Strawberry Mousse is an ethereal, light as air dessert made with strawberry puree for freshness and dried strawberries for intense flavor. Serve it with a dollop of whipped cream and a strawberry on top.
Why this is the best tasting Strawberry Mousse
Fresh strawberries are so delicious to eat because they are super-juicy. While that’s a good thing when you want to eat a fresh berry, it’s a problem when you want to infuse strawberry flavor into a dessert.
I challenged myself to make a light and fluffy Strawberry Mousse with a distinctive, fresh-strawberry flavor. Because a great mousse starts with a thick and flavorful base, I had to balance out the moisture from the berries without overwhelming the delicate strawberry flavor.
Cooking the berries is one way to do reduce the moisture. This is the approach I use for Roasted Strawberry Hand Pies. But cooking changes the flavor of the berries. I wanted fresh strawberry flavor not a cooked/jammy flavor.
When I created my Strawberry & Rosé Wine Macarons, Strawberry Ice Cream and my Strawberries & Cream Bundt Cake I used freeze-dried berries to get fresh strawberry flavor without extra water. I take the same approach with this recipe.
Freeze dried strawberries are simply berries with all the moisture removed. Without extra water, they have a concentrated flavor. The dried berry powder also thickens up the strawberry puree to make that thick and flavorful base for our mousse.
Because the strawberries are never cooked, the flavor is pure fresh-berry bliss.
Ingredients for Strawberry Mousse
- Fresh strawberries – Nothing compares to the flavor of ripe seasonal strawberries, but you can use frozen berries if strawberries are out of season.
- Granulated sugar – For a sweet note.
- Freeze dried strawberries – Adds deep berry flavor without watering down the mousse.
- Heavy cream – Whipped cream lightens and enriches the strawberry base.
- Orange liquor (optional) – Remember, alcohol enhances flavor.
- Unflavored gelatin powder – Just enough for the mousse to hold it’s shape.
- Egg whites – Folding in meringue creates an ethereal texture for this mousse.
How to make Strawberry Mousse
- To draw out the juice, toss the berries with sugar and allow them to macerate.
- Puree the berries until smooth.
- Strain the juice to remove seeds.
- You should end up with 2 cups of strawberry juice.
- Grind the dried strawberries to a powder.
- Stir the powder into the strawberry juice.
- Fold the whipped cream into the strawberry juice.
- Melt the gelatin, whip the whites.
- “Liason” the gelatin into the strawberry mousse.
- Fold the meringue into the strawberry mousse.
- Fold just until the meringue is incorporated.
- Portion into serving bowls then refrigerate until set.
Pastry Chef Tips for making the fluffiest Mousse:
- Start with a thick base which can hold lots of air.
- By adding not only whipped cream, but also whipped egg whites you will have the fluffiest and lightest texture possible. The meringue elevates strawberry whipped cream to a true mousse.
- 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. Refrigerate until the gelatin is set
Storage
Strawberry mousse can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Keep the surface of the mousse covered so it doesn’t dry out. Strawberry Mousse can be frozen in a freezer safe container or between cake layers. Defrost before serving.
How to turn Strawberry Mousse into a cake filling.
- Strawberry Mousse is the perfect filling for Vanilla Chiffon Cake, Vanilla Genoise or chocolate cake.
- Have the cake layers baked, trimmed and ready to go before you begin making the mousse.
- To keep the mousse from oozing out, pipe a dam of buttercream around the rim of each cake layer.
- Spread the mousse within the buttercream dam while it’s still soft.
- Refrigerate the cake to set the mousse before you ice the cake.
For chocoholics I recommend this classic Chocolate Mousse recipe and for vanilla-holics I have a recipe for Vanilla Mousse too.
Now that you’ve made this recipe what should you do with the extra yolks? Check out this collection of recipes that use extra yolks for some great ideas.
If you love this recipe as much as I do, I’d really appreciate a 5-star review.
Strawberry Mousse Recipe
Ingredients
- 24 oz fresh strawberries (see note)
- 6 oz granulated sugar (¾ cup, divided)
- 1 oz freeze dried strawberries (1 ½ cups)
- 8 oz heavy cream (1 cup)
- 2 tablespoons orange liquor (or water)
- 1 packet unflavored gelatin powder (2 ½ teaspoons)
- 2 large egg whites
Instructions
- Toss 24 oz fresh strawberries with 1/4 cup of the sugar. Macerate 30 minutes. Meanwhile, use a food processor to grind 1 oz freeze dried strawberries into a powder. Transfer the powder to a small bowl and set aside. Puree and strain the fresh strawberries to make 2 cups of puree. Stir the strawberry powder into the puree.
- Place 2 tablespoons orange liquor (or cool water) into a microwave safe bowl. Sprinkle 1 packet unflavored gelatin powder in an even layer over the liquor and set it aside to bloom. Whip 8 oz heavy cream with another 1/4 cup of the sugar and fold it into the puree. Refrigerate while you prepare the other ingredients.
- Combine 2 large egg whites with the final 1/4 cup of sugar in a heatproof mixing bowl. Set the bowl over the pan of almost simmering water (don't allow the bottom of the bowl to touch the water) and heat to 160°F, stirring constantly. Remove the whites from the heat and whip until they are at full peak and completely cooled.
- Heat the bloomed gelatin in the microwave in 10 second increments until it's hot to the touch. Working quickly, add a 1/2 cup of the mousse to the warmed gelatin. Whisk to combine. Pour the gelatin mixture back into the mousse. Immediately whisk until the mousse is smooth and the gelatin is evenly incorporated. Immediately fold the whites into the mousse.
- Pipe or spoon the mousse into serving glasses while it's is still soft. Refrigerate until set. (See note)
- Serve with fresh berries and whipped cream.
Equipment
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ahmad
Friday 14th of April 2023
Looks delicious, I will try it thank you
Lily
Saturday 30th of April 2022
I made this recipe it is relatively easy and by far the best strawberry mousse recipe I have tried. Would definitely recommend making this!