g dark chocolate (70%)
1 chocolate transfer sheet
100g white chocolate
100g physalis
50g sugar
1tbsp water
Method:
1. Milk chocolate mousse: To make the basic mousse base, whisk the eggs and sugar together in a bowl. Bring the milk to the boil in a small pan. Remove from the heat and pour the hot milk over the egg yolks, and beat to combine. Pour back into the pan and put on a low heat, stirring occasionally, until it coats the back of the spoon. It is important not to let the mixture boil or it may spoil. When the custard is ready, wait for a few minutes until it is warm, then pour it into the melted milk chocolate. Whip the 325ml of double cream to a soft peak in a large bowl, then gently fold it into the chocolate-custard mixture with a tablespoon. Do not beat, as you want to keep it airy to avoid the mousse becoming too hard. Pour the mix into a bowl, cover with cling film and leave in the fridge for a couple of hours.
2. Dark chocolate circle: Roughly chop 150g of the dark chocolate and place it in a bowl. Half fill a saucepan with hot water and put the bowl over it, making sure that the bowl does not touch the bottom of the saucepan. Slowly heat the water, ensuring it does not boil. Stir regularly using a flexible spatula so that the chocolate melts smoothly. Check the temperature with a thermometer. When it reaches 55C-58C (131F-136F), remove the chocolate from the bain-marie. Set aside a third of the melted chocolate in a bowl, in a warm place. Add the remaining finely chopped dark chocolate into the remaining melted chocolate, stirring constantly. The chocolate should reach 27C-28C. Then add the melted chocolate that you have set aside to increase the temperature. The chocolate should reach 31C-32C.
Cut a strip of the chocolate transfer sheet (about 6 inches long and 2 inches high), and spread the tempered chocolate on the sheet using a spatula. When the chocolate starts becoming hard, make a circle with it using a pastry cutter.
3. White chocolate tuile: Melt 100g of white chocolate and spread it on to cling film. When the white chocolate becomes hard, break it in pieces.
4. Shavings of dark chocolate: Use the excess of the tempered dark chocolate, and spread it on a clean table. When the chocolate starts becoming hard, scrap the chocolate with a knife or a dough cutter.
5. Physalis sauce: Put physalis and sugar in a small pan, and cook them for 5 minutes until the fruit becomes soft and the liquid becomes a syrup
