Easy Chocolate Mousse Recipe

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Chocolate Mousse may well be the ultimate chocolate fix! Rich and creamy, yet light and fluffy, one pot is satisfying but always leaves me wanting more…….

This is a classic chocolate mousse made the proper French way, as served in fine dining restaurants. Less cream, more chocolate, a more intense chocolate flavour and a beautiful creamy mouth feel.

Chocolate Mousse Recipe:

Light and airy yet rich, this is a Chocolate Mousse made the classic French way, as served in fine dining restaurants. Less cream, richer mouth feel, true chocolate flavour. It’s actually quite straight forward to make!

Raw eggs note: required to make real chocolate mousse. It is not possible to achieve the same result without using eggs, despite what other recipes promise – and I’ve tried many. It will either be denser, or be like eating whipped cream, or have a weird jelly like texture more like pana cotta. Read in post for more information. Note: raw eggs not advisable for pregnant women or babies to consume.

Prep Time: 20 mins

 Servings: 4 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 3 eggs (~55g/2 oz each)
  • 125g / 4.5 oz dark cooking chocolate , bittersweet / 70% cocoa (Note 1)
  • 10g / 0.3 oz unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup cream , full fat (Note 2)
  • 3 tbsp caster sugar (superfine white sugar)
Decorations:
  • More whipped cream
  • Chocolate shavings (Note 3)
INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. For reliable results, work at a steady pace so your whipped egg whites and cream do not get too warm!
  2. Separate eggs and yolks while eggs are cold. Place whites in a large bowl and yolks in a small bowl. Leave whites while you prepare other ingredients. (Note 4)
  3. Yolks: Whisk yolks until uniform.
  4. Melt chocolate and butter: Break chocolate into pieces and place in a microwave-proof bowl with the butter. Melt in the microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring in between, until smooth. (Stir in optional flavourings at this point, but read Note 6 first). Set aside to cool slightly while you proceed with other steps.
  5. Whip cream: Beat cream until stiff peaks form, being careful not to over-whip.
  6. Whip whites: Add sugar. Beat whites until firm peaks form ( Note 5)
Fold together all ingredients:
  1. Fold egg yolks into cream using a rubber spatula – 8 folds max. Some streaks is fine.
  2. Check chocolate temperature: The chocolate should still be runny but warm (min 35C / 95F; ideal 40C / 104F). If too cool or thick, microwave in burst of 5 seconds at a time until runny.
  3. Pour chocolate into cream yolk mixture. Fold through – 8 folds max. Some streaks here are ok.
  4. Add 1/4 of beaten egg whites into chocolate mixture. Fold through until incorporated – “smear” the spatular across surface to blend white lumps in – aim for 10 folds.
  5. Pour chocolate mixture into egg whites. Fold through until incorporated and no more white lumps remain – aim for 12 folds max, but ensure there are no obvious egg white patches.
  6. Divide mixture between 4 small glasses or pots. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.
  7. To serve, garnish with cream and chocolate shavings. Raspberries and a tiny sprig of mint for colour would also be lovely!
Notes:

1. Chocolate: It’s critical you use COOKING chocolate, not eating chocolate. Cooking chocolate (found in the baking aisle) is made for, well, cooking with. It melts more smoothly and is thinner than eating chocolate when melted. If you use eating chocolate, the chocolate may seize when mixed in and you may get lumps in your mousse! Don’t risk it, use cooking chocolate.

Bittersweet dark chocolate and 70% cocoa dark chocolate is best to get a good chocolatey flavour.

2. Cream: You must use full-fat cream that can be whipped – pure cream (35% fat), thickened cream (35% fat) or heavy cream (35 – 40% fat). Do not use pouring cream that cannot be whipped – the label will state if the cream cannot be whipped.

3. Chocolate Shavings: Use a small knife and scrape at a low angle on the flat side of a block of chocolate.

4. Eggs tip: It’s easier to separate whites from yolks when eggs are cold, but whites at room temp fluff up better when closer to room temp. So separate the eggs when fridge cold then set aside while you prep the other ingredients to let the whites come to room temp a bit.

5. Beaten whites consistency: Egg whites can be beaten to: soft peaks, firm and stiff peaks. We want the middle one – firm peaks. This is when you have a “elf hat” floppage at the top of the peak. If it stands straight upright without the little hook then it’s stiff, not firm (still works fine but it won’t hold up as well after a few days in the fridge). If you do not get any type of peaks at all, then keep beating!

6. Flavourings: such as liquor, can be added into the melted chocolate, but make sure it is at room temperature other it can make the chocolate sieze. Stir it in then leave to cool per recipe. You can taste it later to see if the flavour is strong enough for you – but don’t go overboard otherwise you may have issues setting the mousse! Up to 1 tbsp should be fine (and that should be enough!!), don’t go overboard otherwise it might affect the melted chocolate or compromise how the mousse sets.

PRO TIP: Never add flavourings into just melted chocolate otherwise it might seize and become grainy, always ensure it’s combined with something (butter, in this case).

7. Storage: Best within 2 days but keeps for a week in the fridge with only a slight reduction in aeration.

9. Nutrition per serving. Makes 4 x 1/2 cup (125ml) servings. It is quite rich!

NUTRITIONAL INFO:

Calories: 375cal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Cholesterol: 171mg | Sodium: 92mg | Potassium: 266mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 700IU | Calcium: 134mg | Iron: 1mg

 

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