A magic recipe of Lenôtre for Chocolate Mousse lovers, this one makes mousses light and frothy but also solid so they can hold a long time at room temperature as well as in layer cakes
About this recipe
Since I tried this recipe I ditched my old chocolate mousse recipes, as this one beats them all ! This recipe makes extremely fluffy and tasty chocolate mousses
Source of the recipe
I got this recipe from the Lenôtre cookbook "Ecole Lenôtre : Pastrymaking (French/English)". Lenôtre is one of the top pastry schools and pastry chefs in Paris. If you can, stop by their shop, school and restaurant on the Champs Elysées in Paris
To purchase online, see HERE
I bought this book while studying in their school
See the article I wrote about their school HERE
Here, with French Chef David Martin at the Lenôtre School, on the Champs Elysées in Paris
The recipe is on page 140
Modifications to the original recipe
I modified only a few things...
● I use 11 oz or 300 g of Dark Chocolate instead of 400 g (1 lbs 14 oz ) in the original recipe
● Instead of using dark chocolate (70%), I use half of dark chocolate 70% ( 5 oz or 150 g) and half of milk chocolate ( 5 oz or 150 g)
Prepping the ingredients
1. Place the Whipping Cream (2 ⅓ Cups or 520 g) in the refrigerator
2. Place the bowl and the whisk what you will use to whip the cream, in the freezer. It is important that you beat the cream when it is cold and when the mixing bowl is cold too
3. Let the the Egg Yolks (½ Cup or 100 g) and the the Eggs (⅓ Cup or 150 g) warm to room temperature for 30 minutes
6-Inch Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl
The chocolate
4. Lenôtre recommends a dark and quality Dark Chocolate at 70%, which I tried but I found it too .... much in chocolate as far as I'm concerned
5. I then decided to mix in Milk Chocolate and found the taste much better
6. It's really up to you, but trust me, the taste is better when you combine half Milk Chocolate ( 5 oz or 150 g) and half Dark Chocolate( 5 oz or 150 g)
7. 
Melt the chocolate ( 11 oz or 300 g) in a double-boiler
Large Mixing Bowls, Stainless Steel
KitchenAid Silicone Spatula Set
8. Then set aside and wait until the temperature reaches 120 °F / 45 °C (or 100 °F / 35 °C but not lower), at room temperature: You may proceed to the next steps while the temperature goes down
Digital Laser Infrared Thermometer
Matfer Pocket Digital Thermometer
The Whipped Cream
9. Whisk the Whipping Cream (2 ⅓ Cups or 520 g) in the mixing bowl that was set aside in the freezer
10. You may use either a stand mixer (like a Kitchen Aid appliance) or an electric beater
11. We want to whisk for a brief moment...
12. You want a whipped cream that is not too stiff otherwise you won't be able to combine it easily with the rest
13. Once it's done, keep aside in the refrigerator
KitchenAid 7-Quart Stand Mixer
Hand Mixer
14. Do not whip the Cream too long ! If the whipped cream is too stiff, it will be difficult to mix with the next batter
15. The cream must hold to the finger, but must be soft and not too stiff
16. Place the bowl with the whipped cream in the rerfigerator
The "pâte à bombe"
The "pâte à bombe" is a French name for a mixture that will serve as the base for the chocolate mousse.
It is a mix of beaten eggs with a hot syrup that will create thousands of bubbles while it is cooling down, while making the mousse "solid" : It's magical as the "pâte à bombe" makes mousse fluffy while making it sturdy as well... your chocolate mousse will be so fluffy, and will hold at room temperature
I'is an ideal technique for mousses that must hold at room temperature, but also for mousses that must be used inside layer cakes (to resist heavy weight of layers)
The Syrup
17. We start with the hot syrup : Pour in a saucepan the Water (4 Tablespoons or 50 g) and the Sugar (⅔ Cup or 150 g)
18. Stir to combine
19. Heat your sugar syrup over a medium-high flame
20. Bring to a boil
Scanpan Saucepan
Calphalon Nonstick Sauce Pan
21. There is always a risk in making a syrup : Wash down the sides of the pan with a brush dipped in cold water to prevent crystallization...
