Serves 4
Tempered chocolate ring
- 400g Dark chocolate
- Acetate
Flourless chocolate sponge
- 8 medium eggs
- 140g caster sugar
- 60g cocoa powder
Dark chocolate cremeux
- 125g dark chocolate
- 55g milk
- 125g whipping cream
- ½ vanilla pod
- 45g egg yolk
- 23g caster sugar
- 13g unsalted butter
Sour cream chantilly
- 100g creme fraiche
- 100g double cream
- 1 vanilla pod
- Zest and juice of ½ lemon
- Pinch of sugar and salt
100g cherry puree
- 24 griottine cherries and liquid
- Ultratex
- 40g pailete feuilletine flakes
- 40g toasted cocoa nibs
Video Recipe
For the tempered chocolate ring. First temper the chocolate by placing dark chocolate over a pan of warm water. When the dark chocolate reaches a temperature of 54 deg cel, take out ¼ of its volume and set aside. When the larger dark chocolate quantity reduces to 26.4 deg cel, add the smaller volume and keep at a consistent temperature of no higher then 30 deg cel.
Cut the acetate into 23cm length strips. Add 2 tablespoons of the dark chocolate and using a palate knife scrape the chocolate down the full length. Lift the acetate using a pallette knife and place it on a clean part of the table. Remove 2cm of chocolate from one end of the strip. Stand the acetate on its side, bring both ends together. Keep the side that you removed the chocolate from on the outside, and push the other edge on the inside of this piece, slightly pushing into the chocolate, to seal it. Allow to cool and remove acetate.
For the cremeux. Put the chocolate in a bowl. Put the milk and cream in a saucepan, add vanilla, and bring to the boil.
Whisk the yolks and sugar until light in colour. Add half the boiling mixture to the egg mixture, whisk until smooth, and return to the pan. Over a low heat, stir the mixture and cook until it coats the back of a spoon (around 82-84 deg cel). Take the pan off the heat, and pass through a fine sieve, over the bowl of chocolate. Mix until smooth. Gradually add the butter. Chill and then put in a piping bag.
For the sponge. Preheat oven to 160 deg cel. Separate the eggs, and whisk the yolks with the sugar in a large bowl until they begin to thicken.
Sieve over the cocoa and a pinch of salt, fold together. Whisk the whites in a separate bowl until stiff but not dry.
Fold a little of the whites in with the yolk mix to loosen it, then fold the rest in very carefully, trying to maintain the air. Spread on a nonstick mat and bake for around 10 minutes, until puffed and set on the top. Cool and roughly break up.
For the sour cream chantilly. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl, and whisk until stiff. Place in a piping bag.
For the cherry sauce and kirch sauce. Thicken the cherry puree with a little ultra tex. In a separate bowl slighlty thicken the kirsch with a little ultra tex. Put both sauces in a piping bag.
To finish. Make a small disc of the cherry puree on the bottom of the plate, then place the tempered chocolate on top of it. Lightly cover a little of the sponge with the kirsch mix, and place this in the bottom of the tempered chocolate. Pipe some cremeux inside, then layer up with feuilletine flakes, cherries, cherry puree, cocoa nibs and more sponge. Quenelle the chantilly on top, and a sprinkle of the other garnishes.
Free weekly recipe blog at https://undergroundcookeryschool.com/blog
