Light and airy: recipe for vegan chocolate mousse

Soooo chocolaty!
Light and airy: recipe for vegan chocolate mousse

by Laura Stunz
10/12/2021, 10:56 am

It should be frothy and airy, firm – but just enough so that the mousse does not slip off the spoon when consumed – and of course irresistibly chocolaty. A good chocolate mousse is unbeatable. The preparation of the French star dessert from the “haute cuisine” requires a lot of sensitivity, after all, the mousse should literally melt in the mouth at the end.

The origin of chocolate mousse

As the name suggests, the dessert comes from France – more precisely, it is a creation of French high-class cuisine. The first recipe for a mousse au chocolat can be found in the four-volume cookbook entitled “Les soupers de la Cour” from 1755, which was written by the then well-known cook and cookbook author Menon. The original recipe specifies the ingredients: high-quality chocolate mixed with the finest butter or cream, egg yolk and sugar. Firmly whipped egg whites give the mousse its airy consistency, for which it is world famous.

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The choice of chocolate is almost as important as the preparation of the mousse itself – a mousse au chocolat can only taste as good as the chocolate from which it is made. Too high an acid content in the chocolate will be reflected in the taste. If the chocolate is too greasy, does the mousse become heavy – airy consistency? Nothing. Traditionally, dark chocolate with 55 to 70 percent cocoa content is used. If the mousse is to be completely vegan, care should be taken to ensure that neither “pure butter” or “milk powder” is on the list of ingredients for the chocolate. In general, the higher the cocoa content, the tart and stiffer the mousse will be in the end.

But it is not only the choice of chocolate that is decisive for taste and consistency in both the classic and the vegan variant.

Plenty of sensitivity during preparation

In the original recipe, the egg yolks, sugar, egg white and cream are whipped separately from each other until stiff. This is the only way to guarantee that the mousse will be airy, fluffy and still creamy. In order not to stir all the air out of the egg whites and cream again, a few things have to be taken into account when folding in the chocolate melted in the water bath. First of all: never use a mixer to mix the individual components. The strong beating would cause any air to escape from the mousse. Rather, small pieces of egg whites and cream should be carefully lifted under the chocolate with a spatula to ensure that no whipped air can escape.

But what about the vegan variant? The principle of preparation is similar. Instead of egg and cream, however, Aquafaba is used here. This is whipped with a squirt of lemon juice and a little baking powder and – as described above – carefully lifted under the melted chocolate.

What is Aquafaba?

Aquafaba sounds exotic at first, but it is nothing more than the boiling water from legumes – in other words, what you normally drain when you prepare canned chickpeas and the like. The word, which sounds unusual at first, is composed of the Latin word aqua for water and faba for bean. Aquafaba has long been a star in the vegan kitchen. It can be whipped like egg whites and is mainly used in vegan desserts – also in the vegan mousse. The cooking water of legumes consists mainly of proteins and indigestible carbohydrates. The protein in particular ensures the foaming and emulsifying effect, while the polymeric carbohydrates allow the water phase of the foam to thicken and thus stabilize the foam.

Important when stiffening Aquafaba: The bowl and stirring rods should be free of grease, and the aquafaba should also come out of the refrigerator – because it is easier to whip if it is well chilled. A splash of lemon juice and a little baking powder support the whipping process. According to this: It is best to plan a mousse au chocolat for dessert with the next chickpea dish – I call this the very ingenious use of leftovers.

What goes with it?

The vegan mousse au chocolat is already a pleasure on its own. Numerous ingredients or toppings also give it that certain something. Fresh berries or exotic fruits such as mango or oranges harmonize wonderfully with the delicately tart dessert. Chocolate sprinkles or chopped nuts give it that certain bite, a vanilla sauce or a fruity compote complement the mousse and give it a whole new touch. There are no limits to your imagination. In the original recipe, the dessert is also often served with a dollop of whipped cream – here you can find out how you can easily make vegan cream from coconut milk yourself.

Recipe for a vegan chocolate mousse

ingredients

preparation