Blueberry mousse (mousse aux myrtilles)

Served simply in a glass, this type of fruit mousse has become very fashionable. Mousse makes a great entertaining dessert option, because you can prepare it the night before. The wild blueberries grown in the Alps traditionally feature in this recipe, but you can use regular blueberries or even raspberries, if preferred.

• serves

  6

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  5 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 1 lemon, juiced
• 150 g (⅔ cup) caster sugar
• ½ vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
• 400 g blueberries                                
• 10 g gelatine powder
• 2 egg whites
• pinch of cream of tartar
• 100 ml pouring (whipping) cream  
• 6 berry macarons of your choice

Instructions

Place the lemon juice, 100 g of the caster sugar, the vanilla bean, scraped seeds and the blueberries in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat. Cook for 5 minutes, then remove from the heat. Transfer half the cooked blueberries to a bowl to cool. Place the remaining berries in a fine sieve placed over a bowl and press down to extract as much puree as possible. Discard the solids.

Whisk the gelatine into the warm purée until it has all melted, then refrigerate until cool but not set.

Using electric beaters, whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Whisk in the remaining sugar until glossy and the sugar has dissolved. 

Next, whisk the cream until soft peaks form, then fold into the cold blueberry purée. Gently fold in the beaten egg whites. Spoon the mousse into a piping bag fitted with the widest nozzle you have, then pipe into 6 whisky-type glasses and refrigerate for at least 6 hours to set. 

Just before serving, top each mousse with cooled blueberry compote and serve with a macaron on top.

 

Photography by Benito Martin. Styling by Jerrie-Joy Redman-Lloyd. Food preparation by Alice Storey. Creative concept by Lou Fay. 

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.