DB:Maple mousse in an edible container-Swan Cream Puff

When I was a kid, I was enthralled by an animated version of the ballet Swan Lake. The story of a princess turned into a swan by day as a result of a curse, who regains her human form only at night, left a lasting impression. As did Tchaikovsky's soulful score (yes I had look that up, and just learnt he also composed The Nutcracker Suite-which I know as being the cause for my life long fear of rats :) Then of course, there is the other ever popular children's tale of the ugly duckling who turns into a swan, that fueled the hope of every kid who has known pimples, braces or dorky glasses that turned dark with the sun ( me)

My first ever Daring Bakers challenge- the Joconde that I over baked so it cracked and leaked was definitely the ugly duckling. This time the challenge was to create an edible container for some wonderful Maple mousse, and I decided that it had to be a swan!

A cream puff swan to be more exact, filled with dreamy maple mousse and topped with whipped maple cream!I loved the sensation of the cold creamy mousse oozing out of the warm crisp shell when you bit into it! 

I also made two variations -Bailey's Maple mousse and also some swans or (rather swan parts) were filled with Cardamom Maple mousse ( because I cannot resist adding cardamom into everything!) I even considered adding some cocoa or dipping the swan shaped puffs into dark chocolate to make a Black Swan and maybe position the two together- for a swan fight?! Hmm yes, it's probably best that I didn't!

Both the mousse and the cream puffs were really easy to make and I'm so happy that something so simple could look and taste so great, and make me look like some sort of pastry genius! I think I might have gone a little overboard though when I decided to have my puff swan swim in a lake of Maple Syrup with bacon crumbles on the side!