The Louis XV or “Louis Quinze” – Alain Ducasse

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The Louis XV is the iconic signature dish of Alain Ducasse’s three-star Michelin restaurant in Monte-Carlo.

For The Hazelnut Dacquois:

  • 170 GR egg whites
  • 50 GR caster sugar
  • 120 GR icing sugar
  • 100 GR hazelnuts
  • 25 GR plain flour, sifted

For The Feuilletine Praline Layer:

  • 160 GR praline paste
  • 40 GR white chocolate couverture
  • 80 GR feuilletine

For The Chocolate Mousse:

  • 75 GR egg yolks
  • 30 GR water
  • 25 GR caster sugar
  • 10 GR glucose syrup or light corn syrup
  • 135 GR dark chocolate couverture (70%)
  • 270 GR double cream

For The Chocolate Glaze:

  • 150 GR dark couverture chocolate (70%)
  • 170 ML double cream
  • 90 GR caster sugar
  • 100 ML water
  • 35 GR cocoa powder

To Serve:

  • 8 hazelnuts (approx 25g)
  • Edible gold leaf sheets

Equipment:

  • 8 tainless steel pastry ring 8cm
  • Blowtorch
  • Sugar thermometer

To Make The Dacquois:

  1. Dehydrate the hazelnuts in the oven at 150°C for 15 minutes.
  2. Allow the hazelnuts to cool and then blitz them into a powder in a food processor. Be careful not to over blend the hazelnuts or they will turn into a paste.
  3. Turn the oven up to 180°C and cover a baking tray in baking paper.
  4. Whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks and add the caster sugar to stabilise them.
  5. Sieve together the icing sugar, hazelnut powder and the flour.
  6. Incorporate the meringue into the powders gently, using a spatula.
  7. Pipe the dacquois on the baking paper so you have a whole baking tray of dacquois.
  8. Cook at 180°C for 12-15 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack.
  9. To make the praline-feuilletine layer
  10. Melt the white chocolate couverture in a bain marie. Add the feuilletine and praline paste to the melted white chocolate. Mix well.
  11. Using a teaspoon, spread a thin layer of the mixture onto the dacquois base inside the mousse rings.When cool, use mousse rings to cut out shapes to form the base of the Louis XV dessert.

To Make The Praline-Feuilletine Layer:

  1. Melt the white chocolate couverture in a bain marie. Add the feuilletine and praline paste to the melted white chocolate. Mix well.
  2. Using a teaspoon, spread a thin layer of the mixture onto the dacquois base inside the mousse rings.

To Make The Chocolate Mousse:

  1. Make a sugar syrup. Add the water, sugar and corn syrup to a pan, and bring to the boil. Leave to one side to cool.
  2. Place the egg yolks and the cooled syrup in a stand mixer bowl. Heat over the hob on a low flame until the mixture reaches 55°C, whisking constantly.
  3. Transfer to the stand mixer and whisk until the mixture cools and begins to take on a ‘ribbon consistency.’
  4. Melt the chocolate in a bain marie, and gently stir into the fluffy egg and sugar mixture.
  5. In a separate bowl whisk the cream into medium peaks and fold it in.
  6. Spoon into the mousse rings, and scrape across the surface to flatten with a metal spatula. Place in the freezer.

To Make The Chocolate Glaze:

  1. Before making the chocolate glaze remove the mousse rings from the mousse. First transfer the mousse rings to a cooling rack. Use a chef’s blowtorch around the edges until you can pull off the mousse ring leaving the mousse intact. Return to the freezer.
  2. To make the chocolate glaze, place the chocolate in a mixing bowl. Bring approximately 2/3 of the cream to the boil and pour over the chocolate. Mix well, until well incorporated. This is a ganache.
  3. Bring the remaining 1/3 of the cream to the boil with the water and the sugar. Add the cocoa powder and return to the boil. Pour over the ganache.
  4. The glaze should be liquid and runny. If it’s too thick it will set too thick. If this is the case just gently heat it over a bain marie to make it less viscous.
  5. Remove the chocolate mousse from the freezer, and place the cooling rack over a roasting tin, to catch any glaze that drips through. Pour the glaze over the frozen chocolate mousse making sure to cover all sides. Place in the fridge for at least 1 hour. Any glaze that has dripped through can be collected, warmed and used again the next day if needed.

To Serve:

  1. Transfer the Louis XV from the cooling rack to a plate, using a spatula.
  2. Top with a hazelnut and apply a little gold leaf using chef’s plating tweezers.

Yields 8 servings.

https://www.souschef.co.uk/blogs/the-bureau-of-taste/louis-xv-dessert-recipe