Chocolate Mousse

Chocolate mousse is simple but effective.

Chocolate mousse is an edible foam, originating from France and most commonly eaten as a dessert.
Chocolate mousse usually consists of eggs, sugar and chocolate, and often also butter or cream, and perhaps other flavourings.
Chocolate mousse is most commonly used as a dessert itself, or as a filling, side or decoration in a dessert; however mousse purposed for savoury use can be made, though it usually excludes chocolate and sugar, and is flavoured differently.
Mousses, including those chocolate-flavoured, originated in the 1700s, with the first known recipe for chocolate mousse documented by Menon, a French writer, in 1750, in his book La science du maître d’hôtel confiseur (loosely translated as ‘The science of a master confectioner’).
Chocolate mousse is generally made by whipping egg whites or cream, until they become light and airy, which is then usually combined with a mixture of melted chocolate and sometimes butter, egg yolks, and sugar, and then set in a refrigerator.

‘Mousse’ is a French word which has the literal translation ‘foam’; while chocolate mousse is known as ‘mousse au chocolat’ in French.
Recipes similar to that of chocolate mousse became more abundant in the 1890s and 1900s, including one from the French Post-Impressionist artist, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, who named his a ‘mayonnaise’.
Chocolate mousse is typically a brown colour with a light fluffy texture, although its density may vary according to the ingredients and cooking method.
Chocolate mousse is a good source of calcium, vitamin A and vitamin B12, though it has significant quantities of fat and sugar.
Recipes for chocolate mousse range from simple to complex or exotic, however many agree that simplicity is key for a good mousse.

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