Good Old Dark Chocolate-Hazelnut Mousse

1. 1

   De-shell and roast the hazelnuts in a single layer on a piece of parchment paper at 275 F 15-20 minutes.

2. 2

   Remove from oven before the nuts brown completely....golden brown is what we want.

3. 3

   Roll a damp kitchen towel against the nuts and rub the skins off them.

4. 4

   After the skins come off, roll then dry with paper towels and grind them to fine powder, in a processor.

5. 5

   The Mousse

6. 6

   Halve the amount of cream in two separate bowls.

7. 7

   Heat one half over a low flame, till bubbles start to appear. Don't let it boil over.

8. 8

   Add this cream to the bowl of chopped chocolate and let stand for a minute.

9. 9

   Whip the egg whites and sugar (if you're using any), till stiff. An electric beater works perfectly fine unless you're willing to exercise your arms using a hand-beater.

10. 10

    Add the egg white foam to the warm chocolate and cream mixture and gently stir centre-out till no white streaks remain.

11. 11

    Stir in the hazelnut flour into the chocolate. Mix well.

12. 12

    Whip the remaining cream into soft peaks that hold their shape. Pour the cream into the chocolate mixture and fold in gently.

13. 13

    Pour in serving glasses/cups and allow it to set in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.

14. 14

    Garnish with whipped cream (a little of the heavy cream whipped to peaks with confectioners' sugar) and chocolate shavings (both dark and white, in my case), before serving.

* Per serving · 4 servings · Values may vary.