Most of my strongest memories of my father center around food. Dad was an….interesting cook, to say the least. I mentioned once (maybe twice or more… I’m getting old and forgetful) before that dad used to make things like chili or spaghetti sauce and besides adding jalapenos to both (yes, even the spaghetti sauce) and when I say adding jalapenos, I mean making it so hot, your tongue fell out of your mouth in protest, he also never ever drained the grease from his ground meat. So there you’d have some otherwise lovely (and mouth burning) dish, swimming in a pool of grease. But no one wanted to hurt his feelings or incur his wrath, so no one ever said anything. I got my opening one day however a couple of years after I moved him next door to me. He asked me why my spaghetti sauce was so much better than his and also, did I drain the grease off for some reason? I did a cheer inwardly and said that yes, I drained the grease off my ground beef and that that may be why mine was better, because too much grease makes it (I said politely) a bit heavy on the stomach. I didn’t mention that burning the stomach lining of people may not be smart. I knew when to shut up. 😀
Dad also loved jello. My kids though, as much as they loved Gramps giving them unlimited amounts of sweets when I wasn’t looking, weren’t jello fans. So he would make it for himself and me, just the same way he did when my brother, sister and I were kids. No plain jello for dad. Nope, nope, nope. He would drain some sort of canned fruit or a jar of maraschino cherries, use the juice from it as the liquid and then add the fruit when it was almost set. Then he would top it with about 4 pounds of Cool Whip and we were good to go on calories and sugar for about a year. It was utterly delicious and still how I like my jello. I think of him every…single…time I eat jello.
But sometimes I like to get a little fancier and not use the sugar laden flavored kind of gelatin and go back to the plain old fashioned gelatin that you flavor yourself. I have been, like most people, waiting not so patiently for Spring. Speaking of which, we are supposed to be getting an ample amount of snow here in Kentucky again tomorrow. But I’ll save that whining for later.
I have been heavy into anything citrus lately. It’s both my favorite sort of fruit, plus it makes me think of Spring. Spring…warmth…my garden.. warmth… fresh produce… did I mention warmth? Sorry. I’ll stop now. So, when I saw some pretty limes at the store, I got to thinking about what to do with the ones that jumped into my shopping cart. I got home and saw some white chocolate sitting out. I had bought it for something else, but who cares? When an idea hits, you run with it. 😀 I had seen a recipe for white chocolate mousse elsewhere that I couldn’t find now, so I improvised and completely messed around with using a mousse recipe I found elsewhere. What I ended up with was a delicious tart with both lime and white chocolate sharing the limelight (hehe… LIMElight) equally. This is rich and creamy and a small slice will do you just fine. Unless you’re a teenage boy. Then… make two. I originally planned on using graham cracker crumbs as the crust, but all I had were Oreos. And I love the way it turned out with them.
You know the drill….
Mrs. Cupcake, who is sobbing over the thought of more snow
White Chocolate And Lime Mousse Tart
- Crust-
- 14 oreos (NOT Double Stuffs)
- 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- Filling-
- 8 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 2 to 3 tablespoons lime zest (from about 3 limes)
- 1 packet unflavored gelatin (sold with the other types of flavored gelatin in packs of 4, usually on the bottom shelf)
- 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Make your crust- put your Oreos in the bowl of a food processor and process them down to crumbs. Add in the melted butter and pulse until it is combined. Pour the mixture into a buttered 9 inch tart pan (the kind with the removable bottom) and press it down onto the bottom of the pan.
- Bring 1/2 of the cream to a simmer. You can use a small pot or just do it as I do in the microwave.. When it comes to a simmer, remove from the heat and dump in the chopped white chocolate. Let sit for about five minutes, then stir until it is smooth. Let the mixture sit until it’s just barely warm.
- Meanwhile, sprinkle the gelatin over the lime juice in a small pot. Let it sit for about ten minutes to soften up, then stir it over low heat just until the gelatin dissolves. Let cool, then fold the gelatin mixture into the white chocolate/cream.
- Whip the remaining one cup of cream with the vanilla extract until it has soft peaks. Fold the white chocolate mixture into the cream, then pour this all into the prepared crust. Smooth the top and refrigerate for at LEAST 6 to 8 hours, but preferably overnight. Gelatin takes a few hours to set firmly anyway and the addition of a citrus juice in this one makes it set slower.
- When done, gently push it out from the bottom (it always helps to have someone else there to grab the pan bottom. Otherwise, you have this tart in one hand with no way to remove what looks like a huge cream covered bracelet dangling from your other arm. Don’t ask… just don’t ask.
- Garnish with more whipped cream and some lime slices.
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