Chocolate Peppermint Mousse

It seems that Christmas gets thrown in our faces earlier and earlier every year.  I remember when I didn't see a single Christmas decoration or hear a note of a single Christmas song until the day after Thanksgiving.  This year, I pretty much woke up the day after Halloween to aisles flooded with Christmas candy and knick knacks - the alarm set to a horrible country radio station (sorry for all you country music fans) unforgivably playing Christmas tunes.  I mean, can't we give Thanksgiving a chance, first?

Well, I guess if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

My husband loves the taste of peppermint-anything.  Throw chocolate in the mix and he's in heaven.  So since it's pretty close to the big guy's birthday, I decided to whip up a little dessert to put a smile on his cute face.

Ingredients:

4 egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
1/4 cup Peppermint Schnapps
6 oz. semi-sweet or dark chocolate
1/4 cup coffee
6 oz. unsalted butter, softened
4 egg whites
1/8 teaspoon salt

whipped cream for topping, optional

Combine the egg yolks and 3/4 cup sugar in a medium, stainless steel bowl.  Beat with a hand mixer until pale yellow and the mixture allows ribbons to form.

Beat in the Peppermint Schnapps until combined. 

Set up a double boiler on the stove, being careful not to let the bottom of the bowl touch any water (you only need about an inch of water in the pot).  Beat the mixture until it starts to thicken and slightly foams up.  The mixture should be warm to the touch.  Set mixture aside while you melt the chocolate.

In another medium, stainless steel bowl, combine the chocolate and coffee.  Set the bowl over the double boiler and stir until chocolate is completely melted.  Remove from heat and stir in the butter. 

Slowly pour the chocolate mixture in with the egg mixture and beat until all the chocolate is incorporated.

In the bowl of a stand mixer or using a hand mixer with the whisk attachment, combine the egg whites, salt, and remaining tablespoon of sugar.  Whisk until stiff peaks form.

Fold the meringue in with the chocolate mixture until all is incorporated.  Divide the mixture into serving dishes and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

When ready to serve, top with whipped cream and sprinkles.

This is definitely a tasty treat.  The peppermint doesn't over power the chocolate at all, but instead, it accentuates it to create quite the delicious bite!

So if you're looking for something to serve at one of the many holiday dinner parties this year, look no further!  Enjoy the rest of the week, guys!

Holiday Gift Ideas!

So I've compiled a little list of cool little gifts to get your favorite foodie this holiday season!  Or you know, you could get them for yourself or hint at a special someone to get them for you!

Top 10 Foodie Gifts


10.  Sushi Pillows

This Etsy Shop has really cool sushi-inspired pillows.  I bet they're comfy too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. The Tasting Box - Who wouldn't like to get a surprise box of food-related goodies once a month?

Check out Foodzie for this awesome deal!

8. NFL Logo Toaster - Know a huge football fan that loves toast?  Let them eat their favorite team's logo every morning! 

Proud to be an Eagles fan!  Get the toaster here.

7.  Beer Towels - Show your favorite beer lover you love them by getting them these cute kitchen towels!

I don't think that Guinness is on the correct towel =)

6.  Cute Cutting Boards - These are handcrafted and would definitely be beautiful "set-dress" for all you food photographers out there!

5.  Keep Calm Posters - They come with a variety of sayings, so there's bound to be one that makes you giggle!

4. Pig Chalkboard - Never forget what's on your grocery list again!  And hey, I believe every kitchen should have a chalkboard of some sort... it's fun!

3. Mushroom Canisters - you don't necessarily have to put mushrooms in here, but they're definitely cute and would be perfect for flour and sugar!

2. Recipe Journal - Would your foodie rather write things down than type them up?  Get a recipe journal!  This one has awesome tabs to keep everything organized!

And #1... according to me anyway...


1. Ninja Cookie Cutters!  - How awesome are these?!?!  Yeah, I'm totally getting some for myself because who wouldn't want to eat a cookie in ninja form?  Hehe!

Whoo that was a roundup.  Most of the things on that list are from Etsy (I just LOVE Etsy), and I like them because they're practically unique in most ways!  Hope I gave you guys some ideas and enjoy the rest of your holiday shopping!

It's Tree :30

It's that time of year again.  Time for the good ol' Christmas tree to go up. 

We always wait for the day after Thanksgiving because well, we think Thanksgiving deserves it's dues too!  We ended up putting our tree up on Sunday night and we both agree, it looks pretty awesome.

We don't have a fancy tree, just a tree I actually got on sale 2 years ago (Hey, $10 for a pre-lit 6 foot tree is a pretty darn good deal!).  It's not as "fluffy" as we would like, but we definitely make it our own.  We have to prevent ourselves from randomly going out to buy decorations for it, when we sure as heck know that it's got a sufficient amount of decorations on there and we could spend that money elsewhere!

He's excited to decorate!

Can't forget the star!

Or the garland!

I really like my scottish nutcracker =)

We've agreed to keep our Christmas presents budget-friendly and able to all fit in these boxes... I have a feeling we're both going to be finding ways to get around this "agreement"

Also, Cate from Cate Can Cook, So Can You! (her blog is awesome, check it out!) tagged me in a little blogger game and had a few questions to go along with the "tag".  And because I've grown to liking sharing random facts about myself, here you go!

What would be your most defining culinary achievement?





  
The day that Andy actually said he loved what I cooked for dinner, and that he could see himself ordering it at a restaurant... and he was serious.  It seems ridiculous, but I don't even remember what the dish was, but I remember his comment and just being floored.  It was the first time I actually seriously considered Culinary School.

If you could change your profession to something using your culinary skills what would you do?


I would be a professional caterer, and I actually hope to be that one day, possibly with my own business (what can I say, I like being the one in charge).

What is the worst thing you have cooked - and why?


Ha, this actually came up in conversation the other day.  Andy and I were talking about how I've come a long way from the mexican casserole I first cooked for him.  It was the first meal I had ever cooked for him, and it was by far the WORST.  I was new to cooking, so I wasn't familiar with "gourmet" recipes or "flavor profiles," and this just definitely missed the mark.  It was quite awful, and being a Paula Deen recipe, I vowed to never cook anything from her again... so embarking my hatred for all things Paula Deen (sorry all you Paula Deen lovers out there!).  And the fact that Andy has still stuck with me, even after my awful first impression of cooking... really shows that he loves me (or that's what I tell myself), hehe!

Finish this sentence "In my next life I want to come back as......."


Myself.  It took me a long time to learn how to love myself and say that I'm awesome (can we say somewhat bad self-esteem as a child???), and there is no one else I would rather be.

If you could visit anywhere in the world where would you go and why?


The Philippines.  I haven't been there since I was born there.  I would love to go back, especially with my mother (who hasn't been back since I was born either), to learn more about my culture and to learn about how and where my mother grew up.

What is your favourite dessert?


Mocha creme brulee.  There is absolutely nothing like it, and John Varanese does it best!

Are you a summer or a winter person?  And is it because of food?

Definitely NOT a winter person.  I hate all things cold-weather related (although for some odd reason, I love running in cold weather... weird, I know).  I like summer better, but it's not my favorite.  I'm more of a spring girl because it's a happy medium.  And I actually like foods of both seasons, nothing like comfort foods in the winter and grilling out in the summer!

Hope you guys enjoyed that little tidbit of Q&A and hope you guys think my tree is just as purrrrtttty as I think it looks!  Have you guys finished decorating for Christmas?  Or if you don't celebrate Christmas, any other holiday you celebrate?  See you guys tomorrow!