Dairy Free Mousse Cake

Equipment:

• Mousse cake ring 16cm (d) x 6cm (h), lined with an acetate strip, and sealed with plastic wrap at the bottom.The cake ring is placed on top of a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
• Candy Thermometer

Recipe: A single mousse cake, 18cm (d), 6cm (h).

Cookie Base:

Vanilla / Chocolate Mousse (Ingredients are listed once, however, the list needs to be repeated for each flavor):

Cocoa Crumbles:

Cake preparation and assembly instructions:

For the cookie base:

1. The easiest method to make the cookie base is by putting all of the ingredients in a food processor, and pulsing together. However, if you prefer using your hands: crush the Oreo cookies (with the cream) to a very fine powder and transfer into a bowl.
2. Add the sugar, peanut butter and coconut oil, and stir well to combine. The mixture should look very crumbly yet slightly hold its shape together.
3. Into a mousse cake ring, lined with acetate, pour the base mixture and tightly push it to the bottom, making sure there are no gaps around the perimeter of the cake ring. Using a round potato masher is a very useful tool for this kind of tasks.
4. Freeze the base while you prepare the mousse.

For the custard (same method for both flavors):

1. In a small bowl, mix the gelatin with the water (1) and keep refrigerated until use.
2. Into a small bowl, add the cornstarch and 50g of the coconut cream. Mix them together well until smooth and without lumps. Then add the eggs and mix to combine.
3. In a small saucepan, add the remaining 144g of coconut cream and sugar (1). Cook this mixture on medium heat, until it comes to a simmer (tiny bubbles should form around the edge of the saucepan).
4. Turn off the heat and temper the eggs mixture with the hot liquid: gradually add it to the eggs mixture while stirring constantly.
5. Return the tempered eggs mixture back into the saucepan, by passing it through a fine strainer, in order to get rid of any cooked egg bits.
6. Continue cooking on medium-low heat, whisking the mixture constantly to avoid curdling (ensure to mix thoroughly from the sides of the saucepan as well). Cook until the mixture is thickly bubbling. Then continue cooking for 30 more seconds.
7. Remove from the heat and add the vanilla (* and dark chocolate, if making the chocolate mousse).
8. Microwave the bloomed gelatin for about 10 seconds until it melts. Stir it thoroughly until you get a very clear and smooth liquid without any lumps. Add the melted gelatin mixture to the hot custard and whisk it well to combine.
9. Transfer the hot custard to a clean bowl, and cover it with a plastic wrap, directly touching the surface of the cream, to prevent a skin from forming. Allow to cool down at room temperature (NOT inside the fridge), to about 34C.

For the Italian meringue:

1. Into a clean bowl, add the egg whites. Using an electric handheld mixer, whip the egg whites to soft peaks and set to the side.
2. In a small saucepan, cook the sugar (2) with the water (2) on low heat, stirring constantly until all of the sugar dissolves.
3. Keep the heat on low, and cook without mixing or stirring, until the temperature reaches 110C (it should take about 2.5-3 minutes, however it is best to use a candy thermometer for accurate results).
4. Remove from the heat and start beating the meringue again, while gradually pouring in the hot sugar syrup in a thin stream. Be careful to avoid the syrup landing on the beaters.
5. Increase the mixing speed to high and keep beating until the bowl is lukewarm to the touch. You should get very stiff and glossy peaks meringue.
6. Fold the meringue into the custard in 3-4 parts.

*** Repeat above steps 1 – 6 for the second mousse flavor, only after the first mousse layer has set (during assembly stage) ***

For the Cocoa Crumbles:

Into a food processor, add all of the ingredients and blitz until you get crumbles that hold their shape when pressed together. Bake at a 180C oven (fan mode on, baking rack placed at the middle section of the oven), for about 7 minutes. Allow to cool down completely before use.

Assembly:

1. Prepare and pour the chocolate mousse into the cake ring, on top of the cookies base- it should reach about half its height (about 3-3.5 cm)
2. Freeze for 20-25 minutes.
3. Prepare and pour the vanilla mousse on top of the chocolate mousse. It should nearly reach the top of the cake ring.
4. Freeze for 3-4 hours, or preferably overnight.
5. 5Once frozen solid, unmold the cake from the mousse cake ring, dust with powdered sugar, then with cocoa powder. A nice way to decorate the top is by applying a squares-patterned cooling rack on top of the cocoa powder, and carefully lifting it to make an aesthetic design (see video demonstration). Arrange the crumbles around the cake, or decorate as you desire.