Chocolate Mousse

Published February 11, 2020

This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.

The best Chocolate Mousse! Decadently creamy, light and billowy, and indulgently chocolaty. This recipe is a staple for chocolate lovers everywhere!

Looking for more heavenly desserts? Then also try my classic Cheesecake, Chocolate Covered Strawberries, or Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes.

Glass full of chocolate mousse topped with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

When there’s chocolate mousse this good being served there is just absolutely no resisting! Each bite melts away in your mouth and that level of unparalleled richness can’t be matched!

If only it could qualify for breakfast. I could live on this delicious treat, it’s always been one of my favorites!

The perfect finishing touch for this mousse is simple and delicate whipped cream and thin shavings of dark chocolate. Not only does it make it look elegant and add visually appealing variation but it just compliments and finishes it off as it should be.

Of course this is no diet friendly menu item and low calorie dessert but it’s worth every bit of it. All things in moderation.

Mousse Made without Raw Eggs!

With this mousse recipe there’s no worries about food borne illness since there are no raw eggs in this recipe. Here we cook the egg yolk mixture to 160 degrees to kill off any potentially harmful bacteria.

So it’s a dessert you don’t have to worry about serving to guests. Everyone will be smitten with this cup full of chocolate bliss!

And it really is less intimidating to make than you may think. Just a few simple steps, then the hardest part is the wait times while chilling, but the patience is worth it!

6 servings of chocolate mousse in small glass cups.

Ingredients Needed to Make Chocolate Mousse

You’ll only need 5 ingredients for this recipe!

  • Heavy cream – this rich ingredient makes the mousse light and fluffy and amazingly decadent.
  • Egg yolks – this thickens up custard mixture in the mousse and boosts richness.
  • Granulated sugar – you can adjust this slightly to taste.
  • Vanilla extract – I usually like to add a fair amount of vanilla to chocolate desserts. It compliments those flavors so nicely.
  • Bittersweet chocolate – use chocolate baking bars or other good quality chocolate bars.
  • Sea salt (optional) – regular table salt works fine too. You only need to add a pinch or two, and honestly it can even be omitted. It just picks up the flavors a bit.

Ingredients to make chocolate mousse shown in this image.

How to Make Chocolate Mousse

  • 1. Whip egg yolks and sugar: In medium mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer whip together egg yolks and granulated sugar on high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
  • 2. Heat 3/4 cup cream: Warm 3/4 cup of the heavy cream in a 2-quart saucepan on the stovetop over low heat until hot.
  • 3. Temper eggs with cream mixture: While whisking egg mixture slowly pour in warm cream mixture to temper egg yolks. Then pour combined egg yolk and cream mixture back into saucepan.
  • 4. Cook mixture to 160 degrees: Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens just slightly and reaches 160 degrees on an instant read thermometer. If you notice any clumps strain through a sieve and return to saucepan.

Mixing egg yolks and sugar with electric mixer. Tempering egg yolks in mixing bowl for mousse and cooking mixture in saucepan.

  • 5. Melt in chocolate: Off heat add in chocolate, stir until melted.
  • 6. Let cool to room temp: Pour mixture into a clean medium bowl, cover and chill, stirring about every 10 – 15 minutes until it reaches 70 degrees (or no longer warm), about 30 – 40 minutes total.
  • 7. Whip remaining cream, fold into chocolate mixture: Whip remaining heavy cream until very stiff peaks form. Fold whipped cream into chocolate mixture until combined.
  • 8. Divide mixture among dessert cups, chill: Pipe or spoon into dessert cups. Chill 2 hours. Top with sweetened whipped cream if desired and garnish with shaved or grated chocolate.

Melting chocolate into custard mousse mixture.Folding whipped cream into chocolate mousse mixture.

How to Store Mousse:

Keep mousse in the fridge. It is best served cold but if it has been refrigerated overnight, for a softer consistency you can let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving.

How Long Does This Mousse Keep?

It should keep well for about 3 days in the refrigerator, it will lose some of it’s volume (that air whipped into the cream) but the taste will remain the same.

