Julia Jumper doesn’t see the culinary world in black and white, especially when it comes to Oreo cookies. The pastry chef who joined Greensburg (Pa.) Country Club this past summer harvested her prior experience working on a cruise ship in Hawaii to enhance one of her favorite recipes.
“I got to experiment with ube, a purple sweet potato, and found that it goes really well with Oreo mousse cake and gives it a vibrant color,” she says.
Having made this dessert for the past three years, Jumper brought it to the country club dining scene—and members have been loving it ever since.
Jumper’s traditional recipe is comprised of an Oreo crust, a milk chocolate mousse layer and a white chocolate layer. She typically incorporates different flavors with the white chocolate component, often using mint. But now, with this unusual addition, she has been able to alter her recipe with a new twist.
“One of my favorite things to do is take a familiar component, like Oreos, that people love, and turn it into something creative they might not have thought of before,” she says.
To perfect her creation, Jumper has learned that a good-quality white chocolate makes all the difference, noting that this ingredient can be particularly “finicky” to work with. And when plating her cake, she customizes her ganache to match the appropriate flavor.
