Chocolate Mousse

Ingredients

• 2 cups chilled Farmland Fresh Dairies heavy cream
• 4 large Farmland Fresh Dairies egg yolks
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 7 oz Fine quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened)
• Garnish - lightly sweetened whipped cream, chocolate shavings
• Special equipment - an instant read thermometer

Preparation Step one - Heat 3/4 cup heavy cream in a 1 quart heavy saucepan until hot. Whisk together yolks, sugar, and a pinch of salt in a metal bowl until combined well, then add hot cream in a slow stream, whisking until combined. Transfer mixture to saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until it registers 160 degrees F on thermometer. Pour custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl and stir in vanilla.

Step two - Melt chocolate in a double boiler or a metal bowl set over a pan of simmering water (or in a glass bowl in a microwave at 50 percent power 3-5 minutes), stirring frequently. Whisk custard into chocolate until smooth, then cool.

Step three - Beat remaining 1 1/4 cups heavy cream in a bowl with an electric mixer until it just holds stiff peaks. Whisk one fourth of cream into chocolate custard to lighten, then fold in remaining cream gently but thoroughly.

Step four - Spoon mousse into 8 (6-ounce) stemmed glasses and chill, covered, at least 6 hours. Let stand at room temperature about 20 minutes before serving.

Step five - Garnish with lightly sweetened whipped cream and chocolate shavings

Total time - 45 minutes active, 7 hours with cooling.
Yield - 8 servings