A simple and simply delicious chocolate mousse for your Easter table

The process is straightforward, but the result is sensational.

Easter cooking should most definitely include chocolate. Photo: Nikki To

What would Easter be without chocolate? I’m taking my inspiration here from the late ­Elizabeth David, a woman whose cookery and food writing tore through the grey post-war landscape of British cooking with the urgency of someone who had tasted life and knew that there was more. Food and ingredients were to be savoured, not just treated as a rationed means for survival. The recipe for chocolate mousse from her 1960 book French Provincial Cooking is a modest delight that is hard to beat. There is no room for excess. No cream, no shortcuts. Just eggs, sugar and the best dark chocolate you can find – the kind that snaps cleanly when broken.

The process is straightforward, but the result is sensational. The chocolate is melted gently, enriched with the egg yolks. The egg whites – whipped with sugar to billowing peaks – are folded through in careful stages, upholding the air and its lightness. The mixture sets to a silken yet structured mousse, rich but never cloying. It’s the kind of happy dessert that makes you wonder why anyone would ever make it any differently. I like to set it in a large bowl to be handsomely scooped, and embellished with a drizzle of olive oil, salt and a touch of espelette – Basque pepper. The Maya and the Aztecs knew what they were doing when they added chilli to chocolate; the sweet heat of the capsaicin and the bitter cacao create a lovely savoury warmth. Slow-cooked lamb and chocolate mousse: two dishes that don’t need reinvention, and Easter as it should be – simple, generous and shared.

Try too my Greek easter lamb shoulder recipe.

Basque pepper is a surprisingly great addition to the recipe.

Scoop out at the table for a shared dining experience.

Chocolate mousse

Ingredients

• 120g dark chocolate
• 4 eggs
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 20ml olive oil
• 1 teaspoon espelette pepper (optional)
• Sea salt

Method

1. Break the chocolate into small pieces and place them in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water.
2. Once the chocolate begins to melt, remove from the heat and let it continue melting with residual heat.
3. Separate the eggs, placing the yolks in a small bowl and the whites in a larger one.
4. Gradually mix the melted chocolate into the yolks, adding a spoonful at a time while stirring continuously. The mixture should become glossy and smooth. If it seizes, add a dash of hot water to loosen.
5. Beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks, adding the sugar and continuing to beat until stiff.
6. Gently fold one third of the whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, then carefully fold in the remaining whites, ensuring not to deflate the mixture.
7. Transfer the mousse to a clean bowls and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, preferably overnight. With a warm spoon, serve a generous scoop.
8. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with espelette pepper and a pinch of sea salt, and enjoy immediately. Serves 4