"Make It!" Monday: Chocolate Mousse and the Sunday Night Remix

Did someone say chocolate mousse???  

Like Johnnie at the possibility of swatting one of his 80 lb. fur siblings, I have always perked up similarly over the years (whether mired in teen angst or work overload, if not from underneath a couch) whenever the opportunity to eat chocolate mousse has come my way.  Despite hearing how easy raw and/or vegan mousse prep was, especially with the acquisition of a Vitamix, I had never made it myself.  Thus, "Make It!" Monday was born! 

I confess -- I just went to the Google for the first recipe that came up.  I made a half batch of this Giada DeLaurentis recipe for "Chocolate Avocado Mousse." Small variations included using light agave, which I added sparingly; coconut milk -- yes! Part II of "What one can of coconut milk can do for you!"; and, of course, vegan chocolate chips!  Perhaps because of light agave use, the final product had more of the coffee/tart note than sweet, but I liked that, especially because my addition of pine nuts and chocolate chips provided just enough extra sweetness.  And, to be clear, no --  Johnnie was not a taste tester.  Literally, this mousse is so rich that the serving below is about 2 T (if that!), and I had a hard time finishing it.  Just a spoonful will satisfy the mousse craving; consequently, the half batch provides four 3-4 oz. servings, or approximately 16 spoons.  I wonder how J. Alfred Prufrock's "Love Song" would have turned out if he had measured life in mousse spoons, instead of coffee.

I heart you, tiny jam jars.

Toasted pine nuts should go in everything.

In addition to the mousse, I also remixed last night's dinner into cannelloni.  If you don't have time for navels, this prep is super quick.  

Sweet Potato Cannelloni 

(all ingredients from Sweet Potato Tortellini)

Makes 1 hearty serving

6-9 T. sweet potato filling

1 T.   roasted pine nuts 

3 T.   chopped tomatoes

2 T.   pesto
3 brown rice wrappers
S 'n P

1. Prepare wrappers one at time according to directions.
2. Spoon filling  across 3-4 in. swath in center  of wrapper; fold one side of wrapper, tucking filling.  
    Fold in sides.  Roll securely. Repeat with other two wrappers.
3. Top with pesto, tomatoes, pine nuts, and S 'n P to taste.

* Either warm ingredients prior or, as I did, just microwave once prepared for 40 seconds.

Light, but filling!

Tomorrow concludes our three part series on "What one can of coconut milk can do for you!"and will commence (Un)Take Out Tuesday.  But, to close this wonderful long weekend, I offer some of the lines that particularly struck me from Oriah Mountain Dreamer's poem, "The Invitation," which the instructor infused throughout this morning's special two-hour, heart-opening, yoga practice:

"It doesn't interest me how old you are

I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool

for love

for your dreams

for the adventure of being alive."