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How to: Chocolate Mousse Easter Eggs

How to: Chocolate Mousse Easter Eggs

by | Mar 11, 2019 | 2 comments

Making your own chocolate Easter eggs is a fun challenge – with the help of a chocolate-maker, we’ll show you how! 

This Chocolate Mousse Easter egg is layered with fluffy decadent chocolate mousse, light-air sponge and encased in really great quality chocolate! If you’re up for the challenge of making your own Easter eggs this year, this guide will take all the intimidation out of it. Especially because you’ll be learning from an actual chocolate maker! I visited AFRIKOA chocolate where their head chocolate maker, Antonino Allegra, showed me how simple it is to recreate.  

WHAT YOU NEED:
  1. Easter egg moulds (you can find these relatively cheaply at baking shops or online at Barco 
  2. Make the chocolate sponge and chocolate mousse ahead of time (or cheat and buy them if you’d rather focus on getting the Easter egg right).
  3. Tempered chocolate (see how to temper chocolate here) – you can totally cheat and use baking chocolate for the shell but don’t skimp on the good stuff for the mousse. 
  4. Patience – remember this is a challenge! So take your time and enjoy the process. 

 

STEP 1: fill the two halves of the Easter egg mould with tempered chocolate (or baking chocolate) then quickly turn them over to allow the excess chocolate to drip off. Give the moulds a few taps to help the process. Once the dripping has stopped, use a palette knife to scrape the edge of the mould clean.

STEP 2: Place the moulds on a cooling rack, facing down, in the refrigerator to set. Repeat the process to add another layer of chocolate on the inside of the egg to strengthen it. Refrigerate to set.

STEP 3: Place the chocolate mousse into a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle.

STEP 4:  fill each half 1/3 of the way with mousse then layer the cake and chocolate mousse alternately inside one half of the mould. Repeat the process with the other half of the egg. 

STEP 5:  ‘glue’ the two halves together, pipe a little chocolate around the edges. Immediately stick the two halves together, making sure to seal the edges carefully. Allow to set completely. 

STEP 6: Mix the gold dust with a little vodka or vanilla essence and use a clean pastry brush to splatter it onto the egg. Serve on a bed of chocolate curls, if desired. 

Challenge accepted? Good, now make sure to take me @TheKateTin on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter so I can oooh and aaah over your beautiful creation! Or if you’re struggling, drop me a DM and I’ll try my best to help! 

 

