Bougie Chocolate Mousse with Whipped Cream and Sea Salt & Honeycomb

Method

1. 1. Begin by placing the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and place over a pan of gently simmering water. Allow to melt slowly, stirring occasionally, then remove from the heat and let the chocolate cool for about 15 minutes.
2. 2. Meanwhile, beat the egg yolks and half of the sugar together in a large bowl until they are pale and thickened. Gently incorporate the slightly cooled, melted chocolate into the mixture and set aside.
   
3. 3. In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites with the salt until soft peaks form, then gradually whisk in the remaining half of the sugar and whisk again to soft peaks.
   
4. 4. In a separate bowl, whisk the double cream until soft peaks form - you are now ready to assemble.
   
5. 5. Carefully fold a third of the cream into the chocolate mixture, stirring gently until evenly combined then fold in the rest of the cream in 2 batches. Fold in the egg whites in 2 batches again, taking care not to knock the air out of the mixture.
   
6. 6. Pour into a large bowl, cover, and place in the refrigerator to set.
   
7. 7. For the honeycomb, grease and line a 20 x 20cm square tin with some neutral oil.
   
8. 8. Place the caster sugar and golden syrup into a large, deep saucepan and place over a medium heat. Cook until the sugar has melted, but try not to let the mixture boil and bubble too soon or the mixture may crystallise.
   
9. 9. Once the sugar has dissolved, turn up the heat a little and cook until the mixture forms a rich amber coloured caramel. Working as quickly as possible, remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the bicarbonate of soda, until the mixture is foaming - this is why it’s important to use a deep saucepan! - and there are no streaks of the bicarbonate of soda left.
   
10. 10. Quickly pour the mixture into the greased tin and set aside to harden for about 1 - 1 ½ hours. Once the honeycomb has hardened and set, snap or bash into pieces, leaving some large and making some small for a nice texture difference.
    
11. 11. When ready, whisk the cream with the icing sugar and vanilla bean paste until soft peaks form then serve the chocolate mousse spooned into individual serving dishes, topped with the whipped cream, honeycomb and a pinch of salt.
    

• Honeycomb
• Chocolate
• Dessert

Ingredients

• US
• METRIC