Making of Chocolate Charlotte

Today we have a dinner invitation. I spent the whole morning yesterday thinking about what would be good to prepare, as I did not want to buy anything from the supermarket. Since we are moving, I wanted to clean out the fridge without overstuffing it. After a lot of thought, I concluded that a charlotte might be best. I learned this recipe from a friend.

A charlotte is any dessert that’s molded into a container lined with sponge fingers or boudoir biscuits (purchased at a bakery or supermarket). It’s normally easy to prepare and hardly takes 15 minutes.

Make the syrup by mixing equal amounts of sugar and water, and flavor it with the same amount of rum or brandy to taste.

First, line the bottom as well as the sides of a container with clean wrap and then with sponge fingers soaked in the sugary alcoholic syrup. Now layer it alternately with chocolate mousse and sponge fingers in a way that the top layer should be covered with sponge fingers. Then cover it with clean wrap tightly and put on the lid. Leave it to chill for more than 12 hours.

To serve, invert the dish onto a serving plate and unmold the charlotte. Carefully remove the plastic wrap. (Variations can be made using vanilla mousse and chocolate mousse alternately). While serving, dust with icing sugar and decorate with fruits, cold custard, or whipped cream.

We had our dinner at a Thai restaurant where we enjoyed duck in red curry coconut sauce, red curry chicken, and shrimps in green curry basil sauce. What gives Thai food its distinctive character is a harmony of tastes - sour, salty, hot, and aromatic. Mmmm…delicious!