Whether you are looking for a romantic dessert idea, or for a Valentine's Day treat, this rich dark chocolate mousse is THE BEST real chocolate mousse recipe. It's a perfect chocolate dessert and has hints of espresso in it as well, complete with homemade whipping cream, it is delightful!
It's very VERY rare if my husband and I ever get to go out on a date on Valentine's Day, since we have 4 kids ages 10 and under. But that's ok! I still try to think of ways to make date night at home special, or to have ideas for Valentine's Day at home.
Usually we try to get the kids to bed early... doesn't always happen, but we try! Date night at home ideas for me usually consist of a special dessert we can share after the kids are in bed. One special dessert that I love is this Dark Chocolate Mousse with Espresso (make it decaf for me!).
Let's talk about fluffy, creamy, decadent chocolate mousse... Have you ever had REAL chocolate mousse? I'm not talking about pudding in a fancy cup, I'm talking about quality melted dark chocolate with tempered egg yolks mixed with fluffy whipped egg whites and topped with REAL whipped cream. THIS IS THAT RECIPE!
Real chocolate mousse is a little more labor intensive, and has some technique to it, but with my step by step instructions YOU can do it! Check out this video of this decadent homemade chocolate mousse. It's sooo yummy!
💭 Top tips
Tips for making REAL French Chocolate Mousse:
Before you get started, there are TWO very important things we need to talk about when we talk about making perfect chocolate mousse. The outcome of your mousse will be determined by these 2 things...
- #1- The quality of your mousse will be determined by the quality of your chocolate
Please do not use bagged chocolate chips for this. This is where you need to use a quality bar of dark chocolate and chop it up yourself... something like Ghirardelli chocolate.
- #2- Make sure eggs are at room temperature
The other EXTREMELY IMPORTANT thing to remember while making this recipe, is to make sure the eggs are at room temperature. If the eggs are not at room temperature when you add them to the chocolate, the chocolate will seize up and become clumpy. You don't want clumpy chocolate! The best chocolate mousse is SMOOTH!
🍫 Ingredients
What are the ingredients for chocolate mousse?
The ingredients for my recipe of chocolate mousse are:
- quality chocolate
- instant espresso powder
- water
- eggs
- whipped cream
- sugar
- vanilla
🔪 Instructions
How to make Dark Chocolate Mousse:
Separate the room temperature eggs into 2 different mixing bowls.
In a double boiler, bring the water to a boil and melt together 8 oz. dark chocolate, ¼ cup water, 1 Tbs espresso powder (I use decaf) and 2 Tbs sugar. As soon as it is melted, remove it from the heat.
Substitution: you can substitute ¼ cup of coffee for the water and espresso powder, however the coffee flavor may be diminished. It's up to you!
With a hand mixer, mix the egg yolks, 1 Tbs sugar, a pinch of salt and ¼ teas vanilla until the egg yolks become creamier and fluffier and become more pale yellow in color.
Slowly pour the egg yolk mixture into the warm chocolate, whisking constantly. You don't want to pour it in all at once, just a little at a time. Whisk until it is completely incorporated and set the chocolate mixture aside to cool for several minutes.
With your hand mixer, beat the egg whites and 1 Tbs of sugar until until it forms soft peaks. It will double in volume and become airy.
With a spatula, GENTLY fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture only folding in about ⅓ of the egg whites at a time.
As soon as it is incorporated, spoon the mixture into small serving cups. I use these Bodum double walled espresso glasses (2.5 oz). They were the PERFFECT size, and they are cool cups! I love making Cuban coffee and serving it in these.
How to make homemade whipped cream:
Go ahead and make the real whipped cream. Take 1 cup of heavy whipping cream and pour it into a mixing bowl. With an electric hand mixer, mix it for several minutes until it doubles in volume. Before it gets soft peaks, add ¼ cup of sugar and mix until soft peaks form.
Place a dollop of the whipped cream on top of the chocolate mousse along with some chocolate shavings. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.
