A really decadent chocolate mousse
J’adore chocolate mousse. Time and time again I think about what my favourite dessert might be and 9/10 times my mind wanders in the direction of this airy, chocolatey number. 1/10 times I think about this panna cotta. The common theme here is that both are utterly delicious and can be eaten with a spoon.
This chocolate mousse uses an anglaise base (which is very low-fuss by the way, and you don’t need any added extras like cornstarch or gelatine), which is heated then poured over the chocolate to melt and emulsify. It’s important that you manage the temperature of the chocolate mixture before folding through beaten egg whites – too hot and you’ll lose all of the air from the egg whites, too cold and it’ll go sort of grainy and scrambled.
I think this is pretty perfect served simply with a drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of flaky sea salt.
A really decadent chocolate mousse
Ingredients
- 200 ml whole milk
- 50 ml double/thickened cream
- 3 eggs separated
- 95 g caster sugar
- 200 g dark choc 70%
Instructions
- Add the milk, cream, 45g of the sugar and egg yolks to a pan and whisk briefly to combine before placing over a low heat until it reaches approx 82-84c (179-182f) – making sure to stir frequently.
- Place the chocolate into a large jug and pour over the hot cream mixture to melt. Use a stick blender if you have one to emulsify, though you can also use a whisk and do this by hand – just let the cream mixture sit on the chocolate for a minute to help melt the chocolate.
- Allow this mixture to cool to approx 40c (104f). Meanwhile whisk the egg whites with the remaining 50g of sugar until you have stiff peaks.
- Once the chocolate mixture has reached 40c, add one spoon of the egg whites and mix well to combine and loosen the chocolate mixture.
- Then fold the rest through carefully in 2-3 goes..
- Pour into your chosen mould and set – anywhere from 4-6 hours.
- Serve with a drizzle of olive oil and flaky sea salt.
