Ann Reardon

Chocolate Spiral Dessert Recipe

 

So pretty yet so simple to make, the chocolate spiral takes this dessert from beautiful to stunning in just a few seconds.

 

 

Inside the dessert are layers of chocolate cake, salted caramel, caramel creme brûlée and chocolate mousse. I had to draw you a picture because they had all been eaten before I remembered to take a photo.

entremet recipe ann reardon how to cook that

To make this chocolate spiral dessert you will need:


Chocolate cake

makes enough for 12 desserts
2 egg whites or approx 72g (2.54 ounces)
20g (0.71 ounces) or 1.5 Tbsp sugar
5 medium egg yolks or approx 75g (2.65 ounces)
80g (2.82 ounces) or 1/3 cup plus 2 tsp sugar
30g (1.06 ounces) or 1/4 cup cocoa powder
40g (1.41 ounces) or 1/4 cup flour (all purpose)
30g (1.06 ounces) or 2 Tbsp plus 1 tsp margarine or butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 180C (356 degrees Fahrenheit).
Add the first amount of sugar to the whites and whip them until you get soft peaks. Add the other sugar to the yolks and whip them until they are pale and fluffy. Fold in about one third of the whites then sift the flour and cocoa over the top. Start to fold then add the rest of the whites and fold together.
Take a quarter of this mixture and combine with the melted butter. Then add this back into the rest folding gently until just combined.
Pour into a lined baking tray, spread out and bake for around 10 minutes or until firm.

Vanilla Syrup
75g (2.65 ounces) or 1/3 cup sugar
110ml or 1/3 cup plus 2 Tbsp water
1/2 tsp vanilla
Combine all the ingredients and heat until the sugar is dissolved.

Caramel Creme Brûlée
makes enough for 12 desserts
caramel creme brûlée recipe ann reardon
40g (1.41 ounces) or 3 Tbsp sugar
100mL (3.38 fluid ounces) or 1/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp full (4% fat) milk
100mL (3.38 fluid ounces) or 1/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp cream (35% fat)
6 egg yolks or approx 90g (3.17 ounces)
25g (0.88 ounces) or 2 Tbsp sugar
2 sheets of gelatin

Soak the gelatin sheets in water to soften
Brown the sugar to form a caramel the add the milk and cream, stir until the caramel is dissolved.
Whip together the yolks and remaining sugar. Then whisk in a small amount of the hot milk mixture. Add this back into the pan and heat until you an see it is just starting to cling to the base of the pan. Add the gelatin and remove from the heat. Pour into a lined tray and freeze overnight.

Salted Caramel Recipe
(makes enough for 12 desserts with plenty left to eat)
salted caramel recipe ann reardon
200g (7.05 ounces) or 1 cup less 1 Tbsp sugar
100g (3.53 ounces) or 1/2 cup less 1 Tbsp cream (35% fat)
120g (4.23 ounces) or 1/2 cup plus 1 tsp margarine
1g (0.04 ounces) or a pinch of sea salt
Make a caramel with the sugar. Add the salt and cream. Stir in the margarine then continue to heat until a small amount dropped into a glass is sufficiently thick to form a soft blob.

Chocolate Mousse recipe
(makes enough for 24 desserts)
chocolate mousse recipe ann reardon
15g (0.53 ounces) or 1 Tbsp water
90g (3.17 ounces) or 1/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp and 1 tsp sugar
3 egg yolks or approx 45g (1.59 ounces)
2 whole eggs
210g (7.41 ounces) dark chocolate
300mL (10.14 fluid ounces) or 1¼ cup less 1 Tbsp cream (35% fat)

Beat the eggs and egg yolks on high until they become fluffy and pale. Place the sugar and water into a pan and heat until 244F (117.78 degrees Celsius) on a candy thermometer. Then pour that into the egg mixture with the mixers running, until the side of the bowl feels cool. Whip the cream to soft peaks, fold in your melted chocolate, then add your egg mixture and fold it all together.

