Walnut Meringue Chocolate Mousse Cake

Walnut Meringue Cake With Chocolate Mousse on table.

4.86 from 7 votes

Walnut Meringue Chocolate Mousse Cake

This Walnut Meringue Cake With Dark Chocolate Mousse is a decadent, elegant and delicious cake that will win your heart for ever. The layers of meringue and chocolate mousse are easy to make and the results are fabulous!

Prep Time1

Cook Time1 30

Inactive Time1 20

Total Time3 50

Course: Cakes And Entremets

Cuisine: French

Servings: servings

Calories: 528kcal

Author: Gabriela

Equipment

Ingredients

Walnut Meringue Cake Layers:

7 egg whites
2 ½ cups powdered sugar
1 vanilla bean or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ⅓ cups ground walnuts

Chocolate Mousse:

1 ¾ cups dark chocolate from 52% up, chopped
2 large eggs
3 egg yolks
¼ cups cold water
½ cups granulated sugar
2 cups heavy cream

Cocoa Glaze:

½ cup granulated sugar
7 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ cup heavy cream
½ cup cold water
2 ¼ teaspoons gelatin powder (Or 0.2 ounces gelatin sheets)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Walnut Meringue Cake layers:

Preheat oven to 212F/100C. Cover the bottom of a baking tray with parchment paper.
Draw a 9-inch circle on the parchment paper and a 7-inch diameter one. If you do not have enough space, use 2 baking sheets.
Separate eggs. In a large bowl, pour the egg whites and add the vanilla.
Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until soft peaks form.
Slowly add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until all the sugar has been added.
Continue beating until the whites are stiff and glossy. Fold in the ground walnuts into the eggs with a spatula.
Fill a 1-quart sealable plastic bag (or pastry bag) with the egg whites.
Seal the bag almost completely, leaving a small opening for air to escape from the top as you squeeze.
Snip off one corner of the bag with scissors, making a ¾-inch-wide opening.
Fold the top of the bag over a few times, then gently push the meringue down to the snipped corner. Working with the bag perpendicular to the baking sheet, pipe the meringue inside the 9-inch circle and the 7-inch circle, starting from the middle and working your way out to the edges, into a spiral.
Use a spatula to smoothen up the surface of the meringue.
Pipe the leftover meringue into 1 ½-inch-diameter cookies, spacing them about ½ inch apart.
Bake at 212F/100C for 90 minutes. Shut off the oven and let the meringue dry overnight, preferably.

Dark Chocolate Mousse:

Place a metal mixing bowl and metal whisk into the freezer for 10 to 15 minutes.
Pour the heavy cream into the mixing bowl and whisk just until the cream reaches stiff peaks. Set aside.
Mix water and sugar into a small pot and simmer it on the stove for a few minutes to make a syrup.
Meanwhile, beat the eggs and the egg yolk together with an electric mixer until fluffy.
Reduce speed to low, and pour hot syrup down the side of the bowl in a slow, steady stream. Increase speed to high, and beat until mixture cools down.
Melt the chocolate using a double boiler. Remove from the stove and let cool for 2 minutes. Add it to the whipped cream made earlier.
Whisk the mixture vigorously to blend the ingredients together.
Add the beaten eggs and mix. Set aside.

Assemble the cake:

Grab a 9-inch cake ring or a 9-inch springform and place the 9-inch meringue layer on the bottom.
Pour over half of the chocolate mousse and spread it even with a spatula.
Add the 7-inch meringue layer in the middle.
Pour over the rest of the chocolate mousse. Make sure the surface of the cake is smooth. Use a spatula.
Place the cake ring/springform in the freezer. Freeze for a few hours.
When the cake is solidly frozen, remove it carefully from the cake ring/springform and glaze it.

Make the mirror glaze:

Place sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, heavy cream, and water in a medium pot. Bring to a boil and remove immediately. Allow it to cool to 104F/40C. This step is important, so please do not skip it.
Meanwhile, hydrate the gelatin sheets for 4-5 minutes. Remove them from the water and squeeze the excess.
Add them to the glaze and mix vigorously with a hand blender.
Place the frozen cake over a metal rack that sits on a baking tray, to collect the excess.
Pour the glaze over the cake starting from the middle and working your way towards the edges.
Refrigerate the cake for at least half hour, so the glaze can set.
Decorate with the little meringues and drizzle leftover glaze over them.
Slice the cake and serve. Refrigerate the cake for up to 5 days.

Notes

Meringue Layers Tips:

Oven Temperature: Use an oven thermometer to ensure your oven is at the correct temperature (212F/100C).
Drawing Circles: Use a template or a compass to draw circles on the parchment paper.
Overnight Drying: For the best texture, let the meringue layers dry overnight in the oven. This slow cooling process is key to getting crisp layers.

Additional Tips:

Whipping Cream: Chill your bowl and whisk before whipping the cream to help achieve the perfect stiffness without overbeating.
Chocolate Quality: For the mousse, use high-quality chocolate with 52% cocoa or higher. The quality of chocolate matters.
Gelatin Preparation: If using gelatin sheets, make sure they're properly hydrated and squeezed of excess water to avoid lumps in your glaze.
Serving Suggestion: Allow the cake to sit at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
Decoration: Get creative with decorations by adding edible gold leaf, chocolate shavings, or fresh berries for a pop of color and texture contrast.

Nutrition