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Nigella’s Chocolate Feast
Recipe by Nigella Lawson
Nigella creates every chocoholic’s fantasy with this dish. Presenting four chocolate based treats, she masters the art of chocolate desserts.
- Steps
- Ingredients
Ingredients
Ruby Chocolate Cheesecake
Emergency Brownies
Chocolate Olive Oil Mousse
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Pots
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Steps
- Preheat one oven to 150C and a second oven to 200C.
- For the Ruby Chocolate Cheesecake, set an induction cooktop to 180C. Fill a medium saucepan with water to 5cm deep, place onto the induction cooktop and bring to the boil. Finely chop the chocolate and place into a medium sized stainless steel bowl.
- Once the water is boiling, turn the induction cooktop off. Sit the bowl of chocolate on top of the saucepan of boiling water, ensuring that the base of the bowl is not touching the water. Allow the chocolate to melt, gently stirring occasionally with a silicone spatula until the chocolate has just melted, with some small lumps of chocolate still remaining.
- Remove bowl of chocolate from the saucepan, stir until completely smooth and set aside to cool until needed. Reserve the saucepan of water for later use.
- Meanwhile, place the biscuits into a large ziplock bag and seal. Use a rolling pin to break up the biscuits into smaller pieces, then transfer to a food processor and blitz until a coarse crumb, about 2 minutes. Add the butter and pepper and continue to process until a fine crumb and the mixture starts to come away from the blade.
- Spoon about 3 – 4 tablespoons of the biscuit mixture in to the pre-lined 10cm spring form cake tin. Use a dessertspoon to press the mixture into the base and about 2cm up the sides of the tin, in an even layer. Ensure the biscuit mixture layer is pressed down firmly to prevent crumbling. Place lined cake tin onto a flat baking tray and into the freezer to set until needed.
- Meanwhile, place the pistachios into a small food processor and blitz until finely chopped, then set aside until needed.
- Place the cream cheese into a food processor and blitz until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Add the double cream and pulse until just smooth, being careful not to overwork the mixture.
- Working quickly, gently fold the cream cheese and cream mixture into the slightly cooled, melted ruby chocolate until combined. Add the orange blossom water and stir though to combine.
- Remove the biscuit lined tin from the freezer. Pour the cheesecake mixture into the biscuit lined tin and use the back of a dessertspoon to smooth over the surface. Place into the freezer for 10 minutes, then transfer to the fridge until needed.
- For the Emergency Brownies, place the butter, sugar and maple syrup into a medium sized heavy based saucepan over medium heat. Gently warm the mixture, stirring occasionally, until the butter has just melted and sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat.
- Mix the flour, cocoa and salt together in a medium bowl. Add to the saucepan of butter and sugar mixture and stir until combined.
- Whisk the egg and vanilla together by hand then add to the saucepan of chocolate mixture and mix until fully combined. Add the nuts and chocolate chips and mix gently until fully incorporated.
- Lightly spray two 10cm x 6.5cm mini loaf tins with canola spray. Divide the brownie mixture evenly between the 2 greased baking tins and bake in the oven preheated to 150C until the brownie is just beginning to come away from the sides and the top has dried a little around the edges, yet still gooey inside, about 14 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and set aside on the bench to cool until needed.
- For the Chocolate Olive Oil Mousse, set the induction cooktop back on to 180C. Place the reserved saucepan of water back onto the induction cooktop and bring back up to the boil. Finely chop the chocolate and place chocolate into medium sized stainless steel bowl.
- Once the water is boiling, turn the induction cook top off. Sit the bowl of chocolate on top of the saucepan of boiling water, ensuring that the base of the bowl is not touching the water. Allow the chocolate to melt, gently stirring occasionally with a silicone spatula until the chocolate has just melted, and a few small lumps of chocolate remain. Remove bowl from the saucepan and stir until chocolate is completely smooth.
- Use a silicone spatula to stir in the olive oil until combined then set aside until needed.
- Place the egg whites and a pinch of sea salt flakes into a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whisk until firm peaks, being careful not to over whisk. Remove the bowl of egg whites from the stand mixer and set aside.
- Place the yolks, sugar and ¼ teaspoon of sea salt flakes into a medium sized mixing bowl. Use an electric hand whisk to whisk until thickened and about doubled in volume.
- Use a silicone spatula to gently fold the chocolate-oil mixture into the yolk mixture, until just combined.
- Add a third of the whisked egg whites to the chocolate yolk mixture and fold in vigorously to lighten the mixture; no need to be delicate at this stage. Gently fold in another third of the egg whites until incorporated then fold in the final third, leaving any liquid at the bottom of the whites out. Ensure the mixture is completely smooth with no streaks.
- Transfer the mousse mixture to a piping bag. Snip the tip of the piping bag to 2cm wide and pipe mousse into the serving cups to 1cm from the top. Set aside on the bench in a cool place until ready to serve.
- For the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Pots, place the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and ground cardamom into a bowl and use a fork to mix together.
- Place the butter and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until light and creamy, scraping down the sides of the mixer bowl occasionally. Add the vanilla paste and the egg, and continue to beat until incorporated.
- Remove the mixer bowl from the mixer and gently fold in the flour mixture until fully combined, then fold in the chocolate chips.
- Grease a small white ramekin with canola spray. Spoon 130g of the cookie mixture into the greased ramekin. Place the ramekin onto a flat baking tray and bake in the oven preheated to 200C until the surface is golden brown, yet dough is still soft and gooey inside, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside until ready to serve.
- To finish the Ruby Chocolate Cheesecake, remove from the fridge. Release the tin to de-mould the cheesecake. Remove the lining from the base and carefully transfer to the serving plate. Finish with a sprinkle of the chopped pistachio nuts.
- To finish the Emergency Brownies, remove brownies from tins. Trim the short ends of one brownie, then cut in half. Use a fine sieve to dust brownie halves with a little icing sugar. Place one brownie half onto the serving plate then lean the second brownie half on top.
- To finish the Chocolate Olive Oil Mousse, place the 2 cups of mousse and 2 serving spoons onto the serving plate.
- To finish the Chocolate Chip Cookie Pot, place the ramekin onto the serving plate. Finish with a sprinkle of sea salt flakes.
