The classic chocolate mousse recipe from episode 1 of Raymond Blanc's Kitchen Secrets - it has no cream or butter so it's lower in fat than other mousses, but remember to use good quality chocolate
Ingredients
- 165g dark chocolate, 70%, grated
- 240g (8) egg whites
- 40g caster sugar (or 20g fructose)
You'll also need:
- Electric mixing bowl with whisk attachment
- Bain-marie (pan for slow-heating water)
Method
- Melt the grated chocolate in a 20cm bowl set over a pan of simmering water, for 10 mins or so. Then turn the heat off.
- In an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk the egg whites and sugar until they form soft but firm peaks.
- Then, to make your work easy, place the mixing bowl with the egg white on your worktop with a large spatula by its side.
- Remove the bowl of melted chocolate from the bain-marie, place it next to the bowl of egg white and have a whisk ready by its side. Now you must work fast. Scoop a third of the egg white into the melted chocolate and abruptly and with no mercy whisk the egg white in; this will lighten the chocolate mixture for further incorporation of the egg white.
- Now you take your time. Delicately fold in the remaining egg white using the spatula. Your chocolate mousse is now ready.
- Pour into a serving bowl or individual glasses, as you wish, and leave to set in the fridge for 2 hours or until required.
Top Tip for making Raymond Blanc's bitter chocolate mousse
Enemy number one of chocolate is water. Egg white is 90% water. It is also a cold mass, which you are going to mix with a warm mass. If you mix in slowly, the chocolate is likely to seize up and solidify. To prevent this, fast whisking is essential.