White Forest Verrines: White is beautiful

I was looking at the cookbook and suddenly I saw a word: dark cherry ^^, and my mind started to thinking about something to do with it, it will be my next key ingredient .

I always have many cans of dark cherry in heavy syrup in my cupboard, because my niece love to eat it. So, I'm ready!
When thinking about dark cherry, the black forest image is automatically turn on my head, oh, I didn't want to make it now. But it's not bad to think about it because it became the base idea for this verrines. Rather than using dark chocolate with cherry and Kirsch I change it into white chocolate instead. I want to make the texture soft but with a strong taste. Start with soft white chocolate mousse, as the name suggests, it melts quickly and gives you a sense of softness, but the taste is not, because of Kirsch, it's quite strong. Anyway, it's your choice, you can use a lot or less of the Kirsch depends on your taste. I soaked the cherries in Kirsch overnight to pack them with the liqueur, and use the water that left from soaking to sprinkle over the cake too, so you can see that there are a lot of Kirsch in this Verrines ^^.
One point for this Verrines is I bake the chocolate sponge in small pan, because I don't want to throw away the cake (using larger pan, you will get more waste), so you will get 9 perfect rounds and you need to cut 3 of them from the side of the cake (6 half rounds). Use this half won't effect the look of the verrines, but I suggest use it inside of the verrines not the top, as it easier to hide the seal. 
I always love this size of the glass, it's not too much for one person and for this soft Verrines you will finish it before you realize, haha. (My mom, she said that she wanted to eat only half of it but when she start she just couldn't stop eating it).

White Forest Verrins

Makes 6 (5.5cmx 8.5cm) 

Kirsch soaked Cherries

1can ................... Dark cherries in heavy syrup 

40ml ................... Kirsch

Chocolate sponge

65g .................... Eggs

33g .................... Superfine sugar

........................... A dash of salt

10g .................... Cake flour

6g ...................... Cocoa powder

16g .................... Corn flour

 White chocolate mousse

150g .................. White chocolate, chopped

125ml ................ Whipping cream (A)

1/2 ...................... Gelatin leaf (or 1g)

15ml .................... Kirsch

1/2tsp .................. Vanilla bean paste 

125ml ................ Whipping cream (B)

1tsp ................... Icing sugar

Vanilla creme Chantilly

150g .................. Whipping cream

15g .................... Icing sugar

1/8tsp ............... Vanilla bean paste 

.......................... Creme de cocoa for sprinkle over the cake

.......................... Edible gold leaf for decorating

Drain the cherries and use paper towel to remove the syrup (as much as possible).

Put the cherries in a bowl and pour Kirsch into the bowl, cover and let it marinade for 6 hours or overnight.  

 Make the chocolate sponge cake:

  

Preheat the oven to 200°C Line 25x25cm pan with paper.
Beat the egg and salt until mix and lighter in color, gradually add the sugar into the egg and beat until ribbon stage (you can see that you can lift the beater and make the letter 8).

  

Sift the cocoa powder, flour and corn flour together. Put the flour mixture into the egg mixture (divide the mixture into 3 parts) and fold gently until combine.

Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 7 minutes.

Let the cake cool completely, then cut into 12 rounds (because I don't you want to bake more than you need, you will get 9 perfect rounds and the rest of them you have to cut 6 half rounds.)

Make the white chocolate mousse:

  

Bloom the gelatin in the cold water.

  

Pour the whipping cream (A) into the pan and bring to boil, when the whipping cream boil, pour the chocolate into the pan and whisk to combine.

When all the chocolate melt, put the gelatin into the chocolate mixture, stir to combine, mix in the kirsch and vanilla bean paste. Let it cool completely.

Whip the whipping cream (B) until soft peak formed. 

Put 1/3 of the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture, whisk gently to combine.

Pour the chocolate mixture back into the whipped cream and fold to combine.

Assemble:

 Sprinkle 6 rounds of the cake with creme de cocoa.
Pipe the white chocolate mousse into the glass, refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Place the cake (that had been sprinkled with creme de cocoa) over the mousse, and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Remove the cherries from the bowl and place them over the cake (you will need 4 per one glass), and pipe the white chocolate mousse over the cherries.

Place another piece of cake over the mousse, and sprinkle with the water from the cherry bowl (you will get both cherry flavor and kirsch from this). Cover and refrigerate for 6 hours to overnight.
Before serving, make Vanilla creme Chantilly by whipping all the ingredients together until firm peak form.
Pipe the Vanilla creme Chantilly over the cake and decorate with cherry and edible gold leaf.

White Forest Verrines: White is beautiful