Pastry Brush
Silicone Brush, Heat Resistant for Pastry and Barbecue
22. In a mixing bowl, combine the Egg Yolks (½ Cup or 100 g) and the Eggs (⅓ Cup or 150 g)
23. Beat at maximum speed using an egg beater or a stand mixer like the 'kitchen aid' appliance I'm using, the eggs must become light and frothy
24. Wait until the syrup temperature reaches 245 °F / 121 °C : remove the saucepan from the heat
KitchenAid 7-Quart Stand Mixer
Hamilton Beach Stand MixerDigital Laser Infrared ThermometerMatfer Pocket Digital Thermometer
25. Pour the hot sugar syrup by streaming it into your egg whites as they continue to whip on low to medium speed
26. Try to pour between the whisk and the side of the bowl, not on the whisk !
27. Once the syrup is poured, keep whipping on maximum speed for a few minutes to cool it down
28. The eggs become fluffy
29. Keep whisking for at least 10 minutes : you may stop only when the mixing bowl is not hot anymore
30. You will obtain a perfect "pâte à bombe", ready to be used
Mixing
31. Mix in a bit of whipped cream
32. Whisk
33. Add in the pâte à bombe and do not whisk, but gently fold in the mixture
34. Whisking would break the fluffy structure of the mousse, you do need to fold using a rubber spatula
35. Gently fold and do not whisk to keep the pâte à bombe texture
36. At the end, fold in the Whipping Cream in 3 times
37. You will use a rubber spatula to gently fold
KitchenAid Silicone Spatula Set 
Le Creuset Silicone Spatula
38. Repeat twice
39. Gently fold
40. The batter won't look so fluffy, but don't be discouraged, it now needs to rest in the fridge
41. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours
You may use this recipe for individual Mousse dessert, or use it in a layer cake.
Enjoy !!
Can you pipe a pâte à bombe mousse?
I do it.
Use a large tip with the pastry bag, to keep the airy texture
I see you using a whisk to fold in the egg mixture rather than the rubber spatula? If I were to utilize the folding pattern that you did would that still work? And I love your breakdown of the recipes as well!
Yes, that seems odd, but that's how they teach it in France. Now, you do not whisk ! You rather use the whisk to fold the first time (to avoid lumps as it seems), and use the rubber spatula afterwards to fold the rest.
Francois, what do you with the pate a bombe whilst you're making the whipped cream and melting the chocolate. Do you put it in the fridge along with the whipped cream before folding it into to the chocolate mixture or do you want it at room temp?
I don't, but yes, you could keep it in the fridge.
Both pate a bombe and whipped cream can wait in the fridge
Please could you tell me if I could use the recipe to freeze the mousse so that I could cover with a mirror glaze? and If so, would I need to refrigerate for 4 hours before freezing?
Hey Emma,
Yes, this mousse can be frozen a few hours, will become hard,
- Then glaze with a mirror glazing while frozen, but not warmer than 80 °F / 25 °C,
- and then thaw in the fridge a few hours
Thank you
Your mousse texture looks lovely. Could you please tell me if I can apply the mousse on my cake layers and then refrigerate. Or does the mousse need to be refrigerated first and then used on cake layers. I am learning to bake and it might seem like a silly question but would really help if you can clarify my doubts. Thanks.
Hello, I recommend building the layer cake with the mousse just finished, then refrigerate. If you refrigerate the mousse first, it will set and the end result will be visually disappointing.
Thank you!!!
hi! if I want to use this as a filling in a cake, would i refrigerate first and then use it as a filling? and will it be ok if i top it with strawberry slices?how many cups of filling does this make? thank you!
Hello
i would use it right after making it, finish the dessert and then refrigerate.
i made this today, it tasted amazing but i had an issue i hope you can help me with. everything was going Ok until I mixed it all together. the chocolate seemed to not mix well with the whipped cream and it didnt mix into a homogenous mixture, it had solid-y streaks of chocolate i had to work out, which I think deflated it a bit. It tastes good, but after 4 hours it still hasnt stiffened up fully. What did I do wrong? Can i fix it now of just for the next batch? (i used a 70% dark chocolate bar sweetened with stevia and milk chocolate wafers)
From what you are telling me, it could be either a temperature issue, or a chocolate quality issue. I would think of the latter first.
Many chocolates I buy in American supermarkets do not work well when melted. They do not contain the right ratio of cocoa butter, and above all, they are added with nasty ingredients that makes it hard to melt and work in this mousse.
