Chocolate Mousse
Classic Chocolate Mousse never goes out of style. This chocolate mousse recipe is the perfect marriage of light-as-air texture and rich, chocolate-y flavor. It just melts in your mouth.
I always try to give you a little background and context for my recipes. But, honestly, what is there to say about Classic Chocolate Mousse? It’s chocolate, it’s light-as-a-feather and it’s completely delicious.
And, it’s surprisingly easy to make. If you can whip cream, you can make chocolate mousse. Once you’ve mastered this recipe, you might want to try Vanilla Mousse and Fresh Strawberry Mousse. You can also make this Chocolate Mousse Pie for a wonderful family treat.
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Heavy Cream – Heavy Cream has a higher fat content than “whipping cream”. The higher fat content makes a more luscious and stable mousse.
- Grand Marnier – The liquor is optional. You can just leave it out or switch in another liquor such as rum or brandy.
- Chocolate – I made this recipe using 55% semi-sweet chocolate. The percentage on a package of chocolate refers to how much cocoa solids are in the chocolate in relation to other ingredients such as sugar. The higher the percent, the less sugar there is in the chocolate.
- Eggs – Both the yolks and whites are whipped for the lightest mousse possible.
Process Photos
See the recipe card for detailed measurements and instructions.
- Whisk the egg yolks over warm water and whip until light and airy.
- Whisk the melted chocolate into the yolks.
- Fold the whipped cream into the chocolate base.
- Fold the egg whites into the mousse.
- While the mousse is still soft, pipe or spoon it into dessert dishes.
- Top with whipped cream and chill until set.
Recipe Tips and Storage
- Fold the components together very gently to retain as much as the air as possible.
- Pipe or spoon the mousse into serving dishes while it’s still soft.
- The mousse will keep in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Serve chilled.
- Chocolate mousse is the perfect filling for Chocolate Genoise or any chocolate cake. Have the cake layers ready before you begin making the mousse. Spread the mousse between the layers while it’s still soft. Refrigerate the cake to set the mousse and then ice the cake.
Now that you’ve made this recipe what should you do with all the extra egg whites? Check out this collection of recipes that use extra whites for some great ideas.
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Classic Chocolate Mousse
Ingredients
- 16 oz heavy cream (2 cups)
- 10 oz semi-sweet chocolate (chopped)
- 5 large egg yolks
- 2 oz Grand Marnier (¼ cup, optional)
- 4 oz granulated sugar (½ cup, divided in half)
- 2 large egg whites
Instructions
- Whip 16 oz heavy cream to soft peak and set in the refrigerator while you prepare the other ingredients. Melt 10 oz semi-sweet chocolate and set aside.
- Combine 5 large egg yolks, 1/2 of the sugar and 2 oz Grand Marnier in a mixer bowl. Set the bowl with the yolks over a pan of simmering water (make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water). Whisk until the mixture is warm to the touch. Don't throw away the water, you'll use it for the whites too.
- Move the bowl to the mixer (or use a hand mixer) and whisk until the yolks are completely cooled and have lightened in color and texture. Whisk the melted chocolate into the yolk mixture. If the mixture is still warm, wait for it to cool completely then fold the whipped cream into the chocolate base.
- Combine 2 large egg whites with the remaining sugar in a heatproof mixing bowl. Set the bowl over the pan of simmering water and heat to 160 °F, whisking constantly. Remove the whites from the heat and whip to full peak and completely cooled. Fold the whites into the mousse.
- Pipe or spoon into serving glasses while the mousse is still soft. Refrigerate until set. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream and some chocolate shavings or fresh berries.
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This says 8 servings, but how large is a serving? I am planning to use it to fill cream puffs and need to know how many batches I will need to make.
It’s hard to be exact with the size of the servings since the amount of air you get into the mousse can vary. But I would estimate about 3/4 – 1 cup per serving. It would be easier to follow my recipe for Chocolate Eclairs with chocolate filling. Just pipe the choux as puffs instead of eclairs.
Could white chocolate (true white chocolate with cocoa butter) be substituted for semi-sweet? If so, would you do any other substitutions like less sugar? I am looking for a white chocolate mousse recipe and not finding one I like.
White chocolate is sweeter and softer than dark chocolate. So there might be a texture difference. I’d have to test to know for sure. I’ll put white chocolate mousse on my to do list. For now, if you try swapping it, let me know how it turns out.
If using this as a cake filling should the cake be refidgerated?
Yes, because of the cream it should be refrigerated. You can take the cake out an hour or two before serving to soften up a bit.
Thank you so much!