Did you know that chocolate mousse is a French recipe that Americans have unnecessarily made complicated? ‘Mousse’ infact is a French word for ‘foam’. Traditionally, chcocolate mousse a.k.a Mousse Au Chocolat is supposed to be airy – but also dense and rich in chocolate. That means, no addition of extra heavy cream to make it lighter.
If there’s one trick to making a good mousse – that’s to get your whipping right. For people who prefer to leave eggs out of their diet (why though?), resorting to heavy cream is the only option. But be it egg whites or whipping cream – both have the power to trap in air, causing an expansion in volume. But moderating the beating power of your whisk is of utmost importance. Too high speed and you risk forming air bubbles that aren’t durable – so end product is fragile. Too low speed – and you cannot even move the air around the structure. Medium speed works best as the air bubbles become smaller and smaller, thus offering greater resistance to any shock the mixture might be subjected to.
There are other tricks and interesting science behind this apparently simple dessert, so read on to learn more!
Note: The instructions may seem to consists of unusually long sentences if you’re one of those who just skim articles to find the actual recipe (I am one of those too). But have a little patience, and I promise to humour you! In case you’re still not convinced, the words in bold should be an easy way out.
INGREDIENTS for chocolate mousse:
- 3.5 oz (100g) dark chocolate, preferably 60% or higher
- 3 eggs, separated
- For an eggless version: 1 cup heavy cream
- Adult boozy version : 3 teaspoons of kahlua (or liquor of choice)
INGREDIENTS for caramelized strawberry toppings:
- Strawberries – hulled and sliced
INSTRUCTIONS:
Step 1
The most important ingredient for making chocolate mousse is surely..chocolate. So be careful while choosing which one you’d bite into while you chop the bar into small pieces. I love a 60-70% cocoa, since it ensures that I don’t need to add extra sugar and there’s enough cocoa butter which acts as the hardening agent. If you’re a milk chocolate fan, I recommend going for chocolate pudding instead. Melting the chocolate properly is important. Either you can microwave it in batches, stirring in between and be extra careful that it doesn’t overheat or burn. Othrwise, you can melt it in a bowl set over slowly simmering water.
Tip: If the chocolate hardens when brought to room temperature, just add 1 teaspoon of boiling water and mix till you achieve a good consistency – one that can be poured. If the chocolate thickens too much, you will end up with a grainy mousse – you don’t want that.
Step 2
The trick of the airyness lies in the egg whites. So, first separate the eggs into the yolks and the whites. If you’re as clumsy as me, keep a few extra eggs handy to practise it on. You do not want any part of the yolk into the egg whites mixture.
Note: Room-temperature eggs are less viscous than cold eggs and contribute more to the volume. So you’d want to wait a few minutes before you start dissecting them eggs.
If you’re using heavy cream though, use a full-fat one (you can’t focus on calories while making mousse) that has been in the refrigerator for a while. It’s easier to whip it up chilled.
Step 3
Add the egg yolks to the molten chocolate. You can partially cook them too if you will, on simmering water but it’s not necessary. If you have an extra sweet tooth, now is the time to add some extra sweetener of choice (not the liquidy ones, please!).
Step 4
Depending on what kind of booze you prefer with your dark chocolate, add in your poison liqueur. I opted for Kahlua since it has a coffee flavour that goes very well with the dark chocolate mousse. Bailey’s Irish Cream is another common option. 3 teaspoons are enough to bring out the flavour, but you can indulge in more, of course!
Step 5
Using an electric mixer, beat up your egg whites till you can form soft peaks. Don’t try it with a hand mixer – you have to have too much muscle power to do it. By that time you can go to the store and get an electric mixer. The requirements remain the same for the heavy cream, except that it requires much lesser time. If you go on for too long, the volume will start deflating instead.
Science time! Why do egg whites increase in volume when you beat them?
An egg white is about 90% water and 10% protein. When you beat egg whites, you cause the proteins to denature or unfurl and expand – thereby introducing air and expanding volume. Now proteins are essentially long chains of amino acids, which in turn can be hydrophilic (loves water) and hydrophobic (hates water). As air is incorporated into the mixture, the proteins uncoil and rearrange to form a network around the air bubbles, trapping air and resulting in white foam. If there’s any fat present, the skin can’t form, and the air leaks away. Hence the extra measure in Step 2.
Again, be extra cautious about not overbeating the egg whites. This will result in the proteins being too tightly bound resulting in a grainy, dry mixture as the water is pushed out. If it does happen, just add in an extra egg white.
Step 6
Fold in your egg whites in batches to the chocolate mixture. You can use just a spoon to do this bit. Just make sure the egg whites are well mixed. You will start to see the colour lighten up as you add the egg whites. The tempering is important, because as is usual with chocolate mousse – even the slightest thing can affect the texture. You want to fold in till the mixture just combines and no more.
Step 7
Finally the most awaited step..err..I mean the step needing the most wait time. Pour your beautiful liquidy mixture into small jars or ramekins and let it refrigerate for a minimum of 5-6 hours. The mousse is good enough to eat in itself, but if you want to take it a level higher, you need to roast some strawberries.
Step 8 : Making the roasted strawberries
This is a unbelievably easy job, but results in a perfect topping for these chocolate mousse cups. Once you’ve cut out the strawberries into nice slices, drizzle a little maple syrup. If you are in the mood for more booze, dip the strawberries in port wine. You can also add a litte bit of lemon juice. In short, go wild on the flavours (that doesn’t include you putting pepper on it) – in moderation.
Then put them in the oven at 350F (or 180C) for 30 mins. It may take longer – just make sure they are softened and there’s the lovely juice flowing around the parchment paper. If you’re tempted to pop one into your mouth immediately, I don’t blame you.
If you are looking for more ideas with strawberries : Check out my Strawberry Chia Jam recipe!
That’s it! Top your mousse off with the strawberries (if you can save some from eating, that is)!