Chocolate mirror glaze recipe
Makes more than you need, store the excess in a ziplock bag in the freezer.
chocolate mirror glaze recipe ann reardon
20g (0.71 ounces) or 1Tbsp and 1tsp powdered gelatin bloomed in 90g (3.17 ounces) or 1/3 cup cold water
200g (7.05 ounces) or 3/4 cup plus 1Tbsp and 1tsp cream (35% fat)
300g (10.58 ounces) or 1 1/3 cup plus 1Tbsp sugar
90g (3.17 ounces) or 1/3 cup additional water
100g (3.53 ounces) or 3/4 cup plus 1Tbsp and 1tsp cocoa powder
250g (8.82 ounces) or 2/3 cup plus 2tsp glucose syrup

Pour the gelatin into the water, stir in and set aside to bloom. Put the sugar, additional water and cream into a bowl and heat until sugar is dissolved. Sift in the cocoa powder, making sure there are no lumps, then whisk in really well. Add the bloomed gelatin, stir until it has melted in. Lastly add the glucose syrup and stir in. Allow the glaze to cool down before pouring it on top of the dessert.
chocolate spiral dessert recipe ann reardon

Copyright © 2016 Reardon Media Pty Ltd. All rights reserved. How To Cook That

My Cookbook

ann reardon crazy sweet creations cookbook
Stores that sell my book listed by country: http://bit.ly/ARcookbook
All recipe quantities in the book are in grams, ounces and cups.

148 Comments View Comments

  1. I’m 11 and not a baker and I’m just doing this for fun but do you use regular white sugar.

    • Hi Sage, Use caster sugar or superfine sugar for best results.

  2. Hi Ann. I was wondering if that red pan is a cupcake pan? what size are these cakes?

    • Hi Robin, the red pan is a silicon hemisphere mold. Ann ordered hers through an online store. Each hemisphere has a diameter for of approx 7cm.

  3. Hi Ann, when I tried to make the caramel brûlée it turned into a very small amount abot 1cup, I did Exactly the same measurements, I don’t know what I did wrong, also the mixture wasn’t the same color as yours it was more like caramel.
    Thank you.

    • Hi Khawla, Do you mean the caramel, rather than the Brulee? If it is darker, then it probably got to hot. A good candy thermometer is a real asset here. It will get thicker and darker in relation to the temperature applied.

      • No I meant the caramel cream brûlée, the question is that why it didn’t came the same amount as yours
        Thank you

        • Hi Khawla, If the recipe was used it should produce the same quantity.

          • I had the same problem… But if u add the wet ingredients… All u get is abt 1 cup… What was the yield supposed to be?

          • Hi Mushina, It should be about 300-320ml give or take a few ml, which is plenty for this recipe to make small thin discs for the deserts. If you are using very small yolks you make get less.

  4. where can i buy that red mould??

  5. Rating: 5

    i made it a week ago ,and it was just amazing
    thank you

    • Great job doaa!

  6. Hello Ann, i used my leftover cream for the mousse. Is it possible to use milk for the glaze?

  7. Hi Ann,
    I was just wondering if you could replace the 2 sheets of gelatin for the vanilla syrup with powdered gelatin. If you could, how would you do so? Would you have to bloom it in cold water? What are the quantities?
    I really enjoy watching your videos and you are an amazing baker.
    Thank you!
    Anjali

    • Hi Anjali, The vanilla syrup doesn’t contain gelatin. It is used in the glaze and the creme brulee. Ultimately It will depend on the strength of your gelatin powder but usually you can usually use around 1 teaspoon of the powder or 1 sachet as equivalent to 2 leaves of gelatin. This can be dissolved in a small amount of cold water in accordance with the directions on the packaging. Usually you sprinkle the powder on the water and let it sit for a minute and it will become spongy. Then place that bowl over a bowl of warm water so it is gently warmed, while mixing it with a fork. You don’t want to make it really hot or boil it a this will destroy the gelatine bonds. Add this mix into what you are making when they are at similar temperatures.

  8. May i know the sizes of the tray that you used?

    • Hi My Nguyen, Ann used a tray that wa 10 by 15 inch.

  9. Rating: 5

    My daughter asked me to make this but I didn’t have the hemisphere molds, to I made it as a 9 inch cake. I ended up making the cake layers in 8 inch pans, did two of them, two layers of caramel and one layer of brulee in the center, then I used the method you used for the new instagram logo cake to put it together.

    • Hi Pam, It looks so yummy!

  10. Hi Ann!
    I was wondering if they’re were any substitutes for the glucose syrup since it is not available in France
    Than you so much for all the amazing work you do

    • Hi Clemence, glucose syrup can be replaced with light corn syrup. They are basically the same thing. If you can’t get in France you can order it online.

