Recipe
Chocolate and Caramel Mousse Cakes
Elegant mousse cakes with beautiful layers and incredible flavor. These airy, light mousses sit on a soft chocolate sponge and are topped with piped chocolate and crunchy chocolate pearls.
Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes Cook Time 45 minutes Chill time 6 hours Time: 8 hours 15 minutes 
Difficulty: Advanced
Yield: 20 people*Ingredients
Chocolate sponge (2 layers):
- 50 g all-purpose flour
- 75 g sugar
- 25 g cocoa powder
- ½ tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp vanilla
- ¼ tsp salt
- 50 ml milk
- 30 ml neutral oil (like canola)
- ½ egg
- 50 ml hot water
Milk chocolate mousse:
- 4 sheets gelatin
- 200 g milk chocolate
- 60 g milk chocolate
- 300 ml heavy cream (to melt)
- 300 ml heavy cream (to whip)
Caramel mousse:
- 2 sheets gelatin
- 200 g Gold chocolate
- 200 ml heavy cream (to melt)
- 200 ml heavy cream (to whip)
To decorate:
- 200 g dark chocolate
- Dark chocolate pearls
Instructions
Chocolate sponge:
- Whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, vanilla, and salt in a mixing bowl.50 g all-purpose flour, 75 g sugar, 25 g cocoa powder, ½ tbsp baking powder, ½ tsp vanilla, ¼ tsp salt
- In a separate bowl, mix milk, oil, and egg. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir gently. Add hot water and stir until smooth.50 ml milk, 30 ml neutral oil, ½ egg, 50 ml hot water
- Pour the batter into a 24 cm (9 inch) springform pan lined with parchment paper. Do not grease the sides. For flat layers, wrap the outside of the pan with wet cake strips. Bake at 180 °C (356 °F) for 30–40 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan.
- Once cool, run a knife around the edge, remove from the pan, and slice the sponge into two even layers. Wrap each layer in plastic wrap until ready to assemble.
- Place one sponge layer on each of two serving plates. Wrap a cake ring or springform ring around each, lined with acetate for a clean finish.
Milk chocolate mousse:
- Soak the gelatin in cold water for 10 minutes. Chop the chocolate finely. Melt the the bigger portion of chocolate in the microwave, then stir in the remaining smaller portion until melted and smooth.4 sheets gelatin, 200 g milk chocolate, 60 g milk chocolate
- Heat one portion of cream until just below boiling. Remove from heat, squeeze the water from the gelatin, and stir it into the hot cream. Pour this over the melted chocolate and stir until smooth.300 ml heavy cream
- Whip the remaining portion of cream to soft peaks and gently fold in the chocolate mixture until you have a light mousse. Divide the mousse evenly between the two cakes. Chill for at least 1 hour.300 ml heavy cream
Caramel mousse:
- Soak the gelatin in cold water for 10 minutes. Chop the Gold chocolate finely. Heat one portion of cream until just below boiling, then stir in the softened gelatin. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for 1 minute before stirring until smooth. Let it cool to room temperature.2 sheets gelatin, 200 g Gold chocolate, 200 ml heavy cream
- Whip the remaining portion of cream to soft peaks and gently fold in the chocolate mixture until you have a caramel mousse. Divide the mousse evenly between the two cakes. Chill for at least 6 hours — preferably overnight.200 ml heavy cream
To decorate:
- Remove the cake rings and acetate. Melt and temper the dark chocolate (see my beginner's guide if you haven't tried it before). Fill a piping bag with a small round tip and pipe decorative swirls on top of the cakes. Decorate with chocolate pearls and keep chilled until serving.200 g dark chocolate
Notes
*This recipe makes 2 mousse cakes, serving 10–12 people each.
To make just one cake:
You can halve the mousse portions, but bake the full sponge and slice it in half. Freeze the second layer to save for another time.
You can halve the mousse portions, but bake the full sponge and slice it in half. Freeze the second layer to save for another time.