🎥 Video
Do you like this recipe? Check out these other popular (and delish) recipes!
- Homemade Churros
- Dark Chocolate Sea Salt and Espresso Cookies
- Lemon Berry Mascarpone Cake
- Easy Cheeseball Recipe
- Melted Ice Cream Bundt Cake
📖 Recipe
Dark Chocolate Mousse
Ingredients
For the Chocolate
- 8 oz Quality Dark Chocolate I used a mixture of 70% and 80%
- ¼ cup Water
- 1 tablespoon Instant Espresso Powder I used decaf
- 2 tablespoon Sugar
Egg Yolks
- 2 Egg Yolks
- 1 tablespoon Sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- ¼ teas vanilla
Egg Whites
- 2 Egg Whites
- 1 tablespoon Sugar
Whipped Cream
- 1 cup Heavy Cream
- ¼ cup Sugar
Instructions
- Begin by putting the chopped chocolate, water, espresso powder and 2 tablespoons of sugar in the double boiler
- Melt ingredients together then remove from heat
- Separate the room temperature eggs into 2 different mixing bowls
- With a hand mixer, mix the egg yolks, sugar, salt and vanilla for 1-2 minutes until it becomes a pale yellow color
- Slowly whisk in the egg yolks into the warm chocolate until completely incorporated
- With the electric hand mixer, mix the egg whites and sugar until it doubles in volume and forms peaks. It should be very light and airy.
- With a spatula, fold in the egg whites to the chocolate and tempered egg yolk mixture, only folding in about ⅓ of the egg whites at a time. Make sure it is fully incorporated.
- Put the chocolate mousse in single serve dessert cups (see recommendation above) and place a dollop of whipped cream on top
- Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.
- Garnish with chocolate shavings. Serve and enjoy!
Jennifer
This looks so yummy i am going to make this for Christmas thanks for sharing.
Pam
Chocolate mousse is one of my all-time favorite desserts and this one sounds heavenly! Thanks for sharing.
Beth Shields
Looks delicious and I love the addition of Espresso in the chocolate. Have pinned this recipe for later!
Megan
This sounds and looks amazing! And in a little cup like that, I could probably have TWO!...right?! ;)
Emily Ackerman
HA! I can usually pound down desserts pretty easily, however this one is so rich, I'm not sure I could do 2... maybe haha
MissKorang
I have 4 kids aged 8 and below too so I feel you. And also I need this dessert! I read this together with my husband just so he knows we're not the only ones having dates in the living room. Thanks for this recipe, you gave me more than a recipe.
Emily Ackerman
This is wonderful to hear! Yes, we have dates in our living room haha. Right there with ya! We had all 4 of ours by the time our oldest was 7. Crazy times, fun times as well
Alyssa
This looks delish! Can't go wrong with a chocolate mousse!! Yum!
Suz @ TravelsWithSuz.com
This sounds sooo good! I've never made mousse - it seems a bit intimidating, but I think I'll try it.
It always amuses me when people think it's such a hassle to make whipped cream - it's so simple, and so much better than canned whipped cream.
Emily Ackerman
yes, homemade whipped cream is not hart, yet so good
Kendra
Yum! I love chocolate mousse and I love dark chocolate! Perfect combination!
Laura
Looks delicious and so fancy.
Tricia Snow
Chocolate Mousse was always my favorite as a kid but it is a rare find in restaurants today. Thanks for the recipe!
Barbara
Oh boy! THIS looks and sounds delish! I can't wait to try out the recipe!!!!!!
Sandra Barrett
Your instructions are clear, easy to follow, and concise. The Mousse looks amazing.
Emily Ackerman
Thank you!
ANgela
My youngest son ordered chocolate mousse in a restaurant proabably 2 years ago and has been asking for it made at home ever since. Glad I found this recipe to make it happy!
Heather Reese
These look so good! I love that it uses dark chocolate to really elevate the flavor!
Emily Ackerman
Thank you Heather!!!!