This rich yet light chocolate dessert is a French classic. Making it requires little time, and the result is a dessert equally at home at a picnic as at a fancy dinner party. My recipe is a restaurant chocolate mousse, and I've scaled it down to serve 10. You can also cut the recipe in half with no issue.
250gramschocolate9 ounces or about 1 1/2 cups, I used a mixture of Ghirardelli semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips
For the Custard
100gramsheavy cream3.5 oz or a scant 1/2 cup
100gramswhole milk3.5 oz or a scant 1/2 cup
50gramsgranulated sugar1.8 oz or about 1/4 cup
50 gramscorn syrup1.8 oz or 1/3 cup, sub Lyle's golden syrup, maple syrup, or honey
3gramssalt1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal or a slightly generous 1/2 teaspoon of Morton's kosher salt
4-6egg yolksI used 5 yolks, but you can make it slightly less (or more) rich by using 4 or 6
1Tablespoonvanilla extract and/or liqueur14 grams
To Make the Mousse
340gramsheavy cream12 oz or 1 1/2 cups, cold
Instructions
Chop the chocolate (if in bars) and place in a large, heat-proof bowl convenient to the stove. If it is cold in your kitchen, heat the chocolate in the microwave for about 30 seconds to ensure it melts completely. Place a fine mesh strainer over the bowl of chocolate.
For the Custard
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the heavy cream, whole milk, granulated sugar, corn syrup, and salt.
Add the yolks to a medium bowl and whisk to break them up. Set aside, convenient to the stove.
Heat the dairy mixture over medium-high heat, whisking frequently, until it steams.
Pour about half the hot dairy into the egg yolks, whisking constantly. Then pour the yolk mixture back into the pot. Whisk and whisk. the mixture will get foamy. Continue to cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and most of the foam dissipates.
Immediately pour the custard through the fine mesh strainer into the chocolate. Press the mixture through, and don't forget to scrape the back of the strainer to get all the custard into the chocolate.
Allow the custard to sit for about a minute, and then whisk until you have a shiny chocolate custard with no lumps and no streaks of yellow. Stir in the vanilla and/or liqueur. Let this mixture cool for 20-30 minutes until it is room temperature.
To Make the Mousse
In a large bowl with a whisk, or using a hand mixer or stand mixer, whip the heavy cream until it reaches soft peaks. Do not take it to more than medium peaks.
Scrape the chocolate custard into the bowl of heavy cream, and gently whisk the two mixtures together until most streaks are gone. Finish up by folding with a large spatula until there are no streaks remaining.
Scrape into ramekins/bowls/containers of your choice, or leave it in one big container and scoop to serve. Either way, refrigerate for 4 hours to let the mousse set up. Remove from the fridge about 30 minutes before serving.
Serve plain or with some lightly sweetened whipped cream. Store leftovers in the fridge, covered, for up to 4 days.
Notes
A Note About the Corn Syrup
You may substitute with any liquid sugar you would like, but do not omit it altogether. The thick syrup is important to the final texture of the mousse, and without it, it could set up too firmly. It will still be tasty, but it won't be quite as ethereal.
Variations
The two easiest ways to change the flavor are to use different types of chocolate and/or different types of liqueurs. Hazelnut liqueur like Frangelico, almond liqueur like Amaretto, Bailey's, Creme de menthe, Chambord, and Grand Marnier or Cointreau are all excellent choices for liqueurs. You may use vanilla in conjunction with liqueur, use vanilla alone, or use only liqueur.