CHOCOLATE MOUSSE. WHAT'S NOT TO LOVE?

Um, nothing.

It’s simple, rich and creamy, with the added advantage that you can eat it from the bowl while sitting up in bed. (What, you’ve never done that?)

There are many more reasons why chocolate mousse is An Excellent Thing.

It’s perfectly easy to whip together. It uses very few ingredients – chocolate, eggs, sugar. It can be made ahead of time. It has history – dating back to the eighteenth century, and yet it is not old-fashioned. In fact, it’s rather glamorous.

It has intensity and richness, yet it is light and foamy.

Mostly, it’s because it tastes of chocolate (and booze, if you want).

But the very last reason is the best: everyone loves it.

Say no more.

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

• 200 g bitter chocolate (Lindt 70% is perfect)

• 3 large or 4 medium eggs, at room temperature

• 50g caster sugar

• 1 tbsp Cognac, whisky, Grand Marnier, your choice

• 150 ml thickened or whipping cream

• Dash of vanilla extract

First, cut half of one block of chocolate (50 g) into thin shards with a sharp, heavy knife, and set aside for serving.

Melt the remaining block and a half (150 g) chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, then set aside to cool down a bit.

Separate the eggs - whites into one bowl, yolks into another.

Add the sugar and Cognac to the yolks and use a hand-held electric beater to beat until thick, pale and creamy.

Gently fold the chocolate and egg yolk mixture together.

Clean and dry the beaters, and beat the egg whites, slowly at first, then at high speed, until foamy and forming firm peaks.

Add a large spoonful of beaten egg white to the chocolate mixture, then gently fold in the remaining egg white, trying to keep as much air in the mix as possible.

Pour or spoon into a serving bowl or individual bowls, and chill for a few hours or overnight, until set.

To serve, beat the cream and vanilla until it forms soft peaks, and spoon on top of the mousse.

Scatter with the reserved chocolate shards, if you haven’t eaten them all by now, and serve with berries. Makes 4 small or 2 large serves.

# A lot of chocolate mousse recipes include cream as an ingredient. I prefer keeping it separate, for serving, as a contrast.

# If you like sweet cream, whip it with a tablespoon of icing sugar. Again, I prefer it slightly more stand-offish, as a contrast to the ridiculous intensity of the chocolate.

# This is a lovely choice for a romantic dinner such as St. Valentine’s Day, but it’s also brilliant to bring out as a communal dessert at the end of a long lunch, with coffee. Maybe with savoiardi sponge finger biscuits for swiping through the mousse.

# Here’s one I’ve dubbed “Oops, I Dropped The Chocolate Mousse” as an homage to the famous/infamous “Oops, I Dropped The Lemon Tart” by Italy’s most mischievous chef, Massimo Bottura, who I adore. People say he’s a little bit crazy, because they misread his passion and enthusiasm; but I say he’s extremely sensible; the way an artist has to be sensible or would never actually produce any art. Like all great chefs, he’s a great person first and foremost, and pays great attention to his inner child, in terms of living his life as a bubbling fountain of joyful creativity.

And here’s one I’ve dubbed The Trolley of Love, at Melbourne’s Maison Batard; an intensely rich restaurant experience in itself; a fever dream of Champagnes and French sommeliers with the high-level energy and non-stop party atmosphere of a Parisian brasserie. It opened late 2024, and I loved it on sight. It got behind my defences (and my credit card), because it felt like a huge bouquet of scented roses thrown at Melbourne, a love letter to the city and its European sensibilities; and because - like a true brasserie - it attracts all types, and that’s the fun of it.

If you go, dinner must culminate in the Chocolate Mousse trolley pulling up alongside your table. It’s just the most drop-dead beautiful thing to share, skilfully and generously served and presented. Then you’re left alone with the one you’ve chosen to share chocolate mousse with; spooning. What is not to love about that?

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Thanks for dropping by! And thanks for your comments and suggestions. Special thanks to Terry for the chocolate. And the love.

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I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands and waters upon which I work, live, cook and play; the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Thank you for sharing your culture, traditions, knowledge, spirit, art, music, humour and food traditions, allowing us all to experience a greater sense of belonging in this ancient land.