Darren Purchese and Ian Burch

Presented in 2010

Chocolate turrón, salted caramel, almond

Serves 6

Chocolate sponge

50 g (1¾ oz) egg yolk

240 g (8¾ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

250 g (9 oz) whole eggs

110 g (3¾ oz) egg white

190 g (6¾ oz) plain (all-purpose) flour

30 g (1 oz) cocoa powder

30 g (1 oz) cornflour (cornstarch)

15 g (½ oz) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Chocolate mousse for turrón

700 ml (24 fl oz) thickened (whipping) cream (35% fat)

100 ml (3½ fl oz) full-cream milk (3.5% fat)

60 g (2¼ oz) trimoline

4 vanilla beans, split and seeds scraped

300 g (10½ oz) Chocovic Tarakan chocolate (or other dark chocolate with 70–75% cocoa solids)

130 g (4²/₃ oz) free-range egg yolk

2 gold-strength gelatine leaves

Chocolate spray mix

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) Chocovic Kendari chocolate (or other dark chocolate with 60% cocoa solids)

250 g (9 oz) Mycryo cocoa butter

Salted caramel

300 ml (10½ fl oz) pouring (single) cream (35% fat)

180 g (6¼ oz) liquid glucose

190 g (6¾ oz) sugar

8 g salt

150 g (5½ oz) unsalted butter

180 ml (5¾ fl oz) milk

Almond cream

150 g (5½ oz) blanched whole almonds

15 g (½ oz) roasted blanched whole almonds

30 g (1 oz) sugar

2 g salt

750 ml (24 fl oz) full-cream milk

70 g (2½ oz) Sosa Gelcrem (modified potato starch)

Dark chocolate and almond aero mix

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) Chocovic Tarakan dark chocolate (75% cocoa solids)

50 g (1¾oz) Mycryo cocoa butter

Sosa almond essence, to taste

To assemble

Golden Murray River salt flakes

Chocolate sponge

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F/Gas 4).

Beat the egg yolk with 190 g (6¾ oz) of the sugar, then gradually add the whole eggs. Whisk until full in volume, then remove ready for the next step.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg white with the remaining 50 g (1¾ oz) of the sugar to stiff peaks, then gently fold into the sabayon.

Sieve the flour, cocoa powder and cornflour together and gently fold into the mix until it is all incorporated. Fold through the cooled melted butter. Spread the mixture over 2 baking sheets, approximately 30 cm (12 inches) square and bake for 8–10 minutes or until cooked through.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool naturally. Reserve this sponge for the mousse assembly.

Chocolate mousse for turrón

Line two 30 cm (12 inch) square baking tins or mousse rings with silicone paper and then the previously cooked chocolate sponge and set aside.

Heat 150 ml (5 fl oz) of the cream with the milk, trimoline and the vanilla seeds.

Whisk the remaining cream to three-quarter ribbon stage and refrigerate until needed.

Chop the chocolate into small pieces and place in a large bowl.

Whisk the yolk lightly and pour into the infused cream. Return back to the heat and cook as for custard to 85°C (185°F), then strain over the chocolate.

Place the mixture in a blender along with the soaked and drained gelatine and blend until homogenous and a smooth, shiny cream is formed. Turn the chocolate cream out into a bowl and leave it to cool down to approximately 30–35°C (86–95°F), then gently fold in the whipped cream until you have a shiny mousse. Pour the mousse on top of the sponge in the two prepared tins or rings, level with a spatula and refrigerate until firm.

Turn out the mousse slabs and, using a hot, sharp knife, cut into 60 portions with the dimensions 2 cm x 7.5 cm (¾ × 3 inches). Place the 60 individual portions of mousse into the freezer. Using a melon baller, scoop out a ball of chocolate mousse from one end of each portion of turrón and discard the ball — the cavity will be filled with the salted caramel later. Place the portions of turrón, except 6 servings, back into the freezer (and use as required). Prepare for chocolate spraying.

Chocolate spray mix

Melt the chocolate to 45°C (113°F) and separately melt the cocoa butter to 45–50°C (113–122°F). Combine the two together and strain through a fine chinois. Place the mix into a Wagner 180P paint spray gun and spray the frozen turrón. Place the sprayed items in the fridge to defrost naturally.

Salted caramel

Place the cream into a saucepan and scald.

Place all the other ingredients into an over-sized, heavy-based saucepan and bring to the boil, whisking continuously. Proceed to heat and whisk until 147°C (297°F).

At this point, add the scalded cream and whisk (be careful as the mixture will expand furiously), remove from the heat and cool. Place into a piping bag and reserve at room temperature until ready to use.

Almond cream

Blitz the almonds, sugar, salt and milk in a blender and leave to infuse for a minimum of 8 hours and a maximum of 16 hours. Strain the mix through a muslin cloth (cheesecloth) and place the liquid into a blender. Blend the mix with the Gelcrem for 1 minute on high and reserve in a piping bag until ready to use.

Dark chocolate and almond aero mix

Melt the chocolate and cocoa butter separately to a maximum of 45°C (113°F), then combine the two and add the almond essence to taste. Pour the mixture into a heat-sensitive cream canister. Seal with the lid and charge with four cream-whipping bulbs, vigorously shaking the canister in between each charge. Discharge the mixture into a shallow plastic container and store in the freezer until solid. Break off pieces of the desired shape and size and store in a container at room temperature.

To assemble

Place the sprayed turrón onto each plate and pipe salted caramel into the cavity. Pipe almond cream onto the plate. Sprinkle golden salt onto the caramel and arrange a nice piece of chocolate and almond aero mix on top. Serve.

Every year the Festival seems to get better and better. This is my favourite time of year and it is seen as one of the best organised and most exciting events of its kind in the world. DARREN PURCHESE, 2010

Michael Meredith, Langham Melbourne MasterClass, 2009.