French Chocolate Mousse (Mousse au Chocolat)

Nothing beats this 5-star French dark chocolate mousse recipe! This smooth and light creamy mousse au chocolat combined with tangy raspberries is a chocolate dessert you will dream about. Only a few ingredients are required to make this quick and romantic dessert.

What is better than a luscious dark chocolate mousse? This time, I share the best recipe for French chocolate mousse (or mousse au chocolat in French) adapted from chef Cyril Lignac.

This mousse is light but creamy enough to satisfy picky mousse lovers.

It is sweet but not too sweet due to a combination of sweet chocolate with acidic raspberries.

This combo brings the right balance in taste and calls for the mousse's correct title - raspberry chocolate mousse.

Jump to:

• What is a mousse?
• Difference between mousse and pudding
• French chocolate mousse history
• Best chocolate to make mousse au chocolat
• How to melt chocolate
• How to prevent chocolate from seizing
• What to serve with a chocolate mousse
• Is it safe to eat raw eggs in a chocolate mousse?
• Why you should try this recipe
• Ingredients
• How to make French dark chocolate mousse
• Expert tips
• Frequently asked questions
• Love chocolate recipes? Try these next!
• Recipe

What is a mousse?

Mousse (translated from French "foam") is food with incorporated air bubbles that give a light and airy texture to the dish.

A mousse is classified into sweet and savory.

Sweet mousse is mostly made of whipped cream, mounted egg whites, or both, and flavored with caramel, chocolate, fruit puree.

The airy texture of a savory mousse is due to whipped egg whites. It is usually made of meat, fish, cheese, and vegetables.

Difference between mousse and pudding

Mousse is made by folding whisked egg whites and/or whipped cream into a flavored base.

Incorporated air bubbles give a light and fluffy texture to the mousse.

Pudding is made of milk and sugar base cooked with cornstarch to get a thicker, dense consistency.

French chocolate mousse history

The first mention of chocolate mousse appeared in 1750, and it belongs to Menon, a French culinary writer. He was applying it to the "foam" of a chocolate drink.

However, the origin of real chocolate mousse known today remains secret.

Some food historians believe that it was created in the 18th century by Charles Fazi, a Swiss servant of King Louis XVI.

Others think that it would instead be invented by the French Post-Impressionist painter Toulouse-Lautrec in Montmartre. 

He would have added a little cocoa to a mousse, naming his invention as "chocolate mayonnaise"!

Best chocolate to make mousse au chocolat

It is essential to use top-quality chocolate - 70% cacao Scharffen Berger dark chocolate or Valrhona dark chocolate.

The darker the chocolate, the more intense chocolate flavor and less sweetness you will get.

You can easily replace half of the dark chocolate with milk chocolate. If you prefer milk or white chocolate, please, go for it! Your mousse will turn out lovely as well.

How to melt chocolate

There are three methods to melt chocolate:

Double boiler method (or hot water bath). Break the chocolate into small pieces and place into a glass or metal bowl placed on top of a saucepan half full with simmering water. Allow chocolate to melt, stirring constantly.

Microwave method. Place pieces of chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave at medium power (50%) for 30 seconds. Remove and stir.

Repeat this step every 30 seconds with stirring in between until small lumps remain. Remove the bowl from the microwave and stir to complete the melting.

The direct heat method is usually used to melt the chocolate added to the butter. Heat chocolate over very low heat, stirring constantly.

Remove it from the heat with small lumps remaining and stir.

How to prevent chocolate from seizing

In rare cases, when chocolate melts, it becomes a dry and rough mass instead of a smooth and shiny mixture. Is there any way to prevent this issue?

Use clean and dry bowls and metal utensils since chocolate seizes once it comes into contact with water.

Melt chocolate in a double boiler over simmering water, but not boiling. Do not cover the saucepan with a lid. It prevents any condensation of water on the inside of the lid and bowl.

What to serve with a chocolate mousse

Serve chocolate mousse (or mousse au chocolat in French) in martini or champagne glasses, in ramekins or espresso mugs, or make chocolate dessert cups.

Top mousse with fresh raspberries, making raspberry chocolate mousse (the recipe is below).

Pipe the whipped cream on top of the dessert and sprinkle with chocolate chips, shavings, or duo chocolate curls.

Top the mousse with homemade meringue and toast it with a blow torch.

Alternate layers of your favorite cookie crumbs and chocolate mousse. Sprinkle the top of the mousse with cookies.

Dust the mousse with cocoa powder and decorate with meringues and pink sugar pearls.

Peel kiwis, cut them into small cubes, and arrange them on top of chocolate mousse.

Serve the mousse with cat tongue cookies or ladyfingers.

Sprinkle the dessert with toasted chopped nuts, for example, pistachios or salted almonds.

Is it safe to eat raw eggs in a chocolate mousse?

Chocolate mousse is made with raw eggs. It is well known that eating raw eggs can cause salmonella food poisoning.

It seems that this concern is most prevalent in the USA and Canada, while raw eggs are widely used in Europe to make the famous Italian dessert Tiramisu.

To eliminate your concern about eating raw eggs, use pasteurized eggs for this recipe. However, consuming raw eggs is not advisable for pregnant women and babies.

Why you should try this recipe

1. This dark chocolate mousse recipe is straightforward: it is easy to follow and make the recipe.
2. It is a classic French dessert made from scratch, and it tasted like in Paris.
3. The dessert is perfect to finish the meal with a note of delicacy.

Ingredients

Here is a quick overview of what ingredients you will need. Follow the full recipe below for detailed amounts and instructions. I recommend making this recipe as written for the best results. 

Chocolate: Use top-quality 70% dark cacao chocolate: Scharffen Berger dark chocolate, Valrhona dark chocolate, or Lindt Excellence dark chocolate.

Replace dark chocolate with milk or white chocolate, or switch half of the dark chocolate with half of the milk chocolate if desired.

Butter: the recipe calls for unsalted butter.

Eggs: use an egg separator to separate egg whites and egg yolks while eggs are chilled. Place the whites and yolks aside to get to room temperature. It is essential to use eggs, especially egg yolks, at room temperature to prevent chocolate from seizing.

Icing sugar: make it at home using a coffee grinder or use store-bought powdered sugar.

Whipping cream: use it with at least 30% fat content.

Raspberries: use fresh raspberries to make this classic chocolate and raspberry combination. Omit berries of they are out of season.

You might argue that a classic French chocolate mousse is made of chocolate and eggs without adding cream, and you would be correct.

But the chocolate mousse with added whipped cream (which lightens the mousse) is also served in France.

For example, recipes of chocolate mousse created by French chefs such as Philippe Conticini, Gaston Lenôtre, Christophe Michalak, Christophe Felder contain whipping cream.

How to make French dark chocolate mousse

Separate egg whites from egg yolks. In a chilled bowl, whip cold whipping cream with icing sugar until soft peaks (photo 1).

In a separate clean bowl, beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until they are firmly mounted and put aside (photo 2). 

Break the chocolate into small pieces and melt with butter in a double boiler at a low simmer, stirring occasionally.

Once the chocolate is almost melted (with small lumps left), mix with a rubber spatula, pour into another bowl, and continue to stir while cooling (photo 3).

Add egg yolks one by one to the melted chocolate while mixing (photo 4).

Stir the whipped cream in the chocolate/egg yolks mixture (photo 5).

Gently fold egg whites into the main mix with the spatula, but do not stir (photo 6).

Arrange half of the raspberries at the bottom of three serving glasses and divide the mousse between them (photo 7).

Cover glasses with plastic film and refrigerate for at least two hours, preferably overnight.

Decorate the mousse's top with the remaining fresh raspberries, chocolate shavings, and gold sugar pearls before serving (photo 8).

Expert tips

1. Separate egg whites and egg yolks when they are cold. Then put them aside for them to come to room temperature. It is essential to use eggs, especially egg yolks, at room temperature to prevent chocolate from seizing.
2. Whip whipping cream and beat egg whites BEFORE melting chocolate to be ready to incorporate these ingredients into the chocolate mixture without waiting.
3. Use top-quality 70% dark cacao chocolate: Scharffen Berger dark chocolate, Valrhona dark chocolate, or Lindt Excellence dark chocolate.
4. Allow the melted chocolate to cool before adding egg yolks.
5. Add a pinch of ground cinnamon while folding in egg whites if you prefer.
6. To make chocolate shavings, scrape along the flat side of a chocolate bar using a small knife or a vegetable peeler. 
7. To store, refrigerate the mousse for up to 3 days.

Frequently asked questions

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Recipe

The nutrition information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator and is intended for informational purposes only and should be used as a general guideline. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should independently verify it using your preferred tool. Please, read the disclaimers in our Privacy Policy.

The recipe was adapted from https://gourmand.viepratique.fr/. It was originally published on March 27, 2019. The recipe has been revised to include improved content and photos. All posted pictures are mine.