The Docent's 50th Anniversary Gala
The Art Institute of Chicago decided to throw a gala for their docent's 50th year and I was asked to create a golden dessert for their golden anniversary. I mulled it over for a very long time before I came up with this: Valrhona Manjari mousse with passion fruit gelee (inside), olive oil feuilletine layer between the mousse and chocolate cake, "golden" chocolate sauce and "golden" chocolate decor, and "golden" honey. Did I mention that I had to make 340 of these desserts? That it would be featured in the restaurant upstairs? So I met with Chef M and explained my flavor profiles and what direction I was going in. She told me that the passion fruit would not be used, as they only served seasonal items in the restaurant. I was mostly using the passion fruit because it was golden in color, as well as for an acidic balance to the rich dark chocolate. Also, you really don't find a lot of yellow-hued fruits in the fall. So, we decided to use caped go