Rich, creamy, smooth and oh-so-chocolatey, there's nothing quite like milk chocolate mousse. It's simplistic but so luxurious and satisfying.
This Milk Chocolate Mousse offers so much to delight the senses in all the right ways, spoonful after wonderful spoonful.
Looking for more mousse? Try 5-Ingredient Dark Chocolate Mousse (made with cocoa powder).
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Why you’ll love this recipe
- Simple ingredients create a decadent yet easy dessert
- Adding coffee enhances and deepens the rich flavor
- Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings
- Customize this classic chocolate mousse with flavored liqueur or extracts
- Serve it in small bowls, cups, juice glasses or even martini glasses
Ingredients & substitutions
- Milk chocolate: gives the mousse a sweeter taste than dark chocolate. Use your favorite brand
- Butter: I like to use unsalted butter so I can control the amount of salt in the recipe
- Coffee: you only need 2 tablespoons, so reserve some from your morning cup
- Eggs: separate the whites from the yolks before using
- Granulated sugar
- Heavy whipping cream: makes a thick, silky and rich mousse. Use an extra dollop on top once it’s finished. While heavy cream is best for this recipe, you could substitute whole milk. I don’t recommend using anything with less fat (like 2% or skim milk), as it will affect the texture and the mousse won’t be as rich or thick. While I have not tried making this recipe with coconut milk, you could try substituting the heavy cream with full-fat coconut milk. Refrigerate the can of coconut milk overnight, then open the can and pour off the liquid. Use only the thick part of the coconut milk for this recipe in place of the heavy cream.
- Kosher salt
- Vanilla extract: it’s important to use high-quality vanilla instead of imitation vanilla, as it will affect the flavor
- Chocolate shavings: optional, for garnish. Let a milk chocolate bar soften at room temperature. Then use a vegetable peeler to shave the edge of the bar to create curls. Or run the bar along a cheese grater to make smaller pieces
How to achieve a rich and creamy texture for chocolate mousse
When indulging in chocolate mousse, we are expecting a strong chocolate flavor, a richness from the cream and eggs, yet a balanced lightness to create the perfect mouthfeel.
To achieve all of this, I started by using milk chocolate in this mousse recipe. The milk chocolate has a sweet taste but a full chocolate flavor that's enhanced and complemented by the strong coffee in the recipe.
I found that using bittersweet or dark chocolate made this chocolate mousse a bit too bitter than what I was going for here. I wanted a recipe that was as kid-friendly as it is adult-friendly, so milk chocolate was the right choice for this chocolate mousse.
I was able to achieve the perfect dark chocolate flavor I wanted for mousse with my 5-Ingredient Mousse with Cocoa Powder!
A full cup of heavy cream is used in this mousse recipe which helps develop a richness and creaminess that's unmatched. By folding it in gently to the chocolate, the whipped cream helps create a smoothness that's idyllic in chocolate mousse.
Folding in the cream also helps maintain a lightness to the mousse. One additional tip I learned from Cooks Illustrated that I incorporated here was not to beat the egg yolks before adding them in.
Beating the egg yolks creates too much air in this recipe, which can dilute the chocolate flavor. Definitely not what we are going for here.
How to make milk chocolate mousse
Step 1
Start by coarsely chopping the chocolate. Next, temper it over low heat. To temper chocolate, set a saucepan with a small amount of water (about 1-2 inches deep) over low heat and place a heatproof bowl over the top of the pan.
Place the chocolate in the bowl and stir occasionally. The steam from the simmering water will gently melt the chocolate.
Step 2
Add the butter one tablespoon at a time until melted. Stir in the vanilla, hot coffee and salt. Remove the bowl from the pan of water.
Step 3
Add the egg whites to a clean bowl set over the pan of simmering water. Stir them constantly so they don't scramble, just until they're warm. Remove the bowl from the pan.
Step 4
Use a hand mixer or stand mixer to whip the egg whites while gradually adding the sugar. Continue whipping until they form soft peaks. (See below for a how-to.) Gently fold the eggs into the chocolate mixture.
Step 5
Finally, beat the heavy cream in a large bowl until it forms soft peaks. Fold it into the chocolate mixture. Spoon the chocolate mousse into 6 to 8 ramekins or small dishes and set in the fridge, covered, for at least 2 hours.
Step 6
Add a dollop of the remaining whipped cream and some chocolate shavings just before serving.