Try to buy a professional grade chocolate like Valrhona or Cacao Barry. It will not only work better but also taste much better.
hi- in response to the chocolate comment, I cant seem to find any dark chocolate above 70 that isnt a bar form. Would callebaut chocolate work? and can I use whatever dark chocolate they have? (eg, 50) also, sorry last question! did my mousse deflating cause it to be runny?
Hi, sorry for the delay, was traveling abroad.
Yes, Callebaut is a very good brand too. I am not using it, but chocolatiers (chocolate professionals) like this brand.
Though I am fond of chocolate, I usually use half milk chocolate and half dark chocolate
Thank you François for the detailed recipe along with pictures and gifs to demonstrate the process!
The recipe with 720g cream makes enough to frost two of 4-layer 7-inch cakes (which is A LOT haha). The pic I've attached is frosted using about half of the 720g cream recipe.
I made this without a kitchen thermometer and hand-whisked the sugar and egg mixture to form the pate a bombe. Took about 25 mins of vigorous whisking. Hope my comments will help future makers of this recipe.
That's very nice ! Congrats Li !
Hi François-Xavier
First of all I wanted to say thank you for all the information you had post in your entire blog. I loved your honesty about changing- modifying a recipe, not a lot of people will be this transparent.
I am curious to know why you have decided to use 100grs. less than the original recipe. Also curious on why you decided yo ad milk chocolate in your final ratio? That was a particular reason, for example "taste-texture" or perhaps a technical-culinary reason?.
Thanks in advance for your answer.
Wishing you a Happy New Year Chef.
hi Jose
Thanks
I use 100 g (¼ lbs ) less, for 2 reasons :
- Although I like chocolate, I found that it was too intense.
- By decreasing the amount of chocolate, I find that the mousse is more fluffy/airy, which is something that my guests appreciate
Happy new year !
Merci Chef !
Hi Chef.
So I tried your recipe. I have to say that like you say this chocolate mousse is : "light and frothy but also solid so they can hold a long time at room temperature as well as in layer cakes"
Yes it tasted great, its light and frothy, but it had a lack of structure, so I won't recommend this for layer cakes as this formulation is not capable to hold the weight of a layer cake. I
It is different when you pour a mousse in a glass and let it crystalize there as it has a vessel to hold its shape, but using this for layer cakes is a big No-No.
Possibly due to that you are using a chocolate with a lower content of cocoa butter than its original recipe.
For this recipe to work you should use some gelling agent to have a stronger structure if you are intended to use the mousse in a cake.
If you are using this recipe to be in a glass it is fib=ne as you had formulated it.
Thanks
Never had this issue. Made wedding cakes with it and the mousse was perfect. Make sure to use quality chocolate and respect the temperatures and times
This is the best chocolate mousse I have ever made, by far! Many thanks for your very clear and detailed instructions, it made this very easy to accomplish.
How far in advance could this be made and refrigerated before eating it, maybe a number of days before it loses its freshness?
Yeahhhhhhh
Well actually it is best if you wait a full day before eating it
Hi, please tell me if I need to reduce on sugar, if I use white chocolate. Thank you!
Yes, white chocolate being sweet-er, you can reduce the amount of sugar by 10-20%
Thank you very much!
Pour le dessin de mon gâteau à étages, j'ai besoin de mousse blanche. A Budapest, le chocolat blanc Callebaut est facile à trouver, en 28% et 32%. Avec l'une ou l'autre de ces méthodes, ai-je une chance de fabriquer la mousse avec une fermeté suffisante ? Que dois-je changer dans les proportions ? Merci pour votre aide.
Sándor
Je vais essayer de reformuler ma question, elle sera peut-être plus claire. J'ai besoin de mousse blanche pour le dessin de mon gâteau à étages. A Budapest, le chocolat blanc Callebaut est facile à trouver, en 28% et 32% (pas Valrhona). Avec l'un ou l'autre de ces chocolats, ai-je une chance de faire une mousse suffisamment ferme ? Que dois-je changer dans les proportions ? Merci pour votre aide.
Hello. Pour etre sur, autant prendre une ganache montée, c'est a mon avis plus ferme pour un gateau a etages (et plus facile aussi) :
ICI
Bonjour, merci pour votre réponse rapide. Vos conseils ont été utiles, avec de bons résultats. Je suis une adepte de ton site !