Can I Use This Mousse for Cake?

This mousse should also work well added to cakes, I would add it as a topping rather than a filling.

Tips:

  • Don’t skip the tempering step (when whisking warm mixture into egg yolks) this keeps them from scrambling. Also once in pan you must whisk constantly to avoid lumps and scrambling.
  • If you do end up with a few tiny lumps the sieve the mixture before adding the chocolate.
  • If chocolate doesn’t melt fully off heat you can return to warm heat and stir constantly to melt.
  • Use real chocolate and good quality chocolate. It will only taste as good as what you put into it.
  • For fluffiest whipped cream try using a chilled bowl and beater blades when whipping.
  • Don’t let chocolate mixture chill through, it should just get about to room temp (70 degrees). Cool enough that it doesn’t melt the whipped cream but not so cold the chocolate starts to harden and mixture ends up clumpy when folding in the cream.
  • Chill finished mousse before serving for great texture and refreshing taste.

Close up image of chocolate mousse covered with whipped cream. Spoonful removed to show fluffy texture of interior.

Variations:

  • With this recipe you can use semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate depending on how strong you’d like the chocolate flavor to be. Even dark like 70% if you like it bold would work.
  • You can adjust sugar amount slightly to taste. Stick with granulated sugar here to sweeten.
  • Try with a little peppermint extract for a festive flavor and finish with fine crushed peppermint candies or add coconut extract to the whipped cream and finish with fine coconut.
  • Finish with a garnish of fine chopped slivered almonds or macadamia nuts for another layer of decadence and texture.
  • Sometimes I serve these in mini cups and make 12 servings instead of 6. A fun size treat for parties.

Spoonful of chocolate mousse

More Mousse Recipes You’ll Love!

16 Quick & Easy 30 Minute Recipes! (plus weekly recipe updates)

Chocolate Mousse
4.92 from 23 votes

Chocolate Mousse

Perfect Chocolate Mousse! Decadently creamy, light and billowy, and indulgently chocolaty. This recipe is a staple for chocolate lovers everywhere!
Servings: 6
Prep20 minutes
Cook5 minutes
Resting2 hours 30 minutes
Ready in: 2 hours 55 minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

  • In medium mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer whip together egg yolks and granulated sugar on high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
  • Warm 3/4 cup of the heavy cream and salt in a 2-quart saucepan on the stovetop over low heat (don't let it boil).
  • While whisking egg mixture slowly pour in warm cream mixture to temper egg yolks. Then pour combined egg yolk and cream mixture back into saucepan.
  • Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens just slightly and reaches 160 degrees on an instant read thermometer (this usually takes about 3 - 5 minutes). If you notice any small lumps strain through a sieve and return to saucepan.
  • Off heat add in chocolate and vanilla. Stir well until chocolate is melted.
  • Pour mixture into a clean medium bowl, cover and chill, stirring about every 10 - 15 minutes until it reaches 70 degrees (or no longer warm), about 30 - 40 minutes total.***
  • Whip remaining heavy cream until very stiff peaks form.**** Fold whipped cream into chocolate mixture until combined.
  • Pipe or spoon into dessert cups. Chill 2 hours. Top with sweetened whipped cream if desired and garnish with shaved or grated chocolate.

Notes

  • *If you want whipped cream for topping I used about 1/2 cup cream, whipped with 1 Tbsp sugar.
  • **If you'd like it less intensely chocolatey you can use semi-sweet chocolate, if you'd like it more intensely chocolate and less sweet then you can reduce sugar to 2 Tbsp.
  • ***Don't let chocolate mixture get too cold or it can start to harden and set and mixture will end up lumpy when folding in whipped cream.
  • ****Using a chilled bowl is helpful when whipping cream, it whips faster and ends up fluffier.
  • Nutrition estimate is for mousse only, no added toppings.
Nutrition Facts
Chocolate Mousse
Amount Per Serving
Calories 538 Calories from Fat 405
% Daily Value*
Fat 45g69%
Saturated Fat 27g169%
Cholesterol 234mg78%
Sodium 46mg2%
Potassium 259mg7%
Carbohydrates 28g9%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 21g23%
Protein 5g10%
Vitamin A 1346IU27%
Vitamin C 1mg1%
Calcium 87mg9%
Iron 2mg11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition values are estimates only. See full disclaimer here.
Recipe inspired by Gourmet and Betty Crocker

