Berries Mousse Pseudo Amuse Bouche

Well.  This post marks a momentous occasion.  Hom Nom turned 1! And that means I had to throw a big party! Fanfare and hoorah! And lots of pink!  Anyways.  While preparing for Hom Nom's first anniversary brunch, Mai and I realized we needed something to whet our party guests appetites.  Well, actually, I just wanted something to tide over guests until we were all seated.  I am calling this Pseudo Amuse Bouche because it's not exactly one bite.  Unless you dip your fingers into the trifle dish and eat it berry by berry.  I'm just saying...

We needed a dish that would be simple to prepare, easy to eat, but not too filling.  We thought about making strawberry mille feuille, but that did not fall into the "easy to prepare" category.  We recalled back to the spice filled pumpkin trifle that Mai made during dessert fest. Ah-ha! We found our winner! We decided to use a similar concept but vamp up the recipe for spring.

This dish takes a mere 15 minutes to put together.  You could even make the whipped cream the night before and store it covered.  You could also eat it as a late night snack after you have done the dishes and all your guests have gone home.  The possibilities are endless.

{Mai Assembling the Trifle} 

{Introducing the Perfect Brunch-time "Amuse Bouche"}

Berries Mousse Topped with Whipped Cream, mousse adapted from the final issue of Gourmet


Makes about 1 1/2 cups of mousse and 2 cups of whipped cream

Ingredients


For the Mousse

• 1 package unflavored gelatin
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 1 cup whipped cream
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

For the Whipped Cream

• 1 1/2 cup chilled heavy cream
• 3 tbsp. granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Garnish

• Assorted berries (I used 1 package each of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries)
• 1/2 ounce Shaved chocolate 
• Mint springs

Prepare the Mousse

Sprinkle the gelatin into the water and let it soak for a minute.  Bring it to a simmer, stirring until the gelatin has dissolved.  

In another bowl, beat the cream with the vanilla until soft peaks form.  Stir in the gelatin into this mixture.  Let it chill for a few hours in the fridge.  

Prepare the Whipped Cream

In a bowl, beat together the cream, sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form (you don't want to churn butter!).

Assemble the Mousse

Rinse the fruit.  Hull and quarter the strawberries.  

Using a trifle dish or similar glass serving bowl, layer in the bottom base of fruit.  Using a rubber spatula, top with the mousse.  Layer again with the fruit.  Continue until you run out of mousse or fruit.  Top the entire dish with the whipped cream.  Using a microplane or similar tool, grate chocolate over the finished product.  Then devour! Note: there was not a smushed berry morsel left in the trifle.