Christmas snow globe
Christmas is right around the corner and me and my husband are in charge for a family dinner. This has become our tradition and I really look forward to it every year. We usually make an appetizer, a main and of course a dessert. I love cooking in general but my passion is and has always been desserts. Last year I made a delicious chocolate winter wonderland dessert and this year I must come up with something even more challenging.
I have a thousand ideas for this years Christmas dessert so picking just one is very hard. I chose a dessert that was inspired by Christmas ornaments. Recently I saw a lot of stunning Christmas baubles which were actually edible and made out of chocolate. They looked so real and beautiful that I wanted to make something similar. I also found inspiration in snow globes. The problem was how to make the glass part of a snow globe edible. I thought of using sugar but I was afraid that it would melt or crystallize. Then I remembered I had some leftover isomalt. Isomalt is basically a sugar substitute that doesn't crystallize. It worked great but it wasn't as clear and didn't resemble glass as I hoped. Still it made the whole dessert look pretty special.
The bottom part was made from white chocolate, coconut mousse and coconut crumble. White chocolate and coconut became my favorite combination after I ate this dessert. I especially loved the coconut crumble, it's simple to make and the taste is phenomenal. To balance the sphere on the plate I used a disc of a leftover chocolate sponge.
The process of making a sphere from isomalt and white chocolate is a bit tricky but you can always make just the bottom half and it will still be beautiful and delicious.
Since this is my last post before Christmas (or maybe even New year) I wish you all a merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!
For the coconut mousse:
For the coconut crumble:
Place in the fridge to firm up completely.
Making the coconut crumble:
Combine all ingredients in a bowl. With your fingers rub the butter and other ingredients together until you have a texture similar to large breadcrumbs.
Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (356°F) for 7 minutes or until golden. Take out and set aside to cool completely.
Assembly:
Place the white chocolate hemisphere with coconut mousse on a plate (I used leftover chocolate sponge to balance it). Sprinkle on the coconut crumble and stick in a white chocolate snowflake. Cover with the isomalt hemisphere. Garnish with another chocolate snowflake and icing sugar.
I have a thousand ideas for this years Christmas dessert so picking just one is very hard. I chose a dessert that was inspired by Christmas ornaments. Recently I saw a lot of stunning Christmas baubles which were actually edible and made out of chocolate. They looked so real and beautiful that I wanted to make something similar. I also found inspiration in snow globes. The problem was how to make the glass part of a snow globe edible. I thought of using sugar but I was afraid that it would melt or crystallize. Then I remembered I had some leftover isomalt. Isomalt is basically a sugar substitute that doesn't crystallize. It worked great but it wasn't as clear and didn't resemble glass as I hoped. Still it made the whole dessert look pretty special.
The bottom part was made from white chocolate, coconut mousse and coconut crumble. White chocolate and coconut became my favorite combination after I ate this dessert. I especially loved the coconut crumble, it's simple to make and the taste is phenomenal. To balance the sphere on the plate I used a disc of a leftover chocolate sponge.
The process of making a sphere from isomalt and white chocolate is a bit tricky but you can always make just the bottom half and it will still be beautiful and delicious.
Since this is my last post before Christmas (or maybe even New year) I wish you all a merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!
Christmas snow globe
(Makes about 6)
Time:
Preparation: 2 hours
Cooking: 15min
Baking: 7-10min
For the white chocolate hemisphere and snowflake:
- 200g white chocolate
- 200g isomalt
- 180g coconut cream/puree
- 2 gelatin leaves
- 30g egg whites
- 20g white granulated sugar
- 140g heavy cream
- 25g white granulated sugar
- 10g brown sugar
- 25g ground coconut
- 55g cold butter
- 60g all-purpose flour
Here you will need hemisphere silicon molds.
