i made these delicious mousses last week to celebrate valentine’s day with the irishman and i simply had to share this recipe with you. making mousse can be a scary task to take on, but as you will see below, anyone can do it. this rich dark chocolate mousse was a lovely treat!

here is how the story goes: over christmas, i got my first set of le creuset dishes from the irishman’s sister and brother in law (had to make sure to include him too!). i have always wanted some le creuset and was thrilled to get these super cute dishes as a present from them. 

aren’t they cute!!

inside the top box there was a recipe for a dark chocolate mousse that i just knew i had to make for valentine’s day. i was a bit daunted by it, because i had never made mousse before but that did not stop me. i figured i would at least try and if i failed i had the pictures to prove i gave it my best effort. ha! i also really, really wanted to try out my new le creuset ramekins! 

and so, i went on and made these cute and delicious mousses.  thankfully i did not fail and had a delicious result. here is the recipe for dark chocolate mousse with raspberry liqueur!!

INGREDIENTS:
base:
3 sponge fingers 
2 tbs raspberry liqueur
6 fresh raspberries

mousse:
2 1/2 oz good quality dark chocolate (minimum 70% cocoa)
1 egg - separated
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 tbs granulated sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
pinch of salt 

glazed raspberry topping:
1 tbs sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tbs raspberry liqueur
1 tsp cornstarch mixed with 1 tbs cold water
2 oz raspberries 

INSTRUCTIONS:
break the sponge fingers in half.  

place 3 halves in the base of each dish. 

pour a tablespoon of liqueur unto each dish and allow to soak. 

after a minute of them soaking, press the lady fingers down with your fingers to squish them into the bottom of the dish. top them with 3 raspberries and set aside. 

now, let’s get started on the mousse. 

separate your egg if you haven’t already. 

we need to melt the chocolate. 

but we can’t just melt it in the microwave (that would be way too easy).  create a double boiler by simmering some water in a sauce pan. 

place a heat safe bowl over and add the chocolate. the bowl should never touch the water and the water should never boil. 

while the chocolate is melting, whisk together the egg yolk, vanilla extract and sugar. 

at this point the chocolate should be melted. 

remove from the heat and let it cool slightly. stir in one tablespoon of the heavy cream. 

whisk the egg yolk mixture into the chocolate bit by bit. 

in a separate bowl, whisk the remaining cream until think but not stiff. stir that into the chocolate. 

let me tell you, at this point my arm was hurtin’ from all that whisking!

so this is what the mousse looked like after stirring in the cream and egg yolk. 

whisk the egg white with a tiny pinch of salt until stiff peaks start to form. 

gently fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture. 

make sure to do this gently. 

divide the mousse mixture between your two dishes and cover them. 

place in the fridge for at least 2 hours to allow them to set. 

after about 2 hours have passed, it is time to glaze the raspberries. 

gently heat the sugar, lemon juice, raspberry liqueur, cornstarch and water. 

heat slowly until the mixture has thickened. 

stir in the raspberries and continue to cook for a few more seconds. 

place them in a small bowl and send them to fridge for at least 15 minutes. 

top the mouse with the glazed strawberries and serve. 

i was very happy with this mousse. it was fluffy and had just the right amount of sweetness. 

the raspberry liqueur did not overpower the mousse but complemented the chocolate very well. 

this dessert is a definite stunner, look at it:

it was as delicious as it was pretty. 

well, that’s it for now. thank you for stopping by the blog. i hope you are having a great week!

hasta luego,