Easy Mint Chocolate Pots
Easy Mint Chocolate Pots are about as easy to put together as any dessert you could mention. Using fresh mint from the garden, they’re absolutely scrumptious and look like you’ve spent hours in the kitchen.
A definite favourite in our house, and once you try these out and see how easy they are and how delicious they are we bet they’re about to become a favourite in your house too. Make a batch of these Easy Mint Chocolate Pots in the morning and your dinner guests will be in for a treat. Pair this with our Steak Filet Salad for a memorable lunch, served with a digestif and they will round off your meal perfectly.
Good news – dark chocolate is actually a superfood! Make sure you use a proper dark chocolate with a minimun of 70% cocoa content and it should not contain any milk or trans-fats. Check out this buyers guide for everything you need to know about dark chocolate.
Sometimes preparing a stunning dessert can mean hours in the kitchen, but not any longer. Whilst there is some preparation with Easy Mint Chocolate Pots the more you try this recipe the easier the preparation becomes, which is possibly how this became a house favourite in the first place.
Easy Mint Chocolate Pots
Equipment
- Electronic digital scales
- Electric Hand Mixer
- Blender
- Piping Bags with medium nozzle optional
Ingredients
For the mint layer
- 50 grams caster sugar [Note 1]
- 28 gram pack of mint or 3-4 large stems from your garden
- 200 ml double cream [1 cup]
For the chocolate layer
- 100 grams dark chocolate, in pieces [3 1/2 ounces] [minimum 70%]
- 3 Tablespoon cold, strong coffee
- 3 Tablespoon brandy we use Armagnac
- 250 gram mascarpone, at room temperature [1 1/4 cups]
- 2 Large egg whites, at room temperature
- 25 gram caster sugar [2 Tablespoons]
- cocoa powder for dusting optional
Instructions
- Gather and weigh your ingredients
For the mint layer
- Put the sugar, 3/4 of the mint and 150 ml [3/4 cup] water in a medium pan. Bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and boil over medium heat for 10 minutes or so, until reduced by two thirds. Remove from the heat, discard the mint and leave to cool.
- Pick and reserve 4 handsome leaves from the remaining mint and set aside for decorating, if you like. Pick the remaining leaves, discard the stalks and whizz in the blender with the cooled sugar syrup until finely chopped. Pour into a large bowl and add the cream. Whisk with the electric hand mixer until soft peaks are formed. Set aside [Note 2]
For the chocolate layer
- Melt the chocolate with the coffee and brandy in a large heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water [don't let the bottom of the bowl touch the water]. Stir occasionally, and remove from the heat just as the mixture is melting. Remove from the heat, stir gently until smooth and leave to cool.
- Using the electric hand mixer, whisk the cooled chocolate mixture and mascarpone until combined. Using clean hand mixer beaters, whisk the egg whites and sugar until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg white into the chocolate mixture.
- Layer the two different mixtures into 4 x 170ml [6 ounce] glasses [Note 3] Chill until ready to serve [Note 4]
- Dust the reserved mint leaves, if using, with the cocoa powder and place one on each serving
- NOTE: this recipe contains raw/partially cooked eggs
