Rich, creamy, chocolaty mousse with sweet, bright candied kumquats. The kumquats can be made in advance and kept in the fridge for a month or more, making this a great go-to dessert for company or special occasions.
Course Dessert
Cuisine French, Japanese
Keyword chocolate and citrus mousse, chocolate mousse with eggs, kinkan kanroni
Prep Time 30 minutesminutes
Cook Time 25 minutesminutes
Total Time 2 hourshours55 minutesminutes
Servings 6servings
Calories 459kcal
Ingredients
Candied Kumquats
500gkumquats
3.5cupswater
2.75cupsgranulated sugar
1/2tspsalt
Chocolate Mousse
150gdark chocolate
4eggsseparated
1.25cupsheavy cream(300 ml) plus extra to garnish, if you choose
1tspcocoa powder
30gsugar(about 1 oz, or 2 tbsp plus 1 tsp)
1/8tspsalt
1/2cupcandied kumquatswell-drained and chopped (plus a few extra to garnish)
Instructions
Candied Kumquats
Cut the kumquats into quarters along the long axis (from stem to tip). Use a small knife to poke (or slice, if necessary) the seeds out of the quarters. Take special care to try to get out as many of the small seeds as possible.
Add the kumquats to the pot of water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Add the sugar to the pot and cook until the kumquats are translucent (about 10-15 minutes).
Turn off the heat and let the kumquats stand for at least an hour, preferably overnight. (Note - this step can be skipped if time is a factor, but the flavour may not be quite as intense).
Bring the kumquats back to a boil and transfer them to a clean jar. Pour the syrup from the pot over the fruit to cover, then refrigerate. Excess syrup can also be refrigerated (add it to drinks or desserts). Kept refrigerated, the kumquats will be good for months without any appreciable change in flavour.
Chocolate Mousse
Chop the candied kumquats into small pieces and set aside. To ensure that they're very well drained, you can put them in a small mesh strainer or colander.
Melt the chocolate together with the salt in a double boiler or bain marie. Stir occasionally to ensure even melting.
Whisk the egg yolks and the sugar together in a small bowl until well-combined and glossy.
In a large bowl (preferably chilled), whip the cream and cocoa powder until fairly well-set and forming small peaks.
In a separate large, non-reactive bowl, combine egg whites with a little pinch of salt and whisk to stiff peaks (you should be able to hold the bowl upside down without losing the eggs).
Remove the chocolate from the double boiler and stir in the egg yolks and sugar. Fold together with a spatula until well-combined. Stir in the cream and mix thoroughly until smooth. Fold in the egg whites and candied kumquats and gently mix/fold until the mousse is well-combined and smooth (it will look like a disaster at first, but keep folding and everything should come together). Pour into individual serving bowls and chill for at least 2 hours.
Top the individual mousses (meese?) with a dusting of cocoa powder, a few candied kumquats tossed with granulated sugar, and/or a bit of extra whipped cream. For a bit of added decadence, you can drizzle a little of the kumquat syrup over the whipped cream too. Serve chilled.