  11. This is a great recipe, thanks for sharing! Can you tell me what size the eggs are?

    • Hi Katrin, Ann usually uses medium to large sized eggs. In Australia a medium sized whole egg would be around 50 grams

  12. Hi Ann, I don’t have cream where I live, so it is possible to use milk as a substitute for the salted caramel recipe? Pls let me know. Thanks.

    • Hi Aastha, Instead of cream you could try 1/2 tbspn of milk and 1/2 tblspn of butter. If you leave it out completely the caramel will be too firm.

  13. Rating: 5

    What a phenomenal recipe, you are a legend. Thank you so much for sharing this and for breaking it down into manageable steps for us non pastry chefs to understand, you are so generous and kind to share this for free, we are so grateful.

    • Hi Sonja, Thanks for your encouraging comment. Happy Baking!

  14. I was making my mouse for this dessert, and the once I added the chocolate, the creme deflated and turned back into liquid creme, what do I do?

    • Hi Arden, It sounds like your chocolate may have been too hot. It needs to be melted but not hot.

    • Hi Arden, it sounds like your chocolate was too hot or perhaps over folded. The chocolate should be cool but not set.

  15. Hi Ann,
    I really would like to make this dessert, but I was wondering if it’s possible to make it as a whole cake instead of small spheres. And would it be nice if it was a whole cake made in a normal round cake pan?

    • Hi Khawla!
      Of course! One of the great things about baking is you can make them any size you just have to know how to make the right adjustments. The only thing that you should worry about is the cake part. This type of cake is a sheet cake which means it’s thin and long, so if you put it in a round cake pan (say 9-inch) it will definitely take longer so really keep your eye on it! The brulee part will need to be in the same sized pan you used for the cake so you don’t have to mess too much with shaping it. The mousse will act more like frosting and not mouse so lather it one and smooth it out well but don’t mess with it too much cause you don’t want to knock the air out or let it melt too much. Freeze it with the mouse on and when you pour the glaze on it should act like any other glaze cake! Tadaa! You have a larger one! (it probably won’t be domed shaped but it will still taste great!)

    • Hi Khawla, Yes you can. Ann actually did make a large one of these but you won’t have seen it on the video. Ann suggests using this mousse recipe: https://www.howtocookthat.net/public_html/instagram-cake/ . It is more stable and will hold it’s shape better.

  16. Technically, it’s a Bavarian cream, not creme brulée, but I guess it tastes good either way.

  17. How much gelatin powder will I need for this?

    • Hi Charlotte, You need 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon of gelatin or 20grams.

      • but how much gelatin powder is each sheet?

  18. Hi Ann , Im your big fan and i never miss any of your videos so thank you for your hard work:)) . I’m just wondering that i want to do a white glaze so can I substitute cocoa powder with white chocolate?

  19. HI Ann, Which strength gelatin sheets do you use – does it matter? Thanks for the videos.

    • Hi Karen. It doesn’t matter. The sheets do come in different strengths but they adjust the sheet size so it is equivalent to other versions.

      • but how much gelatin powder do I put instead of each sheet?

  20. Hello Ann,
    This is truly amazing! I, personally think this is your best video yet.
    So, I wanted to tell you that I had never tried baking before besides once a year with my grandmother. That is, until I found your channel. Your amazing creations inspired me. So for a year now, I have watched every single video over and over. I taught myself using your videos as my guide. This truly amazed me as to how I could learn to make such beautiful desserts with just a video, which proves how gifted and talented you are.
    And my mother encouraged me, a thirteen year old, to start a custom cake business. And using all my own recipes and all the skills you taught me, yesterday, I delivered a cake to my second paying customer.
    Si I want to thank you for helping me and guiding me through what looks like and what I hope to be my life long career. Thank you again and never stop being who you are! You are an amazing inspiring lady who encourages people to follow their dreams.
    Thank you so much for everything!
    Blessings to you and your family,
    Sierra
    I don’t have a picture of this customer at the moment, but this is the previous cake:

    • Thanks Sierra, for the fabulous feedback.

      • and all the best with your growing business! We are excited that you are pursuing your dreams.

    • Rating: 5

      WOW! I am 12, and hope to become a baker as I grow older. This comment truly inspires me to continue with baking, as you are not much older as I am, and you are selling cakes. I have not tried many of Ann’s creations, although I am making her meringues right now (they are in they oven), but I do hope to try more. Also, your cake looks FANTASTIC!

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