Chocolate Mousse

If only it could qualify for breakfast. I could live on this delicious treat, it’s always been one of my favorites!

The perfect finishing touch for this mousse is simple and delicate whipped cream and thin shavings of dark chocolate. Not only does it make it look elegant and add visually appealing variation but it just compliments and finishes it off as it should be.

Of course this is no diet friendly menu item and low calorie dessert but it’s worth every bit of it. All things in moderation.

Mousse Made without Raw Eggs!

With this mousse recipe there’s no worries about food borne illness since there are no raw eggs in this recipe. Here we cook the egg yolk mixture to 160 degrees to kill off any potentially harmful bacteria.

So it’s a dessert you don’t have to worry about serving to guests. Everyone will be smitten with this cup full of chocolate bliss!

And it really is less intimidating to make than you may think. Just a few simple steps, then the hardest part is the wait times while chilling, but the patience is worth it!

6 servings of chocolate mousse in small glass cups.

Ingredients Needed to Make Chocolate Mousse

You’ll only need 5 ingredients for this recipe!

Heavy cream – this rich ingredient makes the mousse light and fluffy and amazingly decadent.
Egg yolks – this thickens up custard mixture in the mousse and boosts richness.
Granulated sugar – you can adjust this slightly to taste.
Vanilla extract – I usually like to add a fair amount of vanilla to chocolate desserts. It compliments those flavors so nicely.
Bittersweet chocolate – use chocolate baking bars or other good quality chocolate bars.
Sea salt (optional) – regular table salt works fine too. You only need to add a pinch or two, and honestly it can even be omitted. It just picks up the flavors a bit.

Ingredients to make chocolate mousse shown in this image.

How to Make Chocolate Mousse

1. Whip egg yolks and sugar: In medium mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer whip together egg yolks and granulated sugar on high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

2. Heat 3/4 cup cream: Warm 3/4 cup of the heavy cream in a 2-quart saucepan on the stovetop over low heat until hot.
3. Temper eggs with cream mixture: While whisking egg mixture slowly pour in warm cream mixture to temper egg yolks. Then pour combined egg yolk and cream mixture back into saucepan.
4. Cook mixture to 160 degrees: Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens just slightly and reaches 160 degrees on an instant read thermometer. If you notice any clumps strain through a sieve and return to saucepan.

Mixing egg yolks and sugar with electric mixer.

Tempering egg yolks in mixing bowl for mousse and cooking mixture in saucepan.

5. Melt in chocolate: Off heat add in chocolate, stir until melted.
6. Let cool to room temp: Pour mixture into a clean medium bowl, cover and chill, stirring about every 10 – 15 minutes until it reaches 70 degrees (or no longer warm), about 30 – 40 minutes total.
7. Whip remaining cream, fold into chocolate mixture: Whip remaining heavy cream until very stiff peaks form. Fold whipped cream into chocolate mixture until combined.
8. Divide mixture among dessert cups, chill: Pipe or spoon into dessert cups. Chill 2 hours. Top with sweetened whipped cream if desired and garnish with shaved or grated chocolate.

Melting chocolate into custard mousse mixture.

Folding whipped cream into chocolate mousse mixture.

How to Store Mousse:

Keep mousse in the fridge. It is best served cold but if it has been refrigerated overnight, for a softer consistency you can let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving.

How Long Does This Mousse Keep?

It should keep well for about 3 days in the refrigerator, it will lose some of it’s volume (that air whipped into the cream) but the taste will remain the same.

Can I Use This Mousse for Cake?

This mousse should also work well added to cakes, I would add it as a topping rather than a filling.

Tips:

Don’t skip the tempering step (when whisking warm mixture into egg yolks) this keeps them from scrambling. Also once in pan you must whisk constantly to avoid lumps and scrambling.
If you do end up with a few tiny lumps the sieve the mixture before adding the chocolate.
If chocolate doesn’t melt fully off heat you can return to warm heat and stir constantly to melt.
Use real chocolate and good quality chocolate. It will only taste as good as what you put into it.
For fluffiest whipped cream try using a chilled bowl and beater blades when whipping.
Don’t let chocolate mixture chill through, it should just get about to room temp (70 degrees). Cool enough that it doesn’t melt the whipped cream but not so cold the chocolate starts to harden and mixture ends up clumpy when folding in the cream.
Chill finished mousse before serving for great texture and refreshing taste.

Close up image of chocolate mousse covered with whipped cream. Spoonful removed to show fluffy texture of interior.

Variations:

With this recipe you can use semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate depending on how strong you’d like the chocolate flavor to be. Even dark like 70% if you like it bold would work.
You can adjust sugar amount slightly to taste. Stick with granulated sugar here to sweeten.
Try with a little peppermint extract for a festive flavor and finish with fine crushed peppermint candies or add coconut extract to the whipped cream and finish with fine coconut.
Finish with a garnish of fine chopped slivered almonds or macadamia nuts for another layer of decadence and texture.
Sometimes I serve these in mini cups and make 12 servings instead of 6. A fun size treat for parties.

More Mousse Recipes You’ll Love!

Easy Chocolate Mousse (this quick and easy mousse doesn’t require cooking with eggs, it uses marshmallows instead)
Chocolate Mousse Pie
Lemon Mousse
Mint Chip Mousse
Raspberry Mousse

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