A Dessert With A Twist #FoodVentures

That I am a foodie is no secret really. I love food and I love to try new cuisines and dishes. My preferences though generally veer toward savoury dishes. I enjoy desserts in a limited quantity, in small doses and spread across time. For me, a buffet with a great salad spread is better than one with a big dessert table. You get the drift? Am not really into desserts. And yet, the adventurous foodie in me is always ready to try out a new dessert! Isn’t that such a dichotomy?

Oh well, I am a bundle of contradictions J Give me a dessert saying it is different and I will surely jump at it. I recollect an incident that happened when we were at a Mediterranean themed restaurant in Bandra, Mumbai. I was invited to the chef’s table and the man spared no expense at serving us – a group of bloggers, his best fare! Since the chef was Italian, we were all looking forward to the Tiramisu. His Tiramisu was highly recommended by a fellow blogger and if you know me, you probably know that I love coffee! In fact Tiramisu is one of those desserts that I can have anytime. Anyway, so we were excited about it and waiting to taste what an authentic Italian Tiramisu tastes like. Imagine our surprise when the chef brings out the dessert and tells us that he is serving us a chocolate mousse.

A collective groan went around the table. I kid you not. We were visibly disappointed. The chef looked at us and smiled. “This chocolate mousse is unlike anything you would have ever tasted”, said the man looking part smug and part confident. “Trust me, this is better than the Tiramisu” he concluded giving us meaningful glances. Well, when a man who once ran a Michelin star restaurant tells you that, you sit up and listen. The chef looked around at the table at the transformed faces. He could see that he had our attention now and proceeded to tell us why this chocolate mousse was unique. “Not only does the chocolate used in this mousse come from the best cocoa beans, the recipe has my own twist to it. I am serving this bitter sweet double chocolate mousse with a strawberry chilli jam that I made myself.”

Now we all know what a great but clichéd combination Chocolate and Strawberries are. But have we ever heard of Chocolate, Strawberry and Chilli together? Ever heard that combination? A lifetime of watching cookery and food shows and I had never ever heard of that pairing. “It is my own spin on a classic dessert. Enjoy!!!”

The dessert was served in martini glasses and once I took a bite of that rich yet light mousse, I was in chocolate heaven. Is there such a thing as chocolate heaven? I bet there is. I have been there! I dug deeper into the glass till the spoon made contact with the gooey strawberry chilli jam. I took a small tentative bite and the first taste was that of a sweet strawberry flavoured jam. And then… came the heat. It started out mild and then burst on my tongue as the chilli made deeper contact with the taste buds. I quickly scooped some more mousse and enjoyed the dance of sweet, tangy, bitter and hot flavours playing out together in perfect harmony!

Who knew it was possible to taste so many flavours in one go? But our Italian chef made it work. He truly created and helped us experience a Dessert with a Twist!

What about you guys? Have you tasted any Desserts with a Twist? If you have, then do check out Vir Sanghvi and Vikas Khanna’s food adventures. In fact, you could share some of your own #Foodventures and stand a chance to meet these two fantastic food loving gentlemen!

In the meantime, here is a video of Vikas Khanna talking about a Dessert with a Twist that he created!

Check out My Previous #FoodVenture about Sweet and Spicy