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Dessert

Chocolate Charlotte Russe

A chilled chocolate mousse layered with sponge cake strips.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 8 ingredients
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Why it works: Cream and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓

Chocolate Charlotte Russe

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the custard base

  1. Soak the gelatine in cold water to cover.

  2. Gradually mix the grated chocolate into 1 pint of cream.

  3. Add the soaked gelatine.

  4. Heat in a double boiler until dissolved, stirring constantly.

  5. Remove from heat.

Thicken and finish

  1. Cool while beating the egg yolks and whites until very light.

  2. Stir the beaten eggs into the chocolate mixture.

  3. Add the powdered sugar.

  4. Return to the double boiler until the eggs are set.

  5. Remove from heat.

  6. Fold in the whipped cream until well combined.

  7. Line molds with strips of sponge cake.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together43,450 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).

  2. Chocolate + creamtop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together5,466 recipes

    Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).

  3. Chocolate + sugartop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,404 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  4. Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together122,807 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  5. Chocolate + eggtop 24% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together11,448 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-heptenal (green).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Gelatine
Sets the chilled mixture so it holds its shape when unmolded.
Egg yolks
Enrich the custard and thicken it when gently heated.
Egg whites
Beaten to a light foam, adding airiness to the set mousse.
Cream
Adds richness and a smooth, moist texture.
Grated chocolate
Provides the main flavour and richness of the dessert.
Whipped cream
Folded in at the end to lighten the texture.

The step that matters

Returning the custard to the double boiler. Eggs thicken as they heat but scramble above about 170°F. Heat gently and stir constantly so the mixture sets smooth rather than curdled.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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