This dessert is a gorgeous sweet treat that doesn’t contain too much sugar and has the added surprise of a little spicy kick to it.
The first time I ever tried chilli and chocolate together was with my friend Nicola. Every Wednesday we would get take out and drink a glass (bottle) of red wine and catch up. The takeout we usually used did a great chilli chocolate dessert that blew your socks off. After the first bite I was absolutely hooked because when you add a spicy heat to a sweet dessert, it tastes all the, well…sweeter!
This recipes is very simple to follow and it allows to you to control the amount of heat that you want. If you’re not a fan of food that’s too spicy, start with 1/4 teaspoon of the cayenne pepper and give it a taste. If you decide that you want to go a little hotter, add another 1/4 teaspoon and stop when you think you have the right level of heat for you and the other lucky people your making these mousses for!
I’ve used dark chocolate in this recipe (60-70%) because I prefer the bitterness of dark chocolate in the mousse, however if you’re after something a little sweeter, you can substitute as much of the dark chocolate as you like for milk chocolate.
This simple recipe looks really elegant when served in a glass goblet or martini glass, with a dollop of whipped cream, some chocolate shavings and a tiny sprinkle of cayenne pepper. The glass (or bottle) of red wine is of course optional, but it is highly recommended.
Ingredients
- 200g dark chocolate
- 4 egg whites
- 3 egg yolks
- 40g caster sugar
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (or less/more if you prefer)
- 200ml double cream
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 square of dark chocolate
Method
- Begin by heating a pan of water on the hob until it is almost simmering. Place a glass bowl on top, ensuring that the bottom of the bowl is not in the water. Add all of the dark chocolate, broken into pieces and leave to melt.
- Whilst the chocolate is melting, beat the cayenne pepper into the egg yolks.
- Once the chocolate has completely melted, pour the egg yolk mix into the chocolate and stir for around 1 minute, until the mixture has combined and thickened, then removed from the heat.
- Using an electric whisk on a low setting, beat the egg whites until they start to stiffen and form peaks. Then add in the caster sugar and beat again, until the egg whites look beautiful and glossy.
- Take all of the egg whites and pour them into the chocolate mixture, gently folding until all of the egg whites have disappeared. When this is done, cover the bowl with cling film and leave in the fridge to set. This usually takes around 90 minutes.
- When you remove the mousse from the fridge, serve into 6 separate dishes.
- Whip up the double cream and serve a dollop in the middle of each mousse, then over the cream sprinkle a small pinch of the cayenne pepper and a couple of chocolate shavings. And you're kick ass dessert is done!
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