Mango-Yogurt Mousse

 You might be able to tell that I have a strategy forming. During the early stages of this project, I'm trying to get through all the very simple, seasonally agnostic, scaleable recipes so that down the road I'll really be able to focus my attention on the larger feats (croquembouche!!). One of the "simple" recipes I made over the weekend was the Mango-Yogurt Mousse from What's for Dessert. Claire says she was inspired by the flavors of a mango lassi, and I share her sentiment that it's one of the best drinks ever created. Again, this isn't really a recipe that I would immediately be drawn to making, but that's sort of the point of this project. I have to make everything.

While making this recipe, I realized that I don't actually know what exactly a mousse is. I know it's something airy and whipped and light, but not exactly how it's made or what ingredients it uses as its base. Quick research tells me it typically uses beaten egg whites or whipped cream, but I don't think this is a requirement - I know there's a famous two-ingredient chocolate mousse recipe out there that just uses chocolate and water. This particular recipe is made by making a curd using egg yolks, citrus juice, and some frozen mango, thickening it with gelatin, and folding that with whipped cream and a little bit of yogurt. Gelatin was never really a thing in my family growing up - my mom especially does not like marshmallows (s'mores are an exception), and I learned in second grade from one of my Jewish friends that gelatin was made out of pig's feet, which turned me off of it for quite some time. However, I've recently begun to rediscover gelatin and appreciate its magic a little more. Some of that might come from my deep fascination with extremely kitschy and campy retro-style desserts, many of which utilize the ingredient, but I also think it comes from this rebellious instinct deep inside of me of embracing something that everybody around me hates and that I've been told all my life is uncool.

Claire gives this recipe a "moderate" difficulty rating. While it is somewhat step-y, I don't think it's fussy at all, and especially if you're someone who "cooks but doesn't bake", I'd probably rate this as more easy than not. You do need a blender - my birthday present food processor has a purée setting, so I used that -  and you'll need to chill the mousse for a couple of hours, but other than that, it's simple enough to make without feeling like a project.

I think I wanted to like this dessert more than I actually did. Don't get me wrong, it was yummy, and I'd be happy if someone served me it for dessert, but I just felt like it wasn't totally for me. My biggest criticism is that the whipped cream sort of diluted the flavor of the mango curd, which actually tasted really lovely. It kinda just felt like eating whipped cream, which I know is some people's idea of a dream dessert, but I'd prefer something that feels a little more substantial. Some of the cream-less curd does get spooned on top of the mousse portions, which I think added a much- needed pop of intensity and freshness - I'm not sure if the mousse would totally work without it. To be honest, I couldn't taste the yogurt that much. There's also (surprise) cardamom in this recipe. I'm not keeping an official tally of how many times Claire calls for cardamom (perhaps I should, that would be entertaining), but this has got to be at least the third time so far. No, I couldn't really taste it. Maybe I just have a really bad palate. That being said, I do like the concept of this dessert. I think if I were to improve upon it, I would increase the yogurt-to-cream ratio and in turn increase the curd-to-yogurt-and-cream ratio.

Verdict: 7/10

I'm not sure if I'm rating things on the most accurate scale, to be totally honest. Like, sure, this mousse was good, but I kind of feel like I just described it as being a lot less than something I would warrant a "7". For now, I'll stick to my gut ratings, but I reserve the right to change them if I decide to shift the "window" in a sense. Lol.