Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Mousse (Print)

Luscious strawberry mousse layered with silky chocolate ganache for a decadent yet refreshing dessert.

# Ingredients:

→ Strawberry Mousse

01 - 1.5 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and chopped
02 - 0.25 cup granulated sugar
03 - 1.5 teaspoons powdered gelatin
04 - 2 tablespoons cold water
05 - 1 cup heavy cream, chilled
06 - 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
07 - Pinch of salt

→ Chocolate Ganache

08 - 3.5 ounces semi-sweet or dark chocolate, chopped
09 - 0.5 cup heavy cream

→ Garnish

10 - Fresh strawberries, halved
11 - Shaved chocolate or chocolate curls
12 - Mint leaves

# Instructions:

01 - In a blender or food processor, puree the strawberries until smooth. Pass the puree through a fine mesh sieve to remove seeds.
02 - In a small saucepan, combine strawberry puree and sugar. Warm over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture is just simmering. Remove from heat.
03 - Sprinkle gelatin over cold water in a small bowl and let bloom for 5 minutes. Stir bloomed gelatin into warm strawberry mixture until dissolved. Let cool to room temperature.
04 - In a large bowl, whip heavy cream with vanilla extract and salt to soft peaks.
05 - Gently fold cooled strawberry mixture into the whipped cream until well combined. Spoon or pipe mousse evenly into serving glasses, filling each about two-thirds full. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, until set.
06 - Place chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat heavy cream in a small saucepan until just simmering without boiling. Pour hot cream over chocolate and let stand for 2 minutes. Stir until smooth and glossy.
07 - Allow ganache to cool to room temperature, then spoon or pour over set strawberry mousse in each glass, creating a distinct layer. Refrigerate at least 1 hour, or until ganache is set.
08 - Just before serving, garnish with fresh strawberry halves, shaved chocolate, or mint leaves as desired.

# Pro Tips:

01 -
  • It looks like you spent hours in the kitchen when really it's just smart layering and patience.
  • The contrast between airy strawberry mousse and silky chocolate ganache creates this perfect back-and-forth of textures on your tongue.
  • You can make it a full day ahead, which means less stress and more time enjoying your guests.
02 -
  • If your gelatin isn't fully bloomed before you add it to the warm mixture, you'll end up with grainy little bits throughout instead of that silky mousse texture, so don't skip that 5-minute waiting step.
  • Pouring hot cream directly over chocolate is the real secret to ganache that's smooth and glossy rather than broken or grainy, and patience is more important than speed here.
03 -
  • If your mousse ever looks slightly grainy or broken after folding, you can start over by re-whipping a fresh batch of cream and folding in the strawberry mixture again because it's usually just a matter of being too aggressive with the folding.
  • The ganache should pour like thick cream when it's at room temperature, so if yours is too thick, gently warm it again or thin it with a tiny bit more cream.
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