Maraschino & White Chocolate Mousse
By: Ashleigh Retzloff
Published: Friday, February 22, 2013 - 12:54pm

Ingredients




1  1/4  C heavy whipping cream
4 egg whites
1/2 C granulated sugar
5 oz white chocolate
3 or 4 T  maraschino cherry “juice”

Preparation

1 Gather 3 glass or stainless bowls.  In one, pour the whipping cream.  Beat it with a hand mixer or in a stand mixer until stiff peaks form.   Set aside. 2 Set up a double boiler:  Get a saucepan, fill it about 1/3 up with water and bring to a light boil.  Place the white chocolate in another bowl and set on top of the double boiler.  Make sure the water in the pot is not touching the bottom of your bowl.  Melt the chocolate while stirring it until it gets to about 120 F.  You need a little thermometer for this, or just eyeball if you feel comfortable.   Be careful not to scorch the chocolate.   This should only take about  4 minutes or so.  Once done, set the chocolate aside. 3 In the final bowl, whisk together the sugar and the egg whites.   Put them over the boiler, and whisk constantly until the mixture reaches 120-125 F.  This takes about 3 minutes.  If you are using a stainless bowl, it will feel warm to the touch but not hot.  Be careful not to let the eggs start cooking. 4 Once they are warmed, put them in the mixer or use your hand mixer to created what is called a “swiss meringue.”  Beat the mixture until it has roughly the consistency of that marshmallow fluff – it should be very thick and shiny but won’t get peaks or anything. 5 Fold the egg mixture into the chocolate, and then fold the whipped cream into that! 6 Finally, pour the cherry juice in and make sure it is evenly distributed. 7 Pour the mousse into 6 ramekins and chill for at least 1 -2 hours. 8 Garnish with more maraschinos and a little more cherry juice.  Be sure to eat them as soon as they come out of the fridge, as they will melt into a puddle, and no one wants that!

About

I wanted to make a dessert featuring all natural maraschino cherries that showcased simplicity and elegance.  I’ve made a bazillion mousses in my day, and the base recipe I’m using here is very quick and not too challenging.  The actually cherries are going to be my garnish, and I used the liquid inside the cherry jar to flavor the mousse.  It gives a great flavor, and the dark red mixes in to give the final product a really sweet pink tint (which did not photograph, but it totally does.)