Chocolate Mousse

Have you ever had real Chocolate Mousse? If so, you know there is nothing else like it. So light and airy, but still with an intensely rich chocolate flavor and the absolute creamiest texture ever. It is so good it hurts.

When I was thinking, what inspired me the most in France? I came up with the answer that they keep things very classical, and once you learn those things, you can endlessly improvise. I know I am not the first person to come up with this, (**cough, Julia Child**)but I am here to say how true I am finding it. So when I thought about what classical thing I loved the most, it was very simple.

Chocolate Mousse.

When my husband handed me a little glass jar of this stuff with my sandwich on the train on our way to Dinan, I was completely transported. It was like chocolate frosting, but better. It was like chocolate pudding but better. It was like itself, completely.

And basically I had to have it again.

So when my extended family planned to get together for dinner, I volunteered to bring dessert. Chocolate mousse, si vous plait. I researched recipes (I ended up with a combination of Ina Garten’s and David Lebovit’s) and put a movie on for the kids (even though the prep time said 30 minutes and it didn’t really take that long for something so good).

I cut up some good chocolate:

And whipped all the eggs:

^^ When Ina says whip the egg yolks until they fall back on themselves like ribbons, this is what she means.

^^ And when she says whip the eggs whites until they formed stiff peaks, this is what she means.

And then, you stir them into the melted chocolate. That has some booze added to it.

Well, I guess the technical term is fold them into the chocolate (if we are going to talk about classics we may as well learn some basic skills, right?).

And then you pour them into ramekins and chill. Don’t they look amazing? I think my egg whites were a little too stiff, so check out that video to avoid this! But it didn’t impact the flavor at ALL. They were amazing.

So if you are scarred just give it try! Mine were not perfect but were SO yummy.

Once you get this recipe down, the options are endless. A chile spiced chocolate mousse? Or an orange chocolate mousse? Or some whipped cream with Grand Marnier in it? All yum.

Hope you are having a great week!

xoxo Katie

Chocolate Mousse (adapted from Ina Garten and David Lebovitz’s recipes, printer version here):

INGREDIENTS

SERVINGS: 8

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1⁄4cup freshly brewed coffee
2 tablespoons Dark Rum
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced, at room temperature
8 extra-large eggs, separated, at room temperature
1⁄2cup sugar, plus
2 tablespoons sugar, divided
kosher salt
1⁄2cup cold heavy cream
sweetened whipped cream, for decoration

DIRECTIONS

In a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, melt the two chocolates, coffee, coffee powder, rum, and vanilla extract. Cool to room temperature. Beat in the softened butter.
Meanwhile, place the egg yolks and the 1/2 cup of sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on high speed for about 5 minutes, until pale yellow; when you lift the beater, the mixture will fall back on itself in a ribbon. With the mixer on low speed, blend in the chocolate mixture. Transfer to a larger mixing bowl.
Measure 1 cup of egg whites and freeze or discard the rest. Combine the cup of egg whites with a pinch of salt and 1 tablespoon of the remaining sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk on high speed until stiff but not dry. Mix half of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture; then fold the rest in carefully with a rubber spatula.
In the same bowl of the electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the heavy cream and the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar until firm. Carefully fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture. Pour the mousse into a 2-quart serving dish. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for a few hours or overnight and up to a week.
Decorate with fruit and/or sweetened whipped cream just before serving.