Chocolate Hazelnut Mascarpone Cups

Max looked at the grainy watery lumps and jokingly asked if I was serving sweet chocolate butter for dessert.

Cold mascarpone straight from the fridge into the mixer at high speed. The friction from the blades shocked the cold fat molecules and they separated into butter lumps instead of blending into anything smooth.

Mascarpone is full of delicate butterfats that behave completely differently at room temperature than they do cold. My grandmother never let anyone touch the tub until it was soft as velvet on the counter. Soft mascarpone yields to the mixer gently. Cold mascarpone fights it and loses, breaking into a grainy mess that no amount of additional mixing can fix.

Even at room temperature the mixing has to be short. Sixty seconds on low speed just until the mascarpone and hazelnut spread come together into one uniform paste. Any longer and the fats start to separate again from overworking.

The folding technique for the whipped cream follows my grandmother’s same rule from other mousse recipes. Down through the center, sweep around the bottom, fold over the top with a feather-light touch. Stop the moment the white streaks disappear.

Dark crunchy Oreo floor. Velvety chocolate hazelnut mascarpone mousse. Pillowy whipped cream and chocolate curls on top.

The room temperature rule and the sixty-second mixing limit are both in the full recipe at https://auntymeals.com/chocolate-hazelnut-mascarpone-cups/

[embed]15 Minute Easy Chocolate Hazelnut Mascarpone Cups Recipe Learn how to make Easy Chocolate Hazelnut Mascarpone Cups in just 15 minutes with rich hazelnut cream, crunchy Oreo…auntymeals.com