The BEST Chocolate Mousse Recipe

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Classic Chocolate Mousse Recipe

Rich, creamy yet light and airy that's what this chocolate mousse is all about. Made with pastry cream, whipped cream, and dark chocolate this is similar to what you eat at a fancy restaurant. A surprisingly simple and easy recipe that takes just 30 minutes of prep time.

How to make classic homemade Mousse with rich dark chocolate — Homemade Mousse with Chocolate. Best Chocolate Dessert EVER

This has got to be my favorite version of the chocolate mousse - the classic. This is how my mom made it and if you gave her anything else; she'd be very upset. But, over the years I learned new versions of mousse such as eggless and vegan too. Honestly, I think it's great, now we can make different versions of the same dessert and no one feels deprived.

Some of you may remember a classic chocolate mousse recipe has whipped egg whites which adds a light and airy texture to the mousse. But these days due to the fear of 'salmonella' in eggs we avoid raw egg whites. So I have not used it in this recipe. Having said that if you want you can - pasteurize two egg whites with 2 tbsp of sugar similar to how we make Swiss meringue buttercream and then whip it to stiff peaks. Once whipped you can then fold it into the chocolate mousse before pouring into individual cups.

About this Chocolate Mousse Recipe

Rich, dark, yet light and airy just the way a good chocolate mousse should be. I've used 70& cocoa Godiva chocolate here today but any chocolate that you love to eat is a great candidate for chocolate mousse. Having said that, please do not use baking chocolate or candy melts. If you truly want to enjoy a delicious chocolate mousse - use good quality chocolate (does not have to be expensive)

This recipe has four components

Prepare the pastry cream - 10 minutes
Combine the chocolate -2 min
Whip the cream - 5 mins
Combine the pastry cream and whipped cream - 10 mins
Pour into individual cups and chill - 3 hours.

I know not the best picture but can you see how light and airy the mousse is? yes!!

Useful Tips and Tools

A heavy bottom saucepan works great when cooking milk based custards.
You will also need a good blender to blend the fruit puree.
I like to use my stand mixer with a whisk attachment to whip the cream, and yet a hand mixer works just as well.
Also, a few mixing bowls to mix all the ingredients.
And, a whisk and a spatula to combine all the ingredients together.
Lastly, a few glasses or ramekins to set the mousse in.

Let's talk ingredients and substitutes (Save/Pin)

Eggs - The yolks will be cooked in the milk so you can use regular egg yolks and they do not need to be pasteurized.
Milk - Use full-fat cream - please do not use skimmed milk
Whipping cream - this has got to be 35 to 38 % fat or the mousse will not set. It will be soft and creamy not light and airy.
Cornstarch or Cornflour - this helps to thicken the pastry cream as well as prevents it from scrambling.
Liquor - I love adding Baileys, Kahlua or even Cointreau to my chocolate mousse. In fact, try my butterscotch baileys for a wonderful twist.
Coffee - Adds a nice additional flavor dimension to the chocolate.

How to Make the BEST Classic Chocolate Mousse Recipe (Save/Pin)

Prepare pastry cream

In a heavy-bottom saucepan combine sugar, cornstarch, egg yolks, vanilla, and salt.
Slowly add the milk while whisking to prevent lumps.
Place the saucepan on medium heat until the pastry cream thickens.
You want the pastry cream to come to a boil so the cornstarch will thicken the mixture.
Add the chocolate and stir well to combine.
Sift through a sieve.
Cover with the plastic wrap touching the surface of the cream.
Set aside to cool until warm

Whip cream

Whip the cream using a whisk attachment until soft peaks.

Dissolve gelatin

Place gelatin with the remaining 60 ml (1/4 cup) water.
Let sit for 3 minutes to dissolve.
Gently warm the gelatin in a double boiler or microwave at 30-sec intervals until completely dissolved.
Set aside to cool slightly but still warm.

Assemble

First, add just a couple of tbsp of cooled chocolate pastry cream to the gelatin and whisk well to avoid any lumps. (we are tampering the gelatin so it won’t seize)
Then, add the gelatin mixture to the full batch of pastry cream.
Next, fold in the whipped cream until well combined.
Pour or pipe equal amounts into desired bowl, cups or ramekins

Chill until set

Place the fill cup in the fridge for at least 3 hours to chill completely.
The mousse will set in an hour or two but it tastes great if chilled for a couple of hours.
Garnish with a blackberry when ready to serve.

Frequently asked questions

How long with this Classic Chocolate Mousse keep?

This mousse will last in the fridge for 4 to 5 days. Having said that, mousse is made up of whipped cream which starts to lose volume after about 2 days.

Does chocolate mousse have egg whites in it?

a classic chocolate mousse recipe has whipped egg whites which adds a light and airy texture to the mousse. But these days due to the fear of 'salmonella' in eggs we avoid raw egg whites. So I have not used it in this recipe. Having said that if you want you can - pasteurize two egg whites with 2 tbsp of sugar similar to how we make Swiss meringue buttercream and then whip it to stiff peaks. Once whipped you can then fold it into the chocolate mousse before pouring into individual cups.

Why does chocolate mousse become grainy?

Grainy chocolate mousse happens only when you don't temper the chocolate properly before combining it to the cream. However, we add finely broken pieces of chocolate directly into the hot pastry cream. This process does not make the chocolate grainy.

How can I make my chocolate mousse thicker?

By using cornstarch which we have used in this recipe for making our pastry cream.

Can you over whip chocolate mousse?

You can but not in this recipe. Here we whip the cream separately and then fold it into the pastry cream. You can, however, over whip the cream and if that happens just add a tablespoon of milk or cream and whip for a few seconds more.

Can I add more gelatin to this chocolate mousse?

2 tsp as stated in this recipe is good to keep the mousse from being too soft or too stiff. Any more and your mousse will be fairly stiff. As a guide, I use 1 tsp gelatin for every cup of liquid which works perfectly for me.

Can I make this an eggless chocolate mousse? What do I replace the egg yolks with?

No, this recipe works best with egg yolks, however, I do have a delicious eggless chocolate mousse recipe which you will love.

Can I make this a vegan chocolate mousse? What do I replace the dairy with?

Perhaps not. This recipe works best as is. But I do have a vegan chocolate mousse that you must check out.

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The BEST Chocolate Mousse Recipe

Classic Chocolate Mousse Recipe

About this Chocolate Mousse Recipe

Useful Tips and Tools

Let's talk ingredients and substitutes (Save/Pin)