Chocolate Mousse Easter Egg
Yields 4
A chocolate Easter egg filled with layers of chocolate sponge and chocolate mousse
Print
0 calories
0 g
0 g
0 g
0 g
0 g
0 g
0 g
0 g
0 g
0 g
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size
0g
Yields
4
Amount Per Serving
Calories 0
Calories from Fat 0
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 0g
0%
Saturated Fat 0g
0%
Trans Fat 0g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0g
Monounsaturated Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg
0%
Sodium 0mg
0%
Total Carbohydrates 0g
0%
Dietary Fiber 0g
0%
Sugars 0g
Protein 0g
Vitamin A
0%
Vitamin C
0%
Calcium
0%
Iron
0%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Does this look wrong?
Ingredients
  1. Chocolate Sponge
  2. 100g cake flour
  3. 30g good-quality cocoa powder
  4. 2.5g bicarbonate of soda
  5. 1/8 tsp baking powder
  6. pinch of salt
  7. 56g eggs (about 1 large egg)
  8. 125g white sugar
  9. 1 tsp vanilla extract
  10. 85g mayonnaise
  11. 105ml water
  12. Chocolate Mousse
  13. 2 cups (500ml) cream, divided
  14. 225g AFRIKOA 70% dark chocolate,chopped
  15. 2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
  16. ¼ cup white sugar
  17. ¼ cup water
  18. 500g AFRIKOA 70% dark chocolate, tempered
  19. 1 x large Easter Egg mould (approx. 15cm x 10cm wide)
  20. Edible gold dust, to decorate
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (160 fan-forced). Line a sheet pan 30cm x 20cm with baking paper. Sift the dry ingredients together. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk the eggs, sugar and vanilla for 1 minute to combine, then increase the speed and whip until thick and pale yellow – about 5 minutes. When the whisk is lifted, it should form a slowly dissolving ribbon – this is called ribbon stage. Add the mayonnaise and whip until combined. Fold in the dry ingredients and water, alternately, in 2 stages. Pour the batter into the prepared baking tin and bake for 10 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool completely, then cut into 3cm wide strips. Set aside.
  2. To make the chocolate mousse, whip half the cream to soft peaks then refrigerate until needed. Heat the rest of the cream to just below boiling point, then pour over the chopped chocolate. Allow to stand for a few minutes then stir until smooth. Set aside. Whip egg yolks on high speed in a stand mixer until light and stiff. Place the sugar and water in a small saucepan and stir until the sugar has dissolved then bring to the boil. Simmer until the syrup reaches 120 degrees Celsius on a sugar thermometer. Start whipping the egg yolks again on low speed and gradually add the hot sugar syrup down the side of the bowl. Whip until the mixture has doubled in volume and is body temperature. Test the temperature of the ganache (it should also be body temperature), then fold the ganache into the whipped yolks. Fold in the whipped cream in 2 batches. Place the mousse in a piping bag fitted with a straight nozzle, ready for assembling.
  3. To make the Easter egg; fill the two halves of the Easter egg mould with tempered chocolate then quickly turn them over to allow the excess chocolate to drip off. Give the moulds a few taps to help the process. Once the dripping has stopped, use a palette knife to scrape the edge of the mould clean then place the moulds on a cooling rack, facing down, in the refrigerator to set. Repeat the process to add another layer of chocolate on the inside of the egg to strengthen it. Refrigerate to set.
  4. Assemble the Easter egg, fill each half 1/3 of the way with mousse then layer the cake and chocolate mousse alternately inside one half of the mould.To ‘glue’ the two halves together, pipe a little chocolate around the edges and gently press the one half onto the hot baking tray to melt the edges. Immediately stick the two halves together, making sure to seal the edges carefully. Allow to set completely. Decorate with gold dust.
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calories
0
fat
0g
protein
0g
carbs
0g
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The Kate Tin https://thekatetin.com/
Recipe and images originally created for Food & Home Entertaining Magazine

Chocolate Bread ‘n Butter Bundt

Chocolate Bread ‘n Butter Bundt

by | Jul 4, 2018 | 0 comments

This easy chocolate bread pudding is the best way to turn leftover bread into a spectacular dessert! 

#SPONSORED

  

Chocolate bread pudding is what you get when you combine FREEZING cold weather with World Chocolate Day (which is this Saturday 7 July) and my absolute FAVOURITE chocolate in the whole world. It’s moist, it’s comforting, it’s got pockets of melty dark chocolate in it and it tastes like a warm snuggly hug!

I’ve used my two favourite dark chocolates – AFRIKOA 70% dark chocolate in the pudding and the 55% semi-sweet dark chocolate in the sauce. If like me, you’ve always been concerned about how cocoa farmers are treated, then this is honestly the best chocolate on the market. 

AFRIKOA is the first local South African chocolate maker who does direct trade with cocoa farmers in Tanzania, this means they cut out all the middlemen and pay the farmers what they truly deserve (because let’s face it, without them we wouldn’t even have chocolate!). With direct trade, the farmers earn 300% more than what they normally do. Which is kinda scary because that means everybody else is paying them 300% less! If you’re more interested in the sustainability of chocolate and why you should buy the best possible chocolate you can afford, you can read more about this in an article I wrote for Food24 here.  I love that they are proudly African (bye bye imported chocolate!) and their chocolate tastes so complex and fruity – it opens up a whole new world for baking and desserts! 

