Malted White Chocolate Mousse
The fluffiest white chocolate mousse, flavoured with vanilla beans and malted milk. This is a lighter dessert than a regular mousse, with a sweet, caramelised flavour.
Do you ever fancy a chocolate dessert but don’t want something as rich as a regular dark chocolate mousse. Well introducing my white chocolate mousse! This mousse has the fluffiest, creamiest texture and a whole load of flavour thanks to the vanilla pod, malted milk powder and really good quality white chocolate that’s used for this recipe.
If you’ve never had malted milk before, the best way to describe the flavour, is that it’s the same as the inside of a Malteser. The way that it’s added into this mousse, is in the form of Horlicks powder. We’re using just enough to add a really subtle toasted flavour that works fantastically with the white chocolate. It adds a sort of caramelised white chocolate but without all the work!
Now don’t worry if you don’t have any malt powder or if you’re not a fan of it, you can leave it out and simply make a really good white chocolate mousse instead. It’s up to you! Either way, you’ve got yourself a batch of restaurant quality mousses that are a great base for loads of different toppings. I went with poached cherries, vanilla whipped cream and grated dark chocolate.
For more homemade puddings, take a look at our ever growing collection of dessert recipes! There’s lots to choose from here, including sticky toffee pudding, panna cottas, tiramisu, homemade ice creams & loads more…
Ingredients For White Chocolate Mousse
- White Chocolate – It’s key that you use a good quality white chocolate for mousse, with a cocoa content of at least 25%, so that it sets properly. I like to use a chopped up bar of chocolate, as it will melt better than chips.
- Eggs – I’ve included the weights of the yolks and white that you’ll need for this mousse, to keep things accurate. Make sure to use room temperature eggs, as the whites will whip up better.
- Cream – You’ll need double cream (heavy cream) for this chocolate mousse.
- Milk – Whole milk works best for the custard part of this recipe but semi skimmed will work too.
- Sugar – White chocolate is sweet already, so we’re only using a small amount of caster sugar compared to if you were using dark chocolate.
- Horlicks (Optional) – Adding horlicks to this mousse is completely optