Lemon Mousse

This is one of the desserts from the Nourishing Traditions Valentine’s Day meal. For the results post for the whole dinner, please go here.

Everyone pretty much loved this mousse and I would make it again, with some slight changes. It could have been the lemons that I used, but this had a very strong lemon flavor. It was difficult to eat a serving of this at one sitting, although the flavor was very good. So the recipe below has the changes that I will make the next time I cook this recipe. I also note the original recipe in brackets.

I also may have cooked the egg mixture too long because I had a hard time folding it into the cream and then egg white mixture smoothly. I’m going to say though that this is due to my inexperience in making mousse, not the recipe’s fault. Perfect your folding technique before you make this, it will help!

I served this with the shortcake duo, the large one on the left was the non-NT (I’m adapting it, will post recipe). The right one is the Hazelnut Almond shortbread, which was very tasty. It’s great to have a small crisp cookie to go along with this mousse.

Tips for making Lemon Mousse:

• I think this would be a good filling for a pre-cooked pie shell. No additional whipped cream would be needed on top since it is pretty rich already.
• Cook the egg yolk mixture only until it is slightly thickened. It will fold into the other ingredients easier that way.
• Perfect your folding skills! You have to do it twice for this recipe.
• This may be good also with Meyer lemons. You can also use limes, or a combination. Strong tasting oranges may also work very well but be sure to reduce the liquid and zest accordingly, or simmer fresh squeezed orange juice down to a syrup to equal the juice of two lemons (hmm this sounds good I may try this next time).
• When you’re done folding all ingredients together, be sure to place the mousse directly in the serving cups. It’s better to touch it the least amount possible. Wait to garnish until right before serving.

Rating: 4 forks (key)

Difficulty:

Moderate

Page in NT: 580

Ingredients:

6 egg yolks, at room temperature
1/2 cup raw honey
grated rind of two lemons
strained juice of 2 lemons
6 egg whites, at room temperature
pinch of sea salt
1 cup heavy cream, preferably unpasteurized, or at least not ultra-pasteurized [original NT recipe says only 1/2 cup but I didn't find that it was creamy enough]

Preparation:

Place egg yolks, honey, lemon rind and lemon juice in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Whisk constantly for about 10 minutes until mixture just thickens. Remove from heat and chill in the refrigerator for about 1/2 hour. Beat cream until stiff. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites with sea salt until stiff. Fold lemon mixture into cream and then egg whites into cream mixture. Spoon into individual parfait glasses and chill well before serving.

Tagged as: citrus, cream, dessert, lemon, lime, meringue, mousse, nourishing traditions, orange, recipe, whipped cream