The other day I had a hankering for chocolate mousse.
(You know when I use the word “hankering” that it’s a real serious craving.)
So I researched and I looked and I spent a lot of time on Pinterest. Then I surfed around some more until I found this recipe for the easiest chocolate mousse ever. Easiest? Of course I’m making it.
I tinkered with the recipe though. And the dessert I ended up with was certainly NOT a mousse.
Mousse seems to mean light and fluffy. This was luscious and thick and velvety.
Mousse seems to mean wholesome and kid-friendly. This is made with orange liqueur and partially raw eggs.
Mousse seems to be a down-home, friendly, almost sunny kind of dessert. This is all sophisticated and chic and definitely an after-dark kind of dessert.
But don’t worry, these Dark Chocolate Ganache cups aren’t so sexy that they’re intimidating.
Because here’s a little secret: I made these in a blender. And there’s nothing really sexy about the loud whirring sounds of a blender, is there?
Serve these in little dessert cups, because the mousse-that-turned-into-a-ganache is so, so, so rich that you only really need a small amount to be satisfied. But oh, trust me, you’ll definitely be satisfied.
Dark Chocolate Ganache Dessert Cups
(adapted from The Easiest Chocolate Mousse Ever from Epicurious)
6 ounces good-quality semisweet , chopped (I used dark chocolate bars from LA Burdick)
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons orange liqueur (I used Cointreau)
4 tablespoons salted butter
2 eggs
2 tablespoons orange zest
Heat the cream and and butter in a small pot until the mixture is scalded, about 2 minutes. Turn off heat, add orange liqueur, and quickly stir to combine.
Pour half of the cream mixture into the blender and add half of the chocolate. Gently stir with a rubber spatula, then pour the remaining cream and chocolate. Blend until the chocolate is dissolved and the mixture is smooth. Add the eggs and blend again, until no lumps remain.
Pour into cups and chill until set, at least 3 hours. Garnish with orange zest.
This dessert is very luxurious, with a texture that’s much closer to pot de creme than mousse. It has a rich, deep, dark chocolate flavor, thanks to the good quality chocolate I used. The taste of the orange liqueur is subtle, but it’s there. Actually I wished I used little bit more, plus fresh orange juice to add more citrus flavor. But the orange zest on top really contributes a brightness to each silken spoonful.
Do you have a favorite no-bake dessert recipe? How about a dessert that you make using a blender?
And if you’re looking for more recipes featuring alcohol, my friend Dan from The Food in my Beard is hosting Booze Week!
{ 25 comments… read them below or add one }
Mousse or not, this looks divine!! I am starting to warm up to the citrus/chocolate pairing more and more. How bad can it be when it just brightens a dish like you’ve done here!
As you know, I recently joined Pinterest and am addicted. It is such a great place for food, fashion and wedding inspirations!
luscious and thick and velvety. don’t see any problems with that! ha.
Bianca – this looks incredible! you waxed poetic about that mousse and took such awesome photos that all I want to eat right now is that.
It looks so thick and delicious. Yum!
ummm, these look amazing! I would never have thought these would have been “simple” to make! Pinning now
Love chocolate and orange flavors together, yum!
I just made no bake peanut butter balls the other night to save myself from going out and buying Reese’s Peanut Butter Eggs. They were so good, and so simple!
After just finishing lunch, I’d kill for a cup of this right now. Looks delicious!
Chocolate and citrus – perfect!
These are so pretty. I love the pop of color from the orange zest, and your pictures are beautiful!
You had me at ganache. This recipe looks super easy and do delicious. Also the finished product is gorgeous. They seem like they’d make a great ending to a fabulous, fancy dinner party.
oooh this does look amazing and I love that you were able to make it in a blender- definitely makes it seem not so intimidating!
what a magnificent creation–the texture of your dessert is outstanding. incidentally, the word ‘hankering’ always makes me smile, so it’s interesting that you only use it when you’re serious.
It’s crazy how easy ganache is to make. It even works well with non-dairy substitutes.
This is definitely the kind of mousse I would love! (I think a lot of mousses use raw egg.) The orange chocolate combo sounds perfect!
Ooohh like soy milk or almond milk??
Mmmmm PB & chocolate – always good together!
That looks so rich and decadent. I am not much of a dessert maker, blender or not. Unless margaritas count as dessert?
Hey, if we can PRETEND it’s mousse since it’s much more socially acceptable to eat a bowl of mousse than it is to eat a bowl of ganache…then we should run with it. This looks so delicious!
Bianca – this dessert looks so decadent and delicious! I love the color contrast with the orange peel.
This looks delicious!
The pictures are gorgeous!! Looks like this turned out even better than you’d planned. Love those little dessert cups – super cute.
Yummy I love the chocolate and orange combo. I make a Julia Child’s recipe for chocolate mousse each year for Christmas that sounds just like this, and it’s amazing.
Looks great, but what espresso? Didn’t see that in the ingredients.
Hi, Del! Thank you for pointing that out – I did not end up using espresso and have edited the directions to reflect that.