Sunday, September 26, 2010

Strawberry Shortcake Bombs





A past job of mine led me to have a lot of experience making very time consuming, detail-oriented desserts that were tiny and fancy looking. These Strawberry Shortcake Bombs are tiny, sound fancy and will wow anyone you are serving them too. They might look and sound time consuming but if you make each step in the proper order, you should end up having everything done at once so there is no waiting around.
These mousse cakes were assembled in little glass bowls 5" in diameter.

Rich chocolate mousse cakes stuffed with fresh strawberry compote, chocolate crumble and soft vanilla sponge cake all enrobed in chocolate ganache.

yield: 2 individual cakes
First Step
Vanilla Sponge Cake
1 cup oat or almond milk
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup canola oil
1/4 cup granulated organic sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups AP flour
2 tbl cornstarch
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a 10x10 baking dish.
In a small bowl combine almond milk and vinegar and let sit for 3 minutes. Add canola oil, sugar and vanilla extract. In another bowl combine flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the dry in with the wet and mix until just combined. Pour into the baking dish and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry.
While the cake is baking, make the strawberry compote.
Once cool enough, cut out 2-5"circles that will fit as the bottom layer of your mousse cake.

Second Step
Strawberry Compote
1c fresh strawberries, cut into small chunks
1tbl sugar
2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp water

Toss the strawberries, sugar and cornstarch in a small saucepan off the heat. Once combined, add the water and turn the heat on medium high. Cook until the strawberries have released all their juices and have cooked down and become thick, 5 minutes. Transfer strawberries to a bowl and chill in the freezer until ready to assemble cakes.

Third Step
Chocolate Mousse & Chocolate Crumble
1c soy creamer
3c semi sweet chocolate chips
8 oz vegan cream cheese,softened
1/3c organic powdered sugar
3 newmanos, coarsely crushed

In a small saucepan, bring the creamer just to a simmer. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate chips and stir until completely melted, making a smooth ganache.
In a medium bowl beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar together until creamy. Add half of the ganache and fold until fully combined. Set mousse aside.

In a small bowl combine the crushed cookies with 1 tbl of ganache to create a crumble. Set aside.

To Assemble:
Line a bowl with seran wrap, making sure 2 inches of excess wrap hang over the sides. Spoon mousse into the bowl about 1/3 of the way up. Add a spoonful of strawberry compote in the center, making sure it does not touch the outer rims and spoon the remaining mousse over the top. Sprinkle the cookie crumble mixture on top of the mousse and then place a circle of vanilla cake on top. Wrap the excess seran wrap, hanging over the side to cover all of the cake. Refrigerate mousse cake for 3 hours or until completely firm. When ready, un mold from the bowl and remove seran wrap.
Place a cooling rack on a baking sheet and set the cakes on top. Slightly reheat the remaining ganache until it is thin and pourable, do not overheat the chocolate. Pour over the mousse cake, making sure all sides are covered.
Serve with fresh strawberries.

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