How to whip egg whites and heavy cream to soft peaks
This recipe calls for whipping the egg whites and the heavy cream (separately) to soft peaks. This means when you lift the whisk away from the eggs or cream, the peaks are just starting to hold their shape, yet stay soft and melt back into themselves after a second.
When you're whipping, watch what's going on in the bowl for visual cues that the egg whites or cream are starting to come together. Stop whipping every once in a while, lift the whisk out of the bowl and see how they're progressing.
Over-whipping the eggs or heavy cream past the soft peak stage can make your mousse grainy. As a general rule, it takes about 3-5 minutes before soft peaks form. Stop every minute or so to check the consistency to avoid over whipping.
How to fold in egg whites and whipped cream
Once you have whipped the egg whites and cream to soft peaks, the recipe calls for folding these into the chocolate mixture. We want to do this to maintain a light texture for the chocolate mousse.
To fold, use a scoop and fold motion. Use a rubber spatula with a wide and flexible blade for this. A wide spatula helps scoop more of the mixture at once and makes the task go more quickly.
A flexible blade helps you scrape along the curve of the bowl and scoop up every last bit of the liquid batter. Use a big bowl, as this will give you the space you need to get under the batter and scoop and fold properly. Here's a great step-by-step resource for folding in egg whites or heavy cream.
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Pro Tips
- Plan to make this chocolate mousse at least 2 hours, preferably more, before you plan to serve it. The flavors need time to blend while chilling in the fridge. And the mousse needs time to firm up. Serve the chocolate mousse within 24 hours after preparing it. If you wait longer, the flavor and texture will begin to deteriorate
- After you chop the milk chocolate, save the little shavings and small pieces left on your cutting board for garnishing the mousse when you are serving it. This makes for a nice touch and you won't have to take an extra step to shave more chocolate for garnishing
- For more flavor variations, try substituting equal amounts of your favorite flavored liquor or rum for the coffee
FOR ALL MY FAVORITE BAKING TOOLS INCLUDING THOSE USED TO MAKE THIS RECIPE, CHECK OUT MY BAKING RESOURCES PAGE!
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 ounces milk chocolate coarsely chopped
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons strong brewed hot coffee
- 4 large eggs separated
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 cup heavy cream plus extra for garnish
- chocolate shavings for garnish
Instructions
- Fill a large saucepan with an inch or two of water and set it over medium heat until water comes to a low simmer.
- Place a medium bowl over the simmering water and place chocolate inside. Stir gently until chocolate is fully melted.6 ounces milk chocolate
- Once fully melted, whisk the butter into the melted chocolate, 1 tablespoon at a time. Remove chocolate mixture from heat.4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Stir in the salt, vanilla, and coffee until completely incorporated.¼ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 tablespoons strong brewed hot coffee
- Whisk in yolks, one at a time, making sure that each is fully incorporated before adding the next. Set chocolate mixture aside.4 large eggs
- Stir egg whites in a clean mixing bowl set over a saucepan of hot water until slightly warm, 1 to 2 minutes; remove bowl from saucepan.4 large eggs
- Beat with an electric mixer set at medium speed until soft peaks form. Raise mixer speed to high and slowly add sugar, beating to soft peaks.2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- Whisk a quarter of the beaten whites into chocolate mixture to lighten it, then gently fold in remaining whites.
- In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream to soft peaks. Gently fold into mousse.1 cup heavy cream
- Spoon portion of mousse into six to eight individual serving dishes or ramekins.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate to blend flavors, at least 2 hours, before serving.
- Optional: When ready to serve, whip heavy cream on high speed in a clean bowl until stiff peaks form. Serve chocolate mousse with a dollop of whipped cream and a sprinkle of chocolate shavings.chocolate shavings
Notes
- Prepared mousse can be covered and refrigerated up to 24 hours.
- Store chocolate mousse and additional whipped cream garnish separately until ready to serve.
- Recipe adapted from Cooks Illustrated.
Nutrition
Comments
Jen
This is delicious and one I keep making again and again.
Kimberlee Ho
So glad to hear this, Jen!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
That one mom
Thank you!! This is a life saver for a busting family at a party. Due to many different people being there, I was struggling to adapt to the many allergies that come to. So, once again, THANK YOU!!!! 😊!
Kimberlee Ho
So glad you liked it!