Chop 150 grams of white chocolate in medium sized pieces, put in the heat-proof bowl and set aside. Chop the remaining 50 grams of the chocolate in tiny pieces and set aside. Put some water in a pot and heat gently to a simmer. Place the bowl with 150 grams of chocolate on top of the pot, the water should not touch the bowl. When the chocolate starts to melt, stir and check the temperature. Keep checking the temperature until it reaches 40-45°C (104-113°F). When the chocolate reaches the right temperature take the bowl of the heat and stir in the remaining chocolate. The temperature should drop. Stir the chocolate gently to cool until it reaches 27°C (81°F). This may take a while, depending on the room temperature. When the chocolate is cool enough place the bowl back on the pot of simmering water and heat back to 29-30°C (84-86°F).
Chop 150 grams of white chocolate in medium sized pieces, put in the heat-proof bowl and set aside. Chop the remaining 50 grams of the chocolate in tiny pieces and set aside. Put some water in a pot and heat gently to a simmer. Place the bowl with 150 grams of chocolate on top of the pot, the water should not touch the bowl. When the chocolate starts to melt, stir and check the temperature. Keep checking the temperature until it reaches 40-45°C (104-113°F). When the chocolate reaches the right temperature take the bowl of the heat and stir in the remaining chocolate. The temperature should drop. Stir the chocolate gently to cool until it reaches 27°C (81°F). This may take a while, depending on the room temperature. When the chocolate is cool enough place the bowl back on the pot of simmering water and heat back to 29-30°C (84-86°F).
Now the chocolate is at the ideal working temperature, and you must work quickly.
Fill the mold with chocolate, tap the mold a few times so that the air bubbles pop. Make sure the mold is fully covered in chocolate then flip the mold over the bowl of remaining chocolate so that the excess of chocolate drips off back into the bowl. Scrape the excess chocolate with a palette knife and place in the fridge for 20 minutes. Take out and unmold the hemispheres.
To make chocolate snowflakes, spread chocolate thinly on an acetate sheet. Wait until the chocolates sets halfway. Mark the snowflakes on the chocolate with a cookie cuter. Place in the fridge for 20 minutes. Carefully lift each snowflake from the foil and store in an airtight container.
Making the isomalt hemispheres:
Use the same silicon mat as for the chocolate hemispheres.
Place isomalt into a small sauce pan and on medium heat. You can also melt it in the microwave.
Stir occasionally until completely melted. Be very careful not to touch hot isomalt and put on protection gloves just in case.
Pour the hot isomalt into a silicon mold and keep turning it until the whole hemisphere is covered with isomalt. It can be a bit tricky but practice makes perfect.
Do them one by one until you use up all of the isomalt. Isomalt cools down fast and you will need to re-melt it on low heat a couple of times.
Do them one by one until you use up all of the isomalt. Isomalt cools down fast and you will need to re-melt it on low heat a couple of times.
After the hemispheres are completely cold, unmold them and keep them in a dry place until assembly.
Making the coconut mousse:
Bloom the gelatin in cold water until soft. Pour the coconut puree(cream) in a small pot on medium heat. Cook the puree until hot, add the bloomed gelatin and stir until completely melted. Let the coconut puree cool completely. Meanwhile whisk the egg whites until foamy then add the granulated sugar a spoon at a time and whisk until stiff peaks form.
Separately, whisk the cream to soft peaks.
Add the egg whites to the coconut mixture and mix gently. Add the whipped cream and fold in the mixture.
Pour the mixture in a piping bag and pipe the mousse in chocolate hemispheres.
Making the coconut crumble:
Combine all ingredients in a bowl. With your fingers rub the butter and other ingredients together until you have a texture similar to large breadcrumbs.
Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (356°F) for 7 minutes or until golden. Take out and set aside to cool completely.
Place the white chocolate hemisphere with coconut mousse on a plate (I used leftover chocolate sponge to balance it). Sprinkle on the coconut crumble and stick in a white chocolate snowflake. Cover with the isomalt hemisphere. Garnish with another chocolate snowflake and icing sugar.
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