Really, Shelly? Avocado? Come on. Why not? Avocado is a fruit. In South America they eat avocado with sugar, so why can’t it work with chocolate? I knew it. I knew she wouldn’t approve this recipe. It doesn’t matter how many years of experience I have as a cook, my older sister continues to distrust my taste and abilities. I would love to hear, “It’s probably delicious or I would love to try it or you’re strange but you’ve travelled the world, you have eaten in countless restaurants, and you practically live in the kitchen, so you must know one or two things about food!”
I love my year-and-a-half-older sister to death. We are very close and open with each other. Over the years I’ve learned to take her skepticism with a grain of salt. She is a great cook and a foodie but she has rules about food and always has. It’s weird, though, because my sister is generally open-minded and always happy to learn new things.
When my mother and sisters lived in New York we used to eat a lot together so when they came over to our house for dinner, I would hide some small details about the dishes I made. For example I wouldn’t mention that I used spelt to make bread instead of bread flour, or olive oil instead of butter in cakes.
I wouldn’t dare to make Moroccan food for them because I knew that they would disapprove the little twists I give to years and years of traditional recipes. I always let them eat first, then, one hour or a day later I would confess. Never right away because high chances that they would immediately take back the “It’s delicious!” and say “Yes, I did taste something that didn’t belong,” or, “It’s good, but if you made it with regular flour, it would taste much better.”
In the last couple of years my mother has become my biggest fan (The problem is that now she wants me to cook for her all the time and I want her to cook for me.) My sister slowly and maturely is learning to appreciate my bold cooking. She won’t admit it, but I know that if she could, she would stop by my house everyday to eat my food. And she would probably love this avocado mousse and maybe admit that it’s so damn good.
Vegan & GF Chocolate Mousse
Ingredients
- 2 ripe Hass avocados
- ½ cup cacao powder
- ½ cup maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoon unsweetened almond milk
- a pinch of salt
- 10 toasted hazelnuts, chopped finely
- 1 banana - optional
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter - optional
Instructions
- Halve the avocados and scoop the flesh into a food processor. Add the cacao powder, maple syrup, vanilla extract, almond milk and salt and process for 30 seconds or until smooth.
- Taste and adjust the flavor, add extra sweetness or salt if necessary.
- Spoon the chocolate mousse into espresso cups or ramekins and refrigerate for 1-2 hours or you can eat immediately. Sprinkle crushed hazelnut and serve.
To make a banana peanut butter chocolate mousse:
- Make the mousse but don't transfer it to cups yet. Store in the fridge. Preheat the oven to 400ºF/200ºC. Slice the banana and place it on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Put the baking sheet in the oven for 10 – 15 minutes – the bananas should be golden brown. Let the bananas cool completely before you move to the next step.
- Add 6 slices of roasted bananas and 1 tablespoon peanut butter into the mousse and process for 30 seconds. The mousse would be a bit chunky. Store it in the fridge for 1-2 hours (or eat immediately). Serve in espresso cups, garnish with roasted bananas and toasted nuts.
