Chocolate Mousse Recipe By Tasty Food

CHOCOLATE BANANA CREAM PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• For the crust, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter in a bowl. Press the mixture into an 11-inch false-bottom tart pan, making sure the sides and the bottom of the crust are an even thickness. Bake for 10 minutes and set aside to cool completely.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the sugar, egg yolks, cornstarch and salt. With the mixer on low, slowly add the scalded milk until the mixture is combined.
• Pour the mixture into a large saucepan and cook over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture is very thick. Off the heat, add the chocolate, butter, coffee liqueur and coffee powder and stir until the chocolate is melted. Pour the filling into the cooled tart pan and smooth the top. Place plastic wrap directly on top of the chocolate filling and chill for 6 hours.
• When ready to serve, remove the plastic wrap from the chocolate and arrange the banana slices in concentric circles on top of the filling.
• Place the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat until the cream forms firm peaks. Spoon the whipped cream on top of the bananas and gently spread the cream with a spatula to cover the pie, leaving a border of bananas visible at the outside edge. For a garnish, shave curls of milk chocolate on top of the whipped cream. Remove the pie from the pan, place it on a cake plate and serve.

MOCHA CHOCOLATE ICEBOX CAKE

Steps:

• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the heavy cream, mascarpone, sugar, coffee liqueur, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and vanilla. Mix on low speed to combine and then slowly raise the speed, until it forms firm peaks.
• To assemble the cake, arrange chocolate chip cookies flat in an 8-inch springform pan, covering the bottom as much as possible. (I break some cookies to fill in the spaces.) Spread a fifth of the mocha whipped cream evenly over the cookies. Place another layer of cookies on top, lying flat and touching, followed by another fifth of the cream. Continue layering cookies and cream until there are 5 layers of each, ending with a layer of cream. Smooth the top, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.
• Run a small sharp knife around the outside of the cake and remove the sides of the pan. Sprinkle the top with the chocolate, cut in wedges, and serve cold.

CHOCOLATE BABKA

Steps:

• Make the dough: Sprinkle the yeast over the milk in a liquid measuring cup; add a pinch of sugar and set aside until bubbly, about 7 minutes. Combine the flour, the remaining 1/3 cup sugar, the eggs, yeast mixture, salt, vanilla, nutmeg and lemon zest in a large bowl. Stir with a wooden spoon to combine. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead until soft and smooth, about 5 minutes. Knead in the butter in three additions, dusting the dough with flour if it's too sticky. Transfer the dough to a large bowl; cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature, about 1 1/2 hours. Punch down the dough, re-cover with plastic wrap and let rise in the fridge overnight.
• Make the filling: Heat the sugar, heavy cream and salt in a saucepan until scalding. Pour over the bittersweet chocolate chips, butter and vanilla in a bowl. Whisk until smooth and shiny. Let cool to room temperature.
• Make the topping: Whisk the flour, sugar, cocoa powder and salt in a separate bowl; work in the butter with your fingers until the mixture is sandy and chunky. Stir in the mini chocolate chips; set the topping aside.
• Form the loaves: Cut the dough in half with a bench scraper or chef's knife. Using a rolling pin, roll each half into a 12-by-16-inch rectangle. Using an offset spatula, spread the filling on both dough rectangles, all the way to the edges. Starting from a long side, tightly roll each rectangle into a log. Wrap each log in plastic wrap and refrigerate 15 minutes. Unwrap the logs; cut each in half lengthwise with a bench scraper or chef's knife. Twist the halves together a few times, starting from the middle. Coat two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans with cooking spray and line with parchment, then spray the parchment. Place a dough twist snugly in each pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 1 1/2 hours.
• Finish and bake the babka: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Brush each loaf with butter and sprinkle with the topping. Bake until browned, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, make some simple syrup: Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan; simmer, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Let cool. Pull the loaves out of the oven and immediately poke a bunch of holes in each with a wooden skewer. Pour 1 1/4 cups simple syrup evenly over the loaves.
• Let sit 10 minutes, then remove the babka from the pans, remove the parchment and let cool completely on a rack.