Let’s be honest, chocolate bread pudding isn’t the best-looking dessert in the world which is why I wanted to make it in a big bundt shape. Jip, I like big bundts – I cannot lie! You could absolutely make this chocolate bread pudding in a normal pudding dish and not unmould it – whatever makes you happy, whatever you do, though, make sure you share pictures of your Kate Tin creations with me on social media using #TheKateBakers or join my brand new Facebook group here. 

 

Chocolate Bread and Butter Bundt
Serves 8
A moist chocolate bread 'n butter pudding spiced with cinnamon and served with a hot chocolate sauce
Print
Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
1 hr
Total Time
1 hr 30 min
Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
1 hr
Total Time
1 hr 30 min
5376 calories
576 g
1656 g
288 g
122 g
155 g
2344 g
3145 g
376 g
1 g
106 g
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size
2344g
Servings
8
Amount Per Serving
Calories 5376
Calories from Fat 2566
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 288g
444%
Saturated Fat 155g
777%
Trans Fat 1g
Polyunsaturated Fat 16g
Monounsaturated Fat 90g
Cholesterol 1656mg
552%
Sodium 3145mg
131%
Total Carbohydrates 576g
192%
Dietary Fiber 35g
140%
Sugars 376g
Protein 122g
Vitamin A
152%
Vitamin C
35%
Calcium
200%
Iron
166%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Does this look wrong?
Ingredients
  1. Butter, to grease mould
  2. 3 large eggs
  3. 3 egg yolks
  4. 750ml full cream milk
  5. 160ml cream
  6. 40g castor sugar
  7. 30g cocoa powder
  8. 160g honey
  9. 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
  10. 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  11. 200g 70% AFRIKOA chocolate, chopped roughly
  12. 1 x 400g ciabatta bread, cubed
  13. CHOCOLATE SAUCE
  14. 200ml cream
  15. 100g 55% AFRIKOA chocolate, finely chopped
  16. 40ml brandy
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 180C (or 160 fan-forced). Fill a large roasting tray halfway with water (the tray should fit the bundt tin you’re using) and place it in the oven to heat up – this your bain marie for late.
  2. Butter the large bundt tin well and set aside.
  3. In a big mixing bowl mix whisk everything together except for the chocolate and the bread. Add the bread and chopped chocolate then allow to soak for 15 minutes.
  4. Place the soaked bread mixture into the bundt tin and press it down well so it reaches all the nooks and crannies of the tin.
  5. Place the bundt in the bain marie in the oven and bake for 50-60 minutes or until the bread stars pulling away from the sides. Remove the tin from the water and leave it inside the oven, turn the oven off, leave the oven door slightly open and allow to cool completely – this is to help keep the bundt shape when unmoulding it.
  6. In the meantime, make the chocolate sauce; heat the cream to just below boiling point then pour over the chopped chocolate and allow to stand for 4-5 minutes. Add the brandy then stir to combine.
  7. When ready to serve, unmould the pudding and heat it up again in the oven or microwave. Serve with the hot chocolate sauce.
Notes
  1. If you don’t want to unmould the pudding, simply bake it in whichever dish you want to serve it, bake and serve it immediately (you can skip the cooling process).
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calories
5376
fat
288g
protein
122g
carbs
576g
more
The Kate Tin https://thekatetin.com/

 

