White Mountain Chocolate Cupcakes - Frosting

Pair with any chocolate cupcake.

Seven-Minute Frosting

1 1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup water
3 large egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract

Put the sugar, waer, egg whites, and cream of tartar in a heatproof bowl or the top of a double broiler with at least 2-quart capacity and beat with a handheld electric mixer on high speed until opaque, white, and foamy, about 1 minute. Put the bowl over, but not touching, a saucepan of barely simmering water or the bottom of the double broiler. The top container should sit firmly over the pan of hot water; be sure to keep the cord of the elecric mixer away from the burner. Beat on high speed until the frosting forms a soft peeak that stands straigh up if you stop the beaters and lift them up, about 7 minutes. The frosting should regiser 160 F on a thermometer. Remove the container of frosting from the water, add the vanilla and almond exracts, and continue beating for 2 minutes to further thicken the frosting.

Use a thin metal spatula to spread the thick layer of frosting, about 1/2 cup, over the top of each cupcake, dipping the spatula gently into the frosting to make swirls. Serve the cupcakes, or carefully cover them and refrigerate. Let sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes before serving.

From Cupcakes! by, Elinor Klivans.

White Chocolate Tiramisu Trifle with Spiced Pears

To show off layers, use a 12-cup trifle dish, a footed glass bowl measuring about 8-inches across and 5-inches deep.

Spiced Pears
1 750-ml bottle dry white wine
2 cups pear juice or pear nectar
1 1 /4 cups sugar
12 whole green cardamom pods, crushed in resealable plastic bag with mallet
4 1-inch diameter rounds peeled fresh ginger (each about 1/8 inch thick)
2 cinnamon sticks, broken in half
5 large firm but ripe Anjou pears (3 to 3 1/4 pounds), peeled

White Mascapone Mousse
7 oz high-quality white chocolate (such as Lindt or Perugina), finely chopped
1/2 cup poire Williams (clear pear brandy)
1/4 cup water
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 8- to 8.8 oz container mascorpone cheese*
1 cup chilled heavy whipping cream

Trifle Assembly
3 3-oz packages soft ladyfingers**, separated
2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup minced crystallized ginger
White chocolate curls
1 Tbs powdered sugar

Spiced Pears
Combine first 6 ingredients in large saucepan. Stir over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves. Add pears and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer with knife, about 35 minutes. Transfer liquid with pears to large bowl and refridgerate until cold, about 3 hours.
Using slotted spoon, transfer pears to plate. Boil poaching liquid in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat until slightly thickened and reduced to generous 1 1/2 cups, about 15 minutes. Strain into 2-cups measuring cup; discard spices in strainer. Cool. Cover and chill pears and pear syrup until cold.

Mousse
Combine white chocolate, pear brandy, and 1/4 cup water in top of double
boiler set over simmering water. Stir until smooth (mixture will be very liquidy). Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean, discard bean. Transfer white chocolate mixture to large bowl; gradually add mascarpone, whisking until mixture is smooth. Cool mascarpone mixture until barely lukewarm.
Using electric mixer, beat 1 cup cream in medium bowl until peaks form. Fold whipped cream into mascarpone mixture in 4 additions. Cover and chill white chocolate mousse until set, about 3 hours.
do ahead Pears and mousse can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.

Trifle Assembly
Cut pears lengthwise into 1/4-inch thick slices.
Arrange ladyfingers, rounded sides down, in single layer in bottom of 12-cup trifle dish (about 8 inches in diameter and 5 inches deep), covering bottom completely (using about 15 ladyfingers). Drizzle 5 Tbs pear syrup evenly over ladyfingers, making layer slightly thicker around outer edges of dish to allow mousse to be more visible (center of mousse layer will be thin). Starting at single layer with curved edges against sides of dish atop mousse, covering completely. Repeat layering of ladyfingers, syrup, mousse, and pears 2 more times. Cover with fourth layer of ladyfingers (some ladyfingers and pear slices may be left over). Drizzle ladyfingers evenly with 5 Tbs syrup.
do ahead Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate trifle and remaining pear syrup separately.
Using electric mixer, beat 2 cups whipping cream in large bowl until soft peaks form. Add 1/4 cup pear syrup and beat until stiff peaks form. Working in batches, transfer cream to large pastry bag with large star tip. Pipe rosettes all over top of trifle, mounding slightly in center. Sprinkle with crystallized ginger. Garnish with chocolate curls.
do ahead Can be made 6 hours ahead. Keep refrigerated.
Sift powdered sugar over trifle just before serving.
*Mascarpone is an Italian cream cheese; sold at many supermarkets and at Italian markets.
**Available in the bakery or bread section of some supermarkets and at speciatly food stores.
test-kitchen tip To make chocolate curls, place one 3/4-oz bar of high-quality chocolate (such as Lindt or Perugina) on a plate and microwave on high at 5-second intervals just until slightly softened, but not hot or beginning to melt. Using vegetable peeler and starting at one long edge of the chocolate bar, shave white chocolate into curls. If the shaved chocolate breaks into small shards, it's not soft enough, so place in microwave again for a few seconds. If the chocolate becomes too soft, let it stand at room temperature or chill brifely until it firms up a bit.

Bon Appetit, December 2007.