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Romantic Dessert Makeover: Lighter Dark Chocolate Mousse

Call me a chocolate fiend but when I think about “the most romantic” dessert…I can’t help but think about (or should I say salivate over) chocolate mousse. Love the rich taste; love the light texture; love basically everything about it.

This lust for chocolate mousse must be genetic because my oldest daughter shares my passion. While she was visiting from college, I was inspired to create a light but luscious version of dark chocolate mousse. It was as if creating a light mousse and pleasing her discerning young palate was the holy grail of recipe doctoring.

I used high cacao bittersweet chocolate chips along with a nice dose of cocoa powder. I used a shot of strong coffee and a tablespoon of brandy to compliment the dark chocolate flavor nicely. Instead of 2 large eggs I used 4 egg whites and 4 tablespoons of egg substitute (this is a pasteurized product), which drastically cut the cholesterol and eliminated the need to use raw egg yolks. The extra egg whites allowed me to use a lot less whipping cream to give the chocolate mousse it’s light texture.

The Savings
Original chocolate mousse (same serving size) contains:
286 calories, 22 grams total fat, 13 grams saturated fat, 99 mg cholesterol

Light chocolate mousse contains:
215 calories. 13 grams total fat, 8 grams saturated fat, 22 mg cholesterol
A savings of 71 calories, 9 grams of fat, 5 grams saturated fat, 77 mg cholesterol

This lighter mousse still tastes like a decadent dessert and with 13 grams of fat and 8 grams of saturated fat per serving, it still is nutritionally decadent! But this very satisfying remake contains 25% fewer calories, around 40% less fat and saturated fat, and 78% less cholesterol.

Let the romance begin!

Now here’s the recipe.

Lighter Dark Chocolate Mousse

Photo: Elaine Magee

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (8 ounces)
2 tablespoons cocoa powder (unsweetened)
5 tablespoons strong coffee (if you would rather not use coffee, just substitute 5 tablespoons water)
1 tablespoon brandy
1/4 cup egg substitute (2 egg yolks can be substituted)
3 tablespoons powdered sugar, divided use
1/8 teaspoon salt (optional)
4 egg whites
2/3 cup light whipping cream

Preparation

  1. In microwave-safe medium bowl, combine chocolate chips, cocoa powder, coffee, and brandy. Microwave on DEFROST until chocolate is almost completely melted (about a minute). Stir to finish melting the chocolate.
  2. In small bowl, whisk egg substitute with 1 tablespoon of the powdered sugar and salt if desired for about 20 seconds. Stir egg substitute mixture into the chocolate mixture.
  3. In large mixing bowl, beat egg whites on medium speed until frothy (about 1 minute) using an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, and then add 2 tablespoons powdered sugar. Beat egg whites on HIGH speed until soft peaks form (about 1 minute more). Stir about 1/2 cup of the whipped egg whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten up the chocolate mixture. Softly fold the remaining egg whites into the chocolate mixture using a rubber spatula.
  4. In same mixing bowl that held the egg whites, whip whipping cream on medium speed until thickened slightly then increase speed to high and beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold whipped cream into chocolate mixture using the rubber spatula.
  5. Spoon mousse into 8 individual cups. Cover with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Enjoy within 2 to 3 days.

Yeild: Makes 8 servings

Nutritional Analysis per serving: 215 calories, 4 g protein, 21.5 grams carbohydrate, 13 g fat, 8 grams saturated fat, 4.5 g monounsaturated fat, .5 g polyunsaturated fat, 22 mg cholesterol, 2 g fiber, 53 mg sodium. Calories from fat: 54 percent. Omega-3 fatty acids = .1 gram, Omega-6 fatty acids = .4 gram.

Happy Valentine’s Day.

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Labels: chocolate, makeover, recipes, Valentine

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This entry was posted on Sunday, February 7th, 2010 and is filed under Diet Club Consultations. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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