Kabocha Mousse Cups

Meet the kabocha.

And then meet the beautiful, light chiffon mousse she made:

Squash is believed to have originated in Mesoamerica and was first brought to Japan by Portuguese traders in the sixteenth century. The Portuguese had been in Cambodia prior to their arrival in Japan and brought with them a squash they called “Cambodia abóbora” which the Japanese renamed kabocha.

I found the kabocha on one of my trips East, in Singapore perhaps, or was it Hong Kong? Either way, the pumpkins traveled home with me and got stuffed and moussed and stuffed our craving bellies.. with the seeds tossed almost carelessly onto freshly arrived manure piles just before the monsoons. I say “almost carelessly” because it was done in haste, in between this and that preparation for yet another journey–but with hope that those seeds would find life regardless.

Indeed, they did. The kabocha seeds loved it on my manure pile and made themselves so completely at home that by December we had sprawling vines ready to pull down the nearby cashew trees.

And beautiful buds shaped like palms in prayer, with little baby bumps that had me more thrilled than I’d been since my own pregnancies of long long ago…

And all sorts of critters walking on the edge just because there were now edges to walk on…

And so many many beautiful kabochas!

The kabocha is a naturally sweet pumpkin a bit like the butternut, which works beautifully in desserts. We paired it with drambuie, to make a lovely little mousse sitting on top just a tiny layer of chocolate sponge, and finished it with a just-so-slightly-tart whipped cream and creme fraiche.

It’s a fall-ish dessert perhaps, but an American fall is our monsoon, and who says we have to eat pumpkin only when it’s Halloween or Thanksgiving? De-center the universe, I say, turn it upside down. Live by the movements of faraway suns. Tell your Cinderella stories with dark-skinned heroines who travel the world alone but not lonely, in search of seeds and secrets. Harvest pumpkins as the vines wilt to the onset of summer, and eat mousse in like a mad hatter in March.

Thankful for the lingering spring and ready to face the next season’s endless sear with orange-colored lightness.

Kabocha Mousse Cups

Beautiful spiced and light chiffon mousse made with Kabocha pumpkin, layered with dark chocolate sponge, and topped with an ever-so-slightly tart creme-fraiche whip. 

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Ingredients

  

FOR THE CHOCOLATE SPONGE

• 1/4 cup good quality unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 4 tablespoons melted butter

FOR THE KABOCHA CHIFFON MOUSSE

• 3 sheets gelatin or 1 envelope or 3 teaspoons unflavored powdered gelatin
• 1/4 cup Drambuie liqueur
• 1 1/2 cups kabocha pumpkin puree (see notes)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream or creme fraiche
• 2/3 cup sugar divided into 1/3 plus 1/3
• 3 lightly beaten egg yolks
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 egg whites
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar or salt

FOR THE WHIPPED TOPPING

• 1/2 cup heavy cream well chilled
• 1/2 cup creme fraiche well chilled

Instructions

 

FOR THE SPONGE

• Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Line a 17X12 jelly roll pan with parchment; butter and flour the parchment.
• In a large bowl, combine the cocoa powder, flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.
• Combine eggs and sugar in a (stand-)mixer bowl. Set this over a pan of simmering water (make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water). Beat by hand for a couple of minutes or until the eggs are warm-hot to the touch.
• Remove from the heat and beat at high speed for 3-5 minutes, until the mixture is thick, pale yellow, airy, falls in ribbons and holds its shape for about 5 seconds.
• Gently mix in the melted butter. Fold in the dry ingredients, quickly.
• Spread the batter onto your buttered parchment and bake for 5–6 minutes, or until the surface springs back when touched.
• Once the sponge is out of the oven, use a sharp knife to release the sides. Then dust another baking sheet with cocoa, and–very quickly–invert, peel off parchment, return parchment to the original baking sheet, and re-invert the cake onto the original tray. Now let it cool completely.
• Choose glasses or other ramekins to set the mousse. Use these to invert onto the chocolate sponge and cut out rounds. Insert into the glasses. If there are any crumbs, torn pieces, or left-overs, mourn not! Use these to create a second layer in a single cup! Set aside until you make the mousse.

FOR THE KABOCHA CHIFFON MOUSSE

• In a small bowl sprinkle the unflavored gelatin over 1/4 cup Drambuie to soften for 5 minutes. Set the mixture over a bain marie (double boiler) and stir until the gelatin is dissolved.
• Whisk together the kabocha puree, heavy cream or creme fraiche and 1/3 cup of sugar, 3 egg yolks, all the spices and salt and cook the mixture over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon for 10 minutes. Stir in the gelatin mixture, mix for a minute or so longer if it’s not yet fully incorporated, then let the mixture cool.
• In a large, clean bowl beat the 4 egg whites until frothy, then add 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar or salt, and continue beating. Slowly add in the remaining 1/3 cup sugar, a little at a time, beating until it holds stiff peaks.
• Fold this meringue into the partially cooled pumpkin mixture, working quickly.
• Layer the mousse onto the prepared glasses with chocolate sponge. Add any left-over sponge cake, and finish with more mousse. (Or just create a single layer of cake and mousse).
• Refrigerate until set and well-chilled, about 4-6 hours.

TO SERVE

• Whip together the chilled heavy cream and creme fraiche (or use just heavy cream) until stiff peaks form. Top the set mousses with generous spoonfuls of this mixture, and dust over top with cinnamon to serve.

Notes

To prepare fresh kabocha puree, roast or steam cut kabocha wedges until the pumpkin is tender. Kabocha cooks fast, so this won’t take long. Scoop to separate from the skin (which is edible! but will make your mousse an unpleasant yellow-green), and puree.

Don’t have kabocha? You can use any other sweet, flavorful squash like acorn or butternut.