Lemon mousse verrines

There's a new trend out there and you've probably heard of it. It's been all the rage in Europe for a while now (they're always ahead of us those Europeans!). It's called verrines. A verrine is basically an appetizer or a dessert served in a small glass. You could technically turn anything into a verrine dish. Just dump your favourite hors d'oeuvres into a shooter, and bingo! you've made yourself trendy dish.

Well ok, it's not always that simple. Some things just shouldn't be served in a glass. Others, though, can greatly benefit from a see through receptacle. Take, for example, this dessert recipe that I'm about to describe. It's a pretty looking dessert and putting it onto a plate just wouldn't do it justice.

The original recipe is from Assiettes Gourmandes, a French food blog. I've simplified it a bit, since the cookie crumble was supposed to be made from scratch. However, I found the results less than satisfactory and using store bought cookies worked just as well.

For 6 glasses (tumbler size)

• 2 eggs
• 140 gr of mascarpone (I like Polenghi, but it's not always easy to find)
• 1/4 cup of sugar
• 1 lemon

For the whipped cream

• 250ml of heavy cream (35% whipping)
• 1/4 cup of sugar
• 20 fresh basil leaves

Crumble:

• ginger snap cookies, crumbled (or any similar cookie)
• fresh strawberries and raspberries

Separate the eggs whites from the yolk. Whisk the yolks and the sugar until pale. Zest half the lemon and add this to the mixture along with the juice from the lemon. Mix in the mascarpone. Beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Delicately fold the egg whites into the mascarpone mix. You should have a smooth mousse by now. Fill the bottom of each glass with the mousse and keep chilled in the refrigerator. 

For the whipped cream, tear the basil leaves and let them sit in the cream for around 2 hours. Strain and add the sugar. Whip the cream until thick. Set aside in the fridge.

Add the cut up raspberries and strawberries onto the lemon mousse. Sprinkle on the cookie crumbles. Add the basil-flavoured whipped cream on top. Garnish with lemon or lime zest and/or basil leaves.

See how pretty!