Chocolate Mousse Cake

5 from 11 votes

This is a chocolate mousse praline cake covered in a delicious mirror glaze. It is a silky and decadent cake, perfect for any family celebration. Use quality ingredients for success.

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Course: Cakes And Entremets

Cuisine: French

Servings: servings

Calories: 641kcal

Author: Gabriela

Equipment

Ingredients

French Praline:

1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
1 cup whole almonds
1 cup whole hazelnuts

Praline bottom:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
¼ cup dark chocolate 70% dark

Dacquoise cake layer:

2 egg whites
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ cup ground almonds
⅓ cup powdered sugar

Vanilla Cream:

¾ cup heavy cream
1 vanilla pod or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ½ tablespoons granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
½ teaspoon gelatin powder OR one gelatin sheet 1 sheet approximately 2 grams

Chocolate Mousse:

¼ cup granulated sugar
3 egg yolks
1 cup heavy cream
12 ounces dark chocolate
3 cups whipped cream measure heavy cream and beat it with a mixer until whipped cream

Mirror Glaze:

1 ½ teaspoons gelatin powder or 6 sheets of gelatin (2 g each)
1 cup heavy cream
¼ cup corn syrup
1 ½ tablespoons honey
½ cup water
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
¾ cups cocoa powder

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the praline:

In a non-stick pan, toast the hazelnuts and almonds to bring out the flavor. You could also place them into a 400F/200° C oven for 15 minutes.
Place the sugar into another non-stick pan; heat gently over medium heat without stirring.
When the sugar begins to dissolve, add the almonds and hazelnuts. Mix well with a spatula and cook until the sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture forms a light caramel (320 F/160° C). This process should be carried out over medium heat; otherwise, the caramel will become too dark.
Pour the mixture onto a lightly oiled marble slab or an oiled baking sheet and let cool for 1 hour.
Break the mixture into pieces and split it into three piles. Grind each pile finely in a food processor. Continue processing until it forms an oily paste. (It's best to divide the mixture into three parts and grind them for 5 minutes at a time to avoid overworking your food processor.)

Praline bottom:

Place the softened butter and the chocolate in a saucepan and melt them together.
Stir in the praline paste and let it cool until the temperature drops to 73.4F/23 ° C.
Use an 8-inch/18 cm springform pan. Cover the bottom with parchment paper and fill it with the praline mixture. Place the pan in the freezer and allow it to freeze for a few hours or overnight.

The Dacquoise cake layer:

Beat the egg whites with the granulated sugar to a stiff peak.
Stir in the ground almonds and powdered sugar while lifting the mixture gently to incorporate the nuts without losing the air in the egg whites.
Cover the bottom of a 6-inch/16 cm springform cake pan with parchment paper. Using a spatula, place the mixture of egg whites and nuts inside the pan, making sure that the mixture is spreaded evenly.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes at 170C/340F.
Remove the parchment paper with the cake layer on it and place it on a rack to cool.

Vanilla Cream:

Soften the gelatin in a bowl of cold water.
Boil the cream, vanilla bean/ vanilla extract, and sugar.
Mix the egg yolks with the cream and cook up to 185 F/85C. Use a thermometer.
Squeeze the gelatin to remove the water and stir in the mixture.
Cool in a water bath with ice.
Pour the mixture into the 6-inch/15cm springform cake pan (that you used previously to bake the Dacquoise cake layer) and freeze it(better overnight).

Chocolate mousse:

Make whipped cream. Use a very cold bowl and very cold heavy whipping cream. Whisk on medium speed until you obtain soft peaks. Set it aside and work on the next step.
In a small bowl, mix the sugar with the egg yolks. Set aside.
In a large bowl placed on water bath, melt the chocolate at 45C/113F(use a thermometer). Set aside.
Heat the cream to the boiling point and remove it from the stove. Set aside.
Add the warm cream and egg yolk mixture to the chocolate and mix to create an emulsion.
Fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture and set aside.

How to assemble the cake and decorate it:

Remove the 8-inch diameter springform cake pan from the freezer where you have the praline base.
Pour ⅓ of the chocolate mousse over the praline bottom, then place the Dacquoise cake layer in the middle of the circle.
Add the frozen vanilla cream over the cake layer.
Finish with the remaining mousse. Make sure the mousse is smooth on the surface. Use a spatula for this step. Place the cake pan in the freezer.
After a few hours, when it is solidly frozen, remove it from the springform and place it over a rack with a baking sheet underneath.

Mirror Glaze:

Soften the gelatin in a bowl with cold water.
Bring the heavy cream to a boil, together with the corn syrup and the honey. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Meanwhile, on medium-high heat, bring the water and sugar to 250F/121C to make a syrup.(use a thermometer)
Once the syrup is cooked, pour the cream mixture over it.
Add the cocoa powder and boil together for 3 minutes. Cool it down to 70C/160F.
When the mixture reaches the right temperature, add the gelatin drained of water and incorporate it.

Critical Step:

Use a spatula and start mixing only in the middle of the mixture, at the bottom of the pot. If you make circular movements with a whisk or anything else, you will add air to the mix, so the glaze will not be shiny and smooth anymore but grainy and with bubbles in it.
Cool the glaze until it reaches 90F/32C.
Begin pouring the chocolate glaze onto the center of the cake, then slowly work your way out to the edges.
Let the glaze continue to drip for about 10 minutes, then use a spatula to scrape away any drips from the cake board.
The glaze should be almost set. Place the cake in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to allow the glaze to set fully.
Decorate as you like. Here are some ideas: Small pieces of chocolate or chocolate shavings/sprinkles, fresh strawberries, or sugar paste decorations are a nice touch.
This cake requires refrigeration and is good for up to three days. It can also be frozen for up to six months. Wrap it in foil and place it inside a freezer bag. Thaw it in the fridge for a few hours.

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