Life is full of so many magical things. One particular joy I had the pleasure of experiencing recently was the beaming smile of a friend's child. One look at his cherubic face, lit up brighter than the evening star, and I was grinning ear to ear, filled with warmth and love. I wish my smiles were as pure as those of babes. Being around children helps to remind you of the multitude of possibilities of happiness. I have seen little ones giggle with glee at the sight of a funny face, or laugh hysterically at the sound of paper being torn in two. Joy in the little things, that's the key to happiness.
One of life's small pleasures is chocolate. Even my husband marvelled recently at its ability to induce bliss from the moment it begins to melt on your tongue, 'no other food has that effect on me' he said in between mouthfuls of cocoa goodness.
"Other things are just food. But chocolate’s chocolate." - Patrick Skene Catling
I couldn't agree more. 
Excuse the ganache in this shot, the ugliness is thanks to some clingwrap and refrigeration.
prep time: 2hours & 30mins for the pastry to be ready.
cooking time: 4hours to chill caramel, mousse and ganache.
total: 6hours & 30mins.
taste: 3.5/5. Ooey gooey fluffy chewy with a little crunch as well.
The mousse was fluffy and luxurious whilst the ganache was rich and fudgy. I think I took the caramel a whisper too far as it edged towards a slight bitterness, and to be able to stand up against the chocolate you need that sweetness instead. The pastry was nice and crumbly and overall it was a pleasant dish, but for some reason it just didn't 'knock my socks off'. Perhaps too many layers of sweetness without a spice or some contrasting flavour? I really don't know why I didn't love this more.
would I make it again: No - too time intensive for me without a big enough payoff.
recipe: http://www.citrusandcandy.com/2010/03/chocolate-and-caramel-mousse-tart.html
OMG, those tarts look devilishly luscious! Gorgeous textures.
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Rosa
Oh, it's so sad that it didn't knock your socks off, particularly considering how swoon-worthy the last photos are! Still, chocolate is delicious chocolate, as you say :D
ReplyDeleteToo time intensive - words I hate.
ReplyDeleteWould you look at that? All that lovely ooze! Can't imagine why you weren't crazy about it. Although I once made an espresso caramel bar of Giada's and it was so sweet I didn't like it at all. Never posted it either, although I do have it in drafts. (if blogspot didn't lose it last week)
ReplyDeleteoh my! such oozy loveliness! i adore caramel and chocolate together. it helps that your pictures are stunning.
ReplyDeletethis looks ridiculously good
ReplyDeleteeven when a recipe calls for the caramel to be firm, i like to make mine a wee bit soft and runny. i like this. i like it a lot. :)
ReplyDeleteWow the gooey caramel, bitter chocolate, and crunchy crust sound great together! I'm drooling here...
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more also :) It does sound like a lot of effort, and if it didn't knock your socks off, then I agree. Next recipe! :)
ReplyDeleteHeidi xo