Classic Chocolate Mousse and Espresso Coffee Chocolate Chip Mousse Cake Recipe

Yesterday was my birthday. As you may have seen the past few years reading my site, in Italy it’s custom for the birthday gal/guy to bring treats & drinks into the office to share with colleagues. I usually bring something, and I enjoy a little indulgence in making something I know I will like, and fuggeddabout everyone else, because hey, it’s my birthday. Now that I work in a distributed company with no offices, I knew my birthday treat would have to be completely virtual.

While I was brainstorming what I would make for my birthday, mousse kept popping up in my mind. Mousse. Mousse. Chocolate mousse is a favorite, but I wanted to put a spin on it somehow, so I decided to make a Mousse Cake with two different types of mousse: Espresso mousse with chopped chocolate sprinkled through, with a second layer of classic chocolate mousse, all on top of a thin, rough sugared almond crust. The crust I did almost as an afterthought, if I did it again I would praline the almonds first, then chop them up for the crust.

But back to why I like mousse so much.

My mom used to make mousse and when I thought of how I’d make this cake, I looked at some online recipes for comparison but decided to stick with her recipe. It was a taste I’d instantly recognize, and it would be a great combination of combining the old (her recipe) with the new (my new recipe for the espresso mousse).

And an aside about family recipes: one of the first things I did went I moved abroad was start asking my mom for our family recipes. We exchanged several emails and I dutifully saved them and started trying to bring a little home into my new home in Italy. When Google Docs was announced in 2006, one of the first things I did was move our Recipe Book online, and now my mom and I both have access to and edit it. Now when I need a recipe, she just puts it into our document (my mom is literally a high-tech mama, so it’s no sweat for her). If you’ve wanted to start gathering your family recipes, using Google Docs is a great way to do it collaboratively, and you’ll always be able to access it from a friend’s house where you’re cooking Thanksgiving dinner, or when you want to make a special dessert that you are missing.

[And I want to hear from you – are you collecting family recipes? Do you collaborate online with your family to do it?]

Chocolate mousse in particular is one of my favorite recipes from my Mom, and I haven’t made it at all since I moved to Italy, but I have no idea why, probably because I haven’t had a freezer big enough to attempt it. I remember when my mom would make a large batch of chocolate mousse, pour them into individual serving glasses, leave a few in the fridge and put the rest into the freezer for later. I always knew we could have more later :)

When I was in elementary school, in 3rd grade to be exact, our class was examining other cultures’ history and foods, and the entire class gathered at my teacher’s house for an international meal. I was assigned France, and I was proud when my mom made this dessert and I brought it with me. There wasn’t a single serving left at the end.

So Mom, you did celebrate my birthday with me. :)

Mousse Cake Recipe

Tips: To make a mousse cake, you’ll need to plan in advance since one layer must set before pouring on the second layer, hours later. I recommend starting the morning before you serve it (that evening) or an entire day before so the mousse has time to set. I put my mousse in the freezer because I wanted to speed things up, and I don’t mind it a little more solid. Line the bottom of the spring-form pan with parchment paper and the sides of the pan, too, else you’ll need to run a warm knife around the edges of the cake before releasing the pan.

If freezing the mousse cake, be sure to take out 15-30 minutes before serving so it can have a chance to thaw. You can also put it in the refrigerator an hour before serving.

I also garnished the top of the cake with a little loose cocoa powder, or you could use pralined nuts or caramel sauce if desired!

Jill’s Classic Chocolate Mousse Recipe

Notes: This recipe is originally 3x every ingredient listed below but I reduced it all because I made two different mousse for the cake. If just making the mousse, I suggest tripling everything (1/3 pint cream becomes one whole pint, 4 oz. chocolate becomes 12oz., etc.), and it will serve 8-10 people.

4 oz. Chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate (about 120g)
1/4 c. water
1/4 c. White sugar
1/3 pint whipping cream (it’s 157ml, but I used 200ml)
½ t. Instant coffee
1 egg, beaten

1. Chop chocolate roughly by hand and put into a blender or mini-prep. Pulse lightly to create smaller pieces. Set aside.
2. Whip whipping cream with hand mixer until stiff peaks are formed – but not too long so butter does not form. I suggest using a large glass bowl.
3. Boil coffee, sugar, and water for three minutes. Pour into the chocolate chips in the blender. Add egg quickly, while syrup is still hot (the eggs will be raw in this recipe). If using a mini-prep like I did, I took the syrup off the heat, and poured the chocolate into the pan and then the egg, and used the hand wand to mix instead of a blender. Note: be very careful of splashes as it’s hot!
4. Blend mixture until a pudding-like consistency occurs. Fold this chocolate mixture into the whipping cream and use a rubber spatula to gently mix it.
5. If serving on its own, serve into individual serving dishes – refrigerate for 4 hours before serving, or freeze (can be frozen up to 6 weeks). If making the cake, pour into the mold and refrigerate for several hours.

Sara’s Espresso Coffee Chocolate Chip Mousse Recipe

1/4 c. espresso
1/4 c. White sugar
8oz whipping cream (about 250ml)
1 egg, beaten
50g (2oz. of chocolate) of dark chocolate, chopped roughly

1. Brew coffee, and pour into small saucepan, set aside.
2. Whip whipping cream with hand mixer until stiff peaks are formed – but not too long so butter does not form. I suggest using a large glass bowl.
3. Boil coffee and sugar together for three minutes. Add egg quickly, while syrup is still hot (the eggs will be raw in this recipe). If using a mini-prep like I did, I took the syrup off the heat, added the egg and used the hand wand to mix instead of a blender. Note: be very careful of splashes as it’s hot!
4. Fold this mixture into the whipping cream. Use a rubber spatula to gently mix. Fold the chopped chocolate into the mousse mix.
5. If serving on its own, serve into individual serving dishes – refrigerate for 4 hours before serving, or freeze (can be frozen up to 6 weeks). If making the cake, pour into the mold and refrigerate for several hours.