White Chocolate Mousse Dome with Strawberries and Walnut Praline

I love small dome shaped cakes, they just look quaint and special. These cakes contain a sponge base with white chocolate mousse and strawberries covered in a dark chocolate shell. I originally wanted more of a glaze than a shell over the top but they still turned out wonderful. The walnut praline on the top adds a sweet little crunch and was so simple to make.

One day I will invest in a 'hemisphere' cake tin to make perfectly round dome cakes, but for now I make do with small pinch bowls that are almost completely round. Feel free to make your own sponge too but I found one marked down at the supermarket so used that instead. These little domes are quite appealing and will impress dinner guests but they are so easy to make and can be made ahead of time.

White Chocolate Mousse Dome with Strawberries and Walnut Praline

Adapted from Taste.com

What you will need

1 sponge cake
About 12 strawberries
200g dark chocolate
1 tbsp olive oil

For the mousse
180g white chocolate
300ml thickened cream
1 tsp gelatine powder
3 eggs, separated

For the Praline
1 cup crushed walnuts
1/2 cup sugar

What you will need to do

Using the pinch bowls as a guide, cut out six rounds of sponge cake at about 15mm thickness and set aside.

Prepare 6 small pinch bowls by lining them with glad wrap.

To prepare the mousse, melt the white chocolate and cream over a double boiler until the chocolate has melted. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly. Place 1 tbsp of boiling water in a small heatproof bowl and add the gelatine. Bring a small saucepan of water to the boil (I used the same one from melting the chocolate) then take off the heat. Sit the bowl of gelatine in the saucepan until the gelatine dissolves.

Stir the gelatine and egg yolks into the cream and chocolate mixture then refrigerate until slightly thickened. In another bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold into the cream mixture until evenly combined. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pinch bowls and divide evenly amongst them. Place in the fridge. Cut the strawberries into halves and remove the tops. Take the bowls out of the fridge and press in four halves into each one.

Take the sponge cake rounds and place into each bowl. Press down gently until you can feel that the sponge is touching the mousse. Wrap any excess plastic wrap over the sponge to secure firmly. Place in the freezer for a couple of hours.

Melt the dark chocolate in a double boiler and add the olive oil. Remove the bowls from the freezer and tip upside down. Carefully remove the mousse cakes and take away the plastic wrap. Sit on a wire rack over a baking tray.

Carefully pour the dark chocolate over the mousse working quickly one at a time to try and cover the whole dome before the chocolate sets. Place domes back into the fridge.

To make the walnut praline, place the sugar in a small saucepan over low heat. Line a baking tray with grease proof paper and spread the walnuts out over it. When the sugar is melted and turning a caramel colour, remove from the heat and pour over the walnuts. BE CAREFUL IT WILL BE SUPER HOT! Leave the walnuts to sit until the sugar has hardened. Break the praline up using a food processor or just whacking it with something hard (I used rolling pin).

Remove the domes from the fridge and top with a small amount of praline. If they don't stick well, melt the tops a little with a blowtorch then add the praline. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.