WOYP Day #60 Coffee Chocolate Mousse Cake

These days due to CoVid, meeting up with friends and family is far less than before.But we do sneak in a meet every now and then to keep our sanity intact. Last weekend, we went over to my cousin’s place so the kids could spend time with their cousins too. While my SIL slogged over a lovely meal for us I decided to take dessert. I had a Victoria Sponge cake on hand from one of my cake orders, and while wondering what to do with it my younger one said coffee cake, he meant Tiramisu since that is his favorite dessert. But this became a Coffee Chocolate mousse cake instead - he got his coffee flavor fulfilled and there was no way he was going to complain about the chocolate part! :D It was a clear win! 

This feels like an elaborate dessert if done all on the same day. To avoid the stress, bake the sponge a day ahead of time, so all you have to do on the day of, is to make the mousse and syrup and assemble the cake. 

Coffee Chocolate Mousse Cake:
You will need: 

For the Mousse:

7 oz Dark Chocolate (I used Belgian)
1/3 (5g) cup Agar-Agar strings (See Note below) or 1 tsp Agar Agar powder
1/4 cup plus 1 1/2 cups Heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup Water
1/3 cup Powdered sugar

For the Coffee syrup:

1 cup Water
1 tbsp Instant coffee
3 tbsp Sugar

For the Sponge:
Makes one 8” cake

175 gms unsalted butter, softened
175 gms Confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)
175 gms All-purpose flour
2 tsp Vanilla extract
1 3/4 tsp Baking powder
3 Eggs
1/4 cup Milk 

Tools: 

8" Cake Pan

Pastry brush

9"or 10" Springform Pan (or a regular pan)

Stand mixer or hand-held electric beater 

NOTE: Agar-Agar is a vegetarian substitute for Gelatin. You can use Agar-Agar powder if you have it on hand or the more commonly available strings of Agar-agar. This is a great video showing the different ratios of Agar-Agar. 

Bake the Sponge:

Prepare the sponge first, to allow it to cool completely. This can be made a day ahead like I mentioned before.

Using a pastry brush grease an 8” pan with butter and dust with flour. Set aside. Preheat pen to 350F (or 180C)

Sift Confectioners sugar and All-purpose flour separately and then weigh out the required quantity. This ensures a light cake.

Combine the measured flour and baking powder, set aside.

Cream the butter and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer (or using a handheld mixer) until light and smooth, about 3-4 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and beat for a minute after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla extract.

Add the flour little at a time and fold it into the batter by hand. Folding in the flour allows you to incorporate it without deflating the volume achieved from the beaten eggs. Continue until all the flour is added, fold well to combine.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. While the cake bakes prepare the coffee syrup. Remove pan from oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Turn onto a cooling rack and cool completely. Once cooled wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate until ready to use. If using the same day, no need to refrigerate. 

Prepare the Coffee Syrup:

In a saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil. Stir in the instant coffee and turn off heat. Set aside to cool.

Prepare the Mousse:

The Mousse is very similar to the Belgian chocolate Mousse Pudding, except this mousse has Agar-Agar in it to help set it up so it can hold when unmolded from the pan. Chop the chocolate into small pieces and place in a heat proof bowl.

Chill the bowl of a stand mixer and the whisk attachment for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. If using a hand held mixer, chill a bowl and the beaters.

Pour 1/4 cup of cream Into a small saucepan. Add the agar-agar strings and soak for 15 minutes. This helps hydrate the agar-agar. After the 15 minutes are done, add 1/4 of water combine and set the pan on medium heat. Stir and bring to a simmer, continue stirring until the agar-agar is fully dissolved and no visible strings remain. Remove from heat, cool briefly and pour over the melted chocolate. Stir gently to combine well. 

Pour 1 1/2 cups of cream into the chilled bowl, add the powdered sugar and beat until soft peaks form.

Add half of the whipped cream to the chocolate mixture and fold to combine. Add in the remaining whipped cream and fold until no cream streaks remain.

Assemble the Cake:

After the cake has cooled, using a sharp serrated knife slice the cake in half to make two layers.

To assemble, I used a 9” springform pan which allows the cake to be unmolded easily to make a free standing cake. The baked cake is 8” which allows room on the sides for the chocolate mousse. If you don't have a Springform pan, you can assemble this in any pan, except it cannot be unmolded and will have to be scooped or sliced from the pan.

Place one layer of cake at the bottom of a Springform pan. Drizzle half of the coffee syrup on the cake layer. Wait for a minute or two for the syrup to soak in and then spread half of the prepared mousse evenly on the cake, taking care to fill the gap on sides. Then place the second cake layer on top of the mousse. Repeat with the coffee syrup and then the remaining mousse. Spread evenly and chill for 2 hours or freeze for 2 hours to quick set. 

To unmold:

Remove pan from refrigerator or freezer and rest for 10 minutes. Unlock the springform pan and slowly lift the outer ring. Decorate with your choice of fruit, chocolate syrup or any topping you like. My sis-in-law had Mangoes and blueberries so that’s what I used.

The kids were waiting for dessert so couldn’t spend much time taking pics of the slice :D Use a sharp knife to cut into wedges. 

 

Cold, light dessert with hints of coffee and a super smooth luscious Chocolate Mousse, this was perfect for a hot summer night.