Women love chocolate. Chocolate makes everything better. I know it’s such a cliché .. But I’m sorry. For me, it’s true.
Having a bad day? Eat a piece of chocolate. Someone cut you off on the highway and then flipped you off? (true story) Eat a piece of chocolate and just rest in knowing that karma will get that person back. There’s a reason I keep a secret stash of chocolate hidden in my kitchen. Once my oldest daughter saw me stuff a piece of chocolate in my mouth and immediately asked for some. Now, I know to watch my back.
And I’ve found a new secret hiding place.
There’s something so wonderful about a delicious piece of good chocolate. . or frankly, any kind of chocolate dessert: cake, cookies, brownies, ice cream and in this case, chocolate mousse.
Sea Salt Dark Chocolate Mousse. Theo’s Sea Salt Dark Chocolate to be exact. This is my absolute favorite chocolate right now. And believe it or not, I made this chocolate mousse with absolutely NO eggs. None at all.
So, with that, here’s today’s Mid-Week Cheater Recipe.
This is instant chocolate mousse. NO EGGS. The secret ingredient here is marshmallows. The marshmallows give this dessert a “soft squigyness” (in the lovely words of Nigella) similar to the interior of a meringue and is the magical ingredient that turns this dessert into a chocolate mousse. Nigella featured this recipe in her “Express Episode” where she makes a three course dinner in under 45 minutes. Make this dessert and your guests and friends will think you slaved away in the kitchen. In the delightful and charming way, that only Nigella can pull off, she says you’ll “glide serenely to the fridge and bring out these dark beauties.” Then, stand back and wait for the oohhs and ahhhhhs.
I freaking love Nigella.
Sea Salt Dark Chocolate Mousse
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
- 4 tablespoons 1/2 stick soft unsalted butter or room temp
- 9 oz best-quality sea salt dark chocolate; chopped into small pieces *see NOTE above; I used Theo Chocolate.
- 1/4 cup hot water from a recently boiled kettle
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- maldon sea salt or very coarse sea salt; for garnish
Instructions
- Place the mini marshmallows, soft butter, chocolate and water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, over low heat to melt everything; stirring every now and then until melted and combined. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
- Using your electric stand mixer (on speed 4 or 6) or hand mixer, whip the heavy cream with the vanilla extract until thick and peaks have formed; for about 4-5 minutes. Fold into the cooling chocolate mixture until you have a smooth, cohesive mixture.
- Place into 4 glasses or ramekins, and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. I chilled mine for an hour but you could probably get away with only 20 or 30 minutes in the fridge. Sprinkle on some maldon sea salt and enjoy!
Adapted from Nigella’s recipe. Video here. I love Nigella.