Dark Chocolate Cocoa Crunch Cake

Dark Chocolate Cocoa Crunch Cake

by | Apr 4, 2017 | 5 comments

#SPONSORED

Attention chocoholics (that’s all of you, really)! If you love chocolate as much as I do, you’ll be thrilled to know that we have a brand new local, bean-to-bar chocolate maker on the block – AFRIKOA. Now, I may be biased, considering the chocolate-maker at AFRIKOA is my future husband, but chocolate never lies, people so give it a try so you can enjoy it and I can keep my journalistic integrity in tact 😉
You may remember my trip to the cocoa plantations in Tanzania a year or so ago, well, my other half, Mr Chocolate was sourcing cocoa beans at the time. It was an eye-opening experience seeing cocoa trees for the first time (bizarre considering how chocolate is such a normal part of our lives – almost like drinking milk daily but never having seen a cow) but what really struck me was how much the cocoa farmers are exploited by huge companies. When one of the farmers asked me what we do with the cocoa beans, I was floored; in the remote area they grow cocoa in, you cannot buy a single chocolate bar – it’s too expensive for the 1 dollar (R13) these farmers live off each day. Mr Chocolate was equally disturbed by the fact that as chocolate-lovers, it comes at a premium price for us when these farmers clearly aren’t being paid what they deserve – this is because all the middlemen add their own profits along the way, for essentially doing nothing. This is how AFRIKOA and South Africa’s first direct-trade bean-to-bar chocolate was born; with the simple idea of a chocolate-maker buying cocoa beans straight from the cocoa farmer. This way, the farmers get 250% more for their cocoa beans than they normally would, Mr Chocolate gets fresh cocoa beans that haven’t been sitting in a warehouse for months on end and we get to enjoy chocolate knowing that our pleasure doesn’t come at the expense of anyone else. It’s a win-win.
While there are 4 different types of AFRIKOA chocolate; a 27% milk, 70% dark and an 80% sugar free, I’ve used the 55% semi sweet dark chocolate in my favourite chocolate cake recipe. It’s fruity got loads of toasted hazelnut flavours and really easy to bake with. This cake is definitely not short on chocolate; it has it in the sponge, buttercream and drip!  And the cocoa nib crunch adds an amazing textural surprise – a real showstopper!

Dark Chocolate Cocoa Crunch Cake

Serves 6-8

 

Chocolate Cake

½ litre water

240ml vegetable oil

450g brown sugar

200g AFRIKOA 55% Semi Sweet Dark Chocolate, chopped

115g cocoa powder

4 large eggs

325g cake flour

5g baking powder

2g salt

10g bicarbonate of soda

 

Chocolate Buttercream

100g egg whites (from about 3 large eggs)

150g castor sugar

340g unsalted butter, cubed, at room temperature

200g AFRIKOA 55% Semi Sweet Dark Chocolate, chopped and melted

 

Chocolate Drip Glaze

55g AFRIKOA 55% Semi Sweet Dark Chocolate

1/4 cup (60ml) cream

2 tbsp (30ml) honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

 

Preheat oven to 160C (fan-forced). Grease and line 3 x 24cm spring form cake tins. Boil water then add oil and sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved and then pour over the chopped chocolate. Stir until smooth. Whisk eggs lightly then stir in the chocolate mixture. Fold in the combined dry ingredients. Let mix stand covered for 1 hour. Place the batter into the lined cake tins and bake for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before turning out. Cool completely then level the tops with a sharp bread knife. For the buttercream, combine the egg whites and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer set over a pot of gently simmering water and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture it hot to the touch or is no longer gritty when rubbed between your fingers. Transfer to the stand mixer and whip until glossy, stiff peaks form, about 5-7 minutes. Add the butter a few pieces at a time and whip until the frosting is creamy and smooth. Fold in the melted chocolate. Make the glaze by combining all the ingredients in a bowl, microwave until the chocolate is melted and the glaze is smooth. Cool to room temperature. To assemble the cake, layer the sponges alternately with whipped ganache, leaving enough to cover the top and sides. Spread the glaze over using a palette knife to make sure it drips down the sides. Pipe a few rosettes on top using any leftover ganache and sprinkle with crunchy cocoa bits*.

 

TIP  To make the crunchy cocoa bits, place 100g sugar in a saucepan with 2 tbsp water and heat until caramelized and golden. Add 1 cup of cocoa nibs and 1 tsp of sugar and stir vigorously until the caramel starts to crystallize. Pour onto a baking tray and allow to cool. Melt 25g AFRIKOA 55% Semi Sweet Dark chocolate and then toss the caramelized cocoa nibs in the chocolate. Spread them out again and allow to set.