Leave a Comment

Rate this recipe




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

69 Comments

  • Sarah Barili

    This turned out pretty well but my mousse was much lighter in color than the mousse in your pictures. It still tastes pretty rich but am leaving the whipped cream garnish off as it already has quite a bit of cream.

  • Harshitha

    Followed the recipe to the T and it turned out really nice! I recently made it for my family and I couldn’t stop eating :) The steps were very clear and easy to follow. I’ll definitely be coming back to try out more recipes..Thank you!

  • Darlene

    I made this for a gathering with friends…hands down it was the first dessert to be completely gone! I placed the mousse in small glasses, topped with the whipped cream, added a raspberry, white chocolate shavings and some mini chocolate Ghirardelli pieces for the final touch. The mousse was smooth, perfect intensity of chocolate and looked elegant! Thank you for a great dessert.

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      I’m sure they were beautiful! Love your finishes! Thanks for reviewing Darlene!

  • Genn

    This sounds delicious!! I’m confused about your nutrition information estimates though. The recipe calls for 50 grams of sugar (1/4 cup) and makes 6 servings, but the information in the box says one serving contains 21 grams of sugar. The other ingredients don’t have much sugar in them, so wouldn’t a serving have about 9-10 grams of sugar?

    I’m watching my sugars, so I know the daily value for sugars is 50g– so 21g can’t possibly be 23% of the DV. Help me! :) :)

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      The nutrition calculator is showing that 59 grams is from sugar and 72 is from bittersweet chocolate. The chocolate can definitely vary so I’d just check your labels. Hope that helps!

  • Nancy

    I noticed it says not to let it get too cold or it would harden. Does that mean you have to eat it right away or can leftover mousse stay in the fridge overnight for the next day?

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      Leftover mousse can stay in the fridge for a few days. You can let it rest at room temp for a little while before serving if you want it to soften up a little.

  • Mo

    This turned out perfect omg! I ended up leaving my chocolate mixture in the fridge for too long which did make harden it too much, but I mixed it a good bit to get it more workable. When I went to combine the chocolate mixture with the whipped cream, the whipped cream definitely didn’t mix easily at first but after a long time of patient folding, I got it combined! Although it wasn’t perfect it was still delicious!! 10/10 recipe. Next time I won’t leave my house while I’m in the middle of making mousse

  • Marilyn J. Johnson

    Not sure what happened but didn’t come out well at all. After refrigeration of the chocolate, it was thick like fudge. I softened it by warming it slightly and beating it. Then I tried to fold in the whip cream. It came out very grainy, thick and nothing like mousse. I don’t know where I went wrong.

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      Sorry to hear that! I believe what happened is that the chocolate got too cold and started to harden before you mixed in the whipped cream, it’s imperative that it doesn’t solidify at that step.

    • Karen

      I also had this issue. It was perfectly airy but decadent before refrigerating (after the whipped cream was folded in). Then the morning after, it’s dense and not airy anymore. It is the texture of mousse cakes or pies that you would need to cut into and it holds its shape quite stiffly. Still tasty, but not what I think of for a luxurious, airy alternative to pudding.

      I do not believe this has to do with when the whipped cream was folded in. I weighed my ingredients for precise measurement and used a thermometer at all appropriate steps. Perhaps I need to add more whipped cream for a lighter texture. The taste was good, but the texture is not what I was looking for if I want to make it ahead of time.

      • Jaclyn

        Jaclyn Bell

        Yes unfortunately mousse does tend to deflate as it rests, texturally it’s at it’s prime the day it’s made. Egg whites may help some but I prefer to leave raw eggs out of it.