Mousse au chocolat with cherries and berries

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 150 ml red wine
• 1 star anise
• 1 cardamom pod
• 0.5 tsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp Orange juice
• 200 g cherries
• 150 g dark chocolate couverture
• 40 ml brandy
• 2 Eggs
• 40 g sugar
• 100 ml whipping cream
• 150 g raspberries (for garnish)

Instructions

1. 1.

   Bring the sugar, wine and spices to a boil for the cherry sauce. Whisk the cornstarch with orange juice until smooth and use it to lightly thicken the wine. Wash and pit the cherries. Add them to the sauce, bring to a boil, then remove from heat and let cool slightly. Remove the spices again and pour the sauce into four glasses; refrigerate.

2. 2.

   For the mousse, roughly chop the chocolate and melt it with brandy over a double boiler. Remove from heat. Separate the eggs; beat the yolks with half of the sugar over the double boiler until creamy. Stir in the melted chocolate, remove from heat and stir cold (perhaps in an ice bath). Whip the cream stiffly. Beat the egg whites with the remaining sugar into stiff peaks. Fold the whipped cream onto the chocolate mixture quickly before it sets. Gently fold in the meringue and pipe the mousse into a pastry bag. Pipe the mousse over the cherry sauce in the glasses and chill for at least one hour.

3. 3.

   Rinse the raspberries, place them on top of the mousse, and serve.