Cakes: Janet Lefkowitz's Mousse Cake

By JoFClark

Ingredients

• Crust
• 3 cups chocolate wafer crumbs
• 1/2 cup melted margarine or unsalted butter
• Filling
• 1 lb semisweet chocolate
• 2 eggs
• 4 egg yolks
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 6 T powdered sugar
• 4 egg whites (at room temperature)
• Topping
• 2 cups heavy cream
• sugar to taste
• 1 t vanilla
• Chocolate leaves
• 8 oz semi-sweet chocolate
• 1 scant T vegetable shortening
• camelia or waxy leaves

Details

Servings 12

Preparation

Step 1

Combine crumbs and butter. Press on bottom and up sides of a well-greased 10" spring form pan. Refrigerate 30 minutes.

Soften chocolate in double boiler over simmering water.
Cool to lukewarm 95 degrees) Add whole eggs and mix. Add egg yolks and thoroughly blend. Whip two cups heavy cream with powdered sugar until soft peaks form. Beat egg whites until still but not dry. Stir a little of whipped cream into chocolate mixture. Fold in remaining cream and whites until completely incorporated. Turn into crust and chill overnight. (Can freeze here; defrost in refrigerator when ready to use)

Whip two cups heavy cream, sugar to taste, and vanilla until quite stiff. Spread on top of cake either before or after removing fom pan. Decorate with chocolate leaves. Melt chocolate and vegetable shortening in double boiler. Using spoon, coat underside of leaves. Chill. Separate chocolate from leaves, staring at stem end of leaf.