Taste the Tour: Crème de la Crème
January 17, 2025
Crème de la Crème, “the best of the best,” is the perfect description for a tour like this. Guests spend eight nights in four historic and luxurious Fairmont Canadian hotels, each with their own unique world class character. Along the way, informative local guides share historical anecdotes and stories about these Canadian gems!
Absinthe Cafe is one stop on this tour. Established in 2003, Absinthe is renowned for its commitment to fine food. The restaurant is a modern bistro, using locally sourced ingredients, prepared in an inventive and sophisticated manner.
Guest enjoy the richness of Chef and Owner Patrick Garland's cuisine, which features meats, cheeses and produce from eastern Ontario and western Quebec, prepared with classical French culinary techniques.
While the meal is spectacular, dessert certainly does not go unnoticed. The specialty chocolate mousse is heavenly, and Chef Patrick was kind enough to share his recipe!
So whether you're joining us on Crème de la Crème in 2025, have joined us on a past departure of the tour, or just love a decadent dessert, try this chocolate mousse recipe for yourself!
Délice au Chocolate (Chocolate Delight)
Credit: Absinthe Cafe Ottawa, Ontario
Time: 30-45 minutes active, 2 hours chilling
Yield: A LOT! Consider scaling down the measurements.
Ingredients:
- 600g dark chocolate
- 9 eggs, separated (ensuring there is no yolk in the whites)
- 150g sugar, divided
- 600g heavy whipping cream
- 10g vanilla extract
- 30g liqueur of your choice (Grand Marnier, Kahlua, Baileys, etc.)
- 125g espresso
- 2g salt
- 2g cream of tartar
Method:
- Using a double boiler, melt the dark chocolate.
- Place the egg yolks into a separate bowl with half the sugar (75g) and cream together until ribbons form.
- Again, using the double broiler, combine the yolk and sugar mixture with the vanilla, liqueur, espresso, and salt to create a sabayon mixture.
- In a stand mixer, whip egg whites at medium speed until frothy. Once frothy, add the cream of tartar and increase the speed. Once it forms soft peaks, add the remaining sugar in a steady stream and whip a few seconds longer until medium firm peaks. Do not over-whip the egg whites, if you do, don’t freak out! It will just be lumpy. Pay close attention at this point to not over-whip, as the time frame is small but crucial.
- Over medium speed, whip your cold whipping cream in a chilled stand mixer until it begins to thicken. At that point, increase the speed and whip until medium-stiff peaks form. Do not over-whip the cream, either!
Assembly:
- Have all of your preparations from above on hand.
- Whisk the sabayon mixture into the melted chocolate. This will look nasty, but it’s going to get better. This combination should be warm but not hot, aiming for a temperature of range of 35°C to 40°C (95°F to 104°F).
- Whisk one third of the whipped cream into the above mixture. At this point it will look like there is hope for this after all!
- Using a spatula, fold in the remaining cream in 2 batches making sure to turn your bowl a quarter turn and go from the bottom to the top and fold the mixture over itself, trying to do it in as few gestures as possible.
- In 3 batches, fold the egg whites into the mix in the same way, trying not to over mix.
- Spoon or pipe the mousse into chilled glasses, teacups, whatever you have, and chill in the fridge for a few hours before serving.
- Enjoy!
Join us on Crème de la Crème this fall! Click below to book!
Crème de la Crème (COACH): September 19-30, 2025
Crème de la Crème (FLY): September 20-30, 2025