Pistachio Mousse on Raspberry Sponge

I found some green cocoa butter velvet spray in my ingredients cupboard the other day. The most obvious thing to do with it would be to make something with matcha, right? Because I always make matcha everything. Instead I decided to go down the pistachio mousse route instead.

You don't need the velvet spray to make this recipe, but it does add a cute effect.

Ready? Let's go.

Ingredients for Pistachio Paste:

200g shelled unsalted pistachios

75ml milk

2 tbsp brown rice syrup, agave or honey

Ingredients for Mousse:

100ml milk

1.5 tsp gelatine powder, soaked in 2 tbsp water

2 egg whites

100g pistachio paste
100ml double cream
2 tbsp caster sugar

White chocolate sugar crispies

Ingredients for Sponge:

115g unsalted butter, softened

115g caster sugar

2 eggs

115g self raising flour

150g raspberries, puréed

Ingredients for Chocolate Collars:

50g white chocolate, melted and tempered

Chocolate transfer sheets, cut into strips

Method:

1. Heat the milk in a small saucepan until steaming, turn off the heat and dissolve the soaked gelatine in the hot milk. Leave to cool a little.

2 Meanwhile, whisk the egg whites and sugar until they form stiff white peaks, and in another bowl whisk the pistachio paste and double cream together until just combined, then whisk in the gelatine milk.

3. Fold the egg whites into the pistachio mixture, pour into six silicone dome moulds, sprinkle over some chocolate crunchies and freeze for four hours or overnight.

4. To make the sponge, preheat the oven to 180°C, and line and lightly grease a 26x36cm baking tray. Cream the butter and sugar together with an electric whisk until fluffy, whisk in the eggs, and then the flour and raspberry purée. Spread evenly in the baking tray and bake for about 20 minutes, or until spongy to the touch and lightly browned on top. Leave to cool completely.

5. Cut six circles roughly the same circumference as the mousse domes. Unmould your frozen mousse domes and pop one on top of each cake disc (at this point you can spray with cocoa butter spray for the velvet effect).

6. Spread a little tempered chocolate on a transfer strip, wait for it to start setting (a minute or so) and wrap it around the base of one of the cakes. Repeat with the others.

7. Let the cakes defrost completely before serving with raspberry coulis (I used leftover raspberry syrup from my previous recipe) and extra raspberries.

Enjoy, and have fun!