Calling all chocolate lovers – This rich, soft, velvety and luscious dark chocolate mousse cake paired with D’Oranges Cointreau will take your breath away. And it’s eggless too!

Watch my video below!

I’ve always wanted to create a decadent, luxurious, creamy and oh-so-chocolatey chocolate mousse. In this dark chocolate mousse cake, I found the perfect balance.

If you like this recipe tutorial and like to see more, subscribe to my YouTube channel here 😊

SECRET OF THE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE….ssshhhhh

• I used my favourite semi-sweet dark chocolate that has a 60% cocoa content. Note that the higher the cocoa content, the more robust the chocolate flavour will be. If you are the deep dark chocolate lover type, by all means go for the 75% cocoa content chocolate for that more bittersweet chocolatey flair.

• I’ve always unconsciously shied away from chocolate mousse recipes that use eggs because A) I am finnicky about whether the eggs have been properly cooked and B) I can often still taste the egginess somewhat in the mousse, which is why I love this eggless chocolate mousse recipe!

• I switched to dark cocoa instead of Dutch Cocoa to make a chocolate mud cake base. The dark cocoa gave the cake a deep bittersweet flavour and was the perfect twin for the silky smooth chocolate mousse.

• The Orange Cointreau is of course optional….but for this household, it’s a MUST HAVE! Try it with the liqueur and you will taste the difference. Just one capful of Cointreau lifts the mousse up that extra notch to decadence!

There is a beautiful scent of orange roses, the marvellous taste of orange chocolate and just a hint of the lingering liqueur.

It’s like having Earl Grey tea (with a dash of Cointreau of course) and cake in an English garden on a summer’s day 🙂

Okay, if there are good reasons and it must be excluded (I know – no liqueur for children), be assured that the chocolate mousse still tastes delicious, silky smooth and oh-so-chocolatey.

And that’s it really. Easy to make and uncomplicated. 

I decided to try the silicone bubble mould which I bought recently in Malaysia. Simple, inexpensive and it gave the cake such a sophisticated look. It is important to fill up the crevices of the mould well – I used a teaspoon to gently press in the mousse into each bubblet and also lightly tapped the mould on the work table a few times to make sure it is properly filled. 

Tip: You can use any silicone mould or a regular 7 inch square or round springform pan. The important thing to remember is to freeze well and unmould the cake only when it is frozen solid. If you are looking for something similar to the bubble mound, try ezbuy here. There is also an exact one from SilikoMart – a more pricey professional version @Amazon here. 

The silicone unmoulded easily once the chocolate mousse was set in the freezer – all ready for the final glazing. To finish off, I dusted a lil’ trail of gold lustre across the mousse cake which gave a certain Galaxy vibe. Hubby, our resident Wordsmith describes it as cosmic. I was rather pleased with the effect myself.

The result is a beautiful, luxurious and elegant chocolate mousse cake that delivers a deep dark mega-chocolate flavour in every bite.

Check out my recipe video above to see how it was made

PS: LOL, I might have a solution for those trying this recipe for the kiddos…..Make it without the liqueur and just offer a small shot of Orange Cointreau on the rocks when serving the cake to those above 18yo, for the same effect! 😉

Enjoy this amazing chocolate mousse cake!

Ingredients

Serving: 7 inch square tin

Cake

Dry Ingredients (A)

• 60g ~1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 20g ~2 1/2 tbsp extra dark cocoa powder
• 75g ~1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt

Wet Ingredients (B)

• 70ml ~1/3 cup warm coffee (I used 1 1/2 tsp instant coffee granules)
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp light olive oil

 Chocolate Mousse

• 170g ~1 cup dark chocolate chips
• 600ml heavy cream using 200ml for the chocolate ganache

Chocolate Glaze

• 210g sugar
• 70g Dutch cocoa powder
• 100 ml water
• 160ml heavy cream  
• 3 tsp gelatine bloomed in 3 tbsp cold water

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 175˚C 350˚F. Line the cake tin with baking paper.

CAKE

1. In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients (A). In a separate bowl, mix together the wet ingredients (B). Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until they come together.
2. Pour batter into your lined cake pan; The batter is drippy and makes a thin cake layer. Bake 12-15 minutes on the center rack or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pan 5 minutes and remove to cool on a rack.


CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

1. Heat up heavy cream. Pour over dark chocolate chips and let sit for 1 minute (let the heat infuse the chips before stirring)
2. Stir until smooth and let it cool.
3. Once cooled, pour the chocolate ganache into the heavy cream and whisk on high until stiff peaks.

ASSEMBLY

1. Layer the bubble mould with half of the dark chocolate mousse. Spread evenly. Use a teaspoon and gently press the mousse into each bubblet to make sure that it is properly filled and compact.
2. Lift up the mould and tap it gently a couple of times on the work table. This is to allow the mousse to nicely fill out the crevices so that there are no empty pockets.
3. Add in the dark chocolate cake layer and dollop lavishly / evenly with the remaining dark chocolate mousse until the mould is completely filled. 
4. Tap again and place a 7 inch card board right on top of the last layer of mousse for easy unmoulding later.
5. Freeze the mousse cake for at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove from the freezer and unmould whilst the chocolate mousse cake is frozen.

CHOCOLATE GLAZING

1. Bloom 3 tsp of gelatin in 3 tbsp of cold water. Set aside.
2. Combine the water, cream, sugar and cocoa powder off heat until relatively smooth.
3. Put on low heat and stir continuously until boiling, for 2 minutes. Take off heat, add the gelatin and mix well. Sieve to remove any lumps and cool till 35˚C or room temperature.
4. Unmould frozen chocolate mousse cake. Carefully pour glaze over – go slowly, especially in between the bubblets and let it set until it’s no longer dripping. Set it in the fridge/chiller to thaw for 2-3 hours.
5. Decorate with a little gold dust lustre and you are ready to serve.

Did you make this? I’d love to know how it turned out! Please let me know by leaving a review. Or take a photo and share it on Instagram or FB; be sure to tag me please at #thesugarcrumble.

Print Recipe

COSMIC DARK CHOCOLATE MOUSSE CAKE

A beautiful, luxurious dark chocolate mousse cake that delivers a deep, dark mega-chocolate flavour in every bite.

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Freezing time4 hours hrs

Total Time4 hours hrs 40 minutes mins

Author: Kai

Ingredients

Cake

Dry Ingredients (A)

• 60 g ~ 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 20 g ~2 1/2 tbsp extra dark cocoa powder
• 70g g ~1/3 granulated sugar
• 1/3 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt

Wet Ingredients (B)

• 70 ml ~1/3 cup warm coffee (I used 1 1/2 tsp of instant coffee granules)
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp light olive oil

Chocolate Mousse

• 170 g ~1 cup dark chocolate chip
• 600 ml heavy cream using 200ml for the chocolate ganache

Chocolate Glaze

• 210 g granulated sugar
• 70 g Dutch cocoa powder
• 100 ml water
• 160 ml heavy cream
• 3 tsp gelatine bloomed in 3 tbsp cold water

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 175˚C/ 350˚F. Line the cake tin with baking paper.

CAKE

• In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients (A). In a separate bowl, mix together the wet ingredients (B). Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until they come together.
• Pour batter into your lined cake pan; The batter is drippy and makes a thin cake layer. Bake 12-15 minutes on the center rack or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pan 5 minutes and remove to cool on a rack.

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

• Heat up heavy cream. Pour over dark chocolate chips and let sit for 1 minute (let the heat infuse the chips before stirring)
• Stir until smooth and let it cool.
• Once cooled, pour the chocolate ganache into the heavy cream and whisk on high until stiff peaks.

ASSEMBLY

• Layer the bubble mould with half of the dark chocolate mousse. Spread evenly. Use a teaspoon and gently press the mousse into each bubblet to make sure that it is properly filled and compact.
• Lift up the mould and tap it gently a couple of times on the work table. This is to allow the mousse to nicely fill out the crevices so that there are no empty pockets.
• Add in the dark chocolate cake layer and dollop lavishly / evenly with the remaining dark chocolate mousse until the mould is completely filled.
• Tap again and place a 7 inch card board right on top of the last layer of mousse for easy unmoulding later.
• Freeze the mousse cake for at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove from the freezer and unmould whilst the chocolate mousse cake is frozen.

CHOCOLATE GLAZING

• Bloom 3 tsp of gelatin powder in 3 tbsp of cold water. Set aside.
• Combine the water, cream, sugar and cocoa powder off heat until relatively smooth.
• Put on low heat and stir continuously until boiling, for 2 minutes. Take off heat, add the gelatin and mix well. Sieve to remove lumps and cool till 35˚C or room temperature.
• Unmould frozen chocolate mousse cake. Carefully pour glaze over - go slowly, especially in between the bubblets and let it set until it's no longer dripping. Set it in the fridge/chiller to thaw for 2-3 hours.
• Decorate with a little gold dust lustre and it's ready to serve.

Video

Notes

If you like this recipe tutorial and like to see more, subscribe to my YouTube channel here 😊