While cooking, listen to this: Le Blaireu Riche - Livia

How good does chocolate mousse sound right now?

I mean, it always sounds good. Stupid question. But at this particular moment in time, all I can think about is how terribly I wish I had a bowl (read: vat) in front of me and en route to my face. I can't really think about anything else. Can I blame my uterus? Probably! But either way here we are.

Chocolate mousse wasn't originally on our recipe list, but after Alyssa tried some that I made for a friend's dinner recently, she insisted we make it and I would never stand in the way of someone's dream.

Now, I wanted to make it all fancy-like by putting it into homemade meringue shells. When I made dessert for that dinner the nests came out beautifully, but when I made them again and the nests knew they would be photographed, they pulled a fast one on me and came out hideously. I smashed them in revenge and used them as a garnish. Don't test me, meringues.

Mousse might seem complicated and daunting but it's crazy easy and can be ready in under 1 hour. Heavy cream, sugar and egg yolks get heated up a bit and poured over chocolate and vanilla, and then more heavy cream and sugar are whipped into a frenzy and folded in. And that's it! Mousse is essentially a metric fuck ton of whipped cream, sugar, egg yolks and flavor. All good, not scary things.

When topped with berries, whipped cream or scheming meringues, it'll look extra pretty. We eat with our eyes first, even if we then eat by shoving large spoonfuls into our mouths.

Love and meows, Rina

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

Yield: 4-6

Active Cook Time: 15m | Chilling Time: 30m (up to 3 days)

Category: Sweet, Chocolate, Spoonable

Source: Martha Stewart

Equipment: mesh sieve/strainer, medium sauce pan, whisk, stand/hand mixer (optional but super helpful)

Ingredients

4 large egg yolks*

2 cups cold heavy cream, divided**

4 Tablespoons granulated sugar, divided

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (or chocolate of choice)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

*make meringues or an omelette with the leftover egg whites!

**the colder the cream, the better it will whip! some people even put their bowl and beater into the fridge for extra chill.

Instructions

Prepare mise-en-place: add the chocolate and vanilla to a heat-proof bowl and set a strainer/mesh sieve on top. Set aside.

Cook base: In a medium sauce pan, whisk together the egg yolks, ¾ cup heavy cream and 2 Tablespoons sugar. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture can coat the back of a spoon. This happens pretty quickly, about 3-4 minutes. Don't let it boil. Turn off heat and pour hot mixture through the strainer and into the chocolate. Allow to sit for 30 seconds, then stir until the chocolate is completely melted. Allow to cool.

Whip cream: while the chocolate mixture is cooling, whip the remaining ¾ cup heavy cream with the remaining 2 Tablespoons sugar until stiff peaks form, just a few minutes. Fold about ⅓ of the whipped cream into the cooled chocolate mixture, then add this to the bowl of whipped cream. Fold gently to incorporate and to keep the airiness of the whipped cream. Better to have a few streaks of whipped cream or chocolate than a deflated mousse.

Chill and serve: resist the temptation to down this at once and stick the mousse in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Top with berries, more whipped cream or any topping of choice.

To keep: the mousse will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days, making it a great make-ahead recipe.