We don’t do the Valentine’s night restaurant ‘thing’ – long rows of tables for two, knocking elbows with the couples either side. So we usually stay in with something good to eat and a bottle of red.

This Valentine’s, Justin made gnocchi Gorgonzola and I made chocolate mousse for dessert (I even served them in heart-shaped ramekins). We rented a film, bought a bottle of nice Shiraz and settled in for the night… perfect!

Chocolate mousse isn’t quite a cake or a bake but I thought I’d share the recipe anyway! I tweaked a recipe from Gordon Ramsay’s Sunday Lunch: And Other Recipes from the F Word

Find more of our chocolate recipes here!

Chocolate mousse

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Ingredients

  

• 100 g dark chocolate
• 300 ml double cream
• 2 tbsp brandy
• 1 egg white
• 50 g caster sugar
• White chocolate shavings to garnish

Instructions

 

• Break the chocolate into small pieces and set aside. In a small saucepan, heat half of the cream until boiling
• Turn off the heat, add the chocolate pieces and stir until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth
  
• Pour the mixture into a bowl set over a large bowl of iced water and add the rest of the cream and brandy
• Using a hand-held electric whisk, beat the mixture to soft peaks
  
• Remove the bowl from the iced water
• Whisk the egg white with a hand-held electric beater until it forms stiff peaks
  
• Add the sugar to the egg white, one tablespoon at a time, whisking continuously
• Using a large metal spoon, carefully fold the meringue through the chocolate mixture
  
• Spoon or pipe into chilled ramekins or serving glasses/pots
  
• Garnish with the white chocolate shavings
• Serve immediately or chill for up to 2 days