Name: Dark Chocolate Mousse
Prep time: 30 min
Ingredients: 8 oz Quality Dark Chocolate (I used a mixture of 70% and 80%); ¼ cup Water; 1 tbsp Instant Espresso Powder (I used decaf); 2 tbsp Sugar; 2 Egg Yolks; 1 tbsp Sugar; 1 pinch salt; ¼ teas vanilla; 2 Egg Whites; 1 tbsp Sugar; 1 cup Heavy Cream; ¼ cup Sugar

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This dark chocolate mousse recipe is perfect for a date night at home idea. It is the best romantic dessert idea for a stay at home date. This fancy chocolate recipe is perfect for an anniversary dinner for two idea. The dark chocolate and espresso mousse is homemade and this recipe is complete with a video. Dark Chocolate mousse with espresso

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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!

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!

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 and vanilla. You can add a dash of salt as well.

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, 1/4 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 1/4 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 1/4 teas vanilla until the egg yolks become creamier and fluffier and become more pale yellow in color.

Mixing Egg Yolks — This is what the egg yolks look like when you first start mixing

Whipping Egg Yolks for Chocolate Mousse — They should end up being this color after mixing for several minutes

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.

Tempering Egg Yolks in chocolate — Slowly pour in the egg yolks and whisk it in. You want the chocolate to be warm, but not too hot.

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.

Beating egg whites into stiff peaks for Chocolate Mousse — Egg whites should look like this when ready to fold into the chocolate mixutre

With a spatula, GENTLY fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture only folding in about 1/3 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 1/4 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.

Take a bite of that rich dark chocolate mousse on a spoon

Do you like this recipe? Check out these other popular (and delish) recipes!

Homemade Churros

Dark Chocolate Sea Salt and Espresso Cookies

Shop Kitchen Equipment Used in This Recipe

Bodum Espresso Glasses

Hamilton Beach 6 Speed Electric Hand Mixer

Dark Chocolate Mousse

Emily Ackerman

This real French Dark Chocolate Mousse recipe is made with quality dark chocolate, tempered eggs and espresso as well. Perfect for a romantic dessert idea, or for a fun and fancy gathering.

5 from 6 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 mins

Refrigeration Time 4 hrs

Servings 6

Ingredients

For the Chocolate

8 oz Quality Dark Chocolate I used a mixture of 70% and 80%
¼ cup Water
1 tbsp Instant Espresso Powder I used decaf
2 tbsp Sugar

Egg Yolks

2 Egg Yolks
1 tbsp Sugar
1 pinch salt
¼ teas vanilla

Egg Whites

2 Egg Whites
1 tbsp 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!

Notes

This recipe contains raw and tempered eggs. Please always be careful consuming uncooked egg products.