Cucumber Mousse Parcels for ProlificWillyBreeder...
½ medium cucumber, peeled, deseeded and cut into tiny dice
1tsp salt
1 tbls tarragon, or wine vinegar
3 sheets leaf gelatine
3 tbsp water, hot
150 ml whipping cream
250g cream cheese
1½ tspchives, fresh, chopped
3 spring onions, finely chopped
Line 4 ramekins or dariole moulds with lightly oiled clingfilm and then line these with strips of smoked salmon, leaving no gaps. Make sure you have some hanging over to cover the bottom.
Mix the cucumber, salt and vinegar together in a bowl. Then turn the mixture into a colander, put a heavy plate on top and leave for an hour at least. Remove the plate and press the cucumber with a clean cloth to get the last of the liquid away.
Dissolve the gelatine in hot water and whisk in the cream gradually until the mixture is smooth and very thick, but not stiff. Beat in the cream cheese.
Stir in the cucumber. Taste the mixture and add a little more vinegar and salt if necessary, but be careful to overdo neither. Sometimes a couple of pinches of caster sugar will help to bring out the flavour; this depends on how good the cucumber was to start with.
Add a good grinding of black pepper and the chopped chives and spring onion.
Spoon the mixture into the prepared mould, cover the mousse with the overhanging smoked salmon and leave overnight in the refrigerator to set.
Turn out carefully on to plates and remove the clingfilm.
This mousse recipe can easily be doubled and quadrupled, Also, for canapés, make bitesized balls of the mousse mixture and wrap a bit of salmon round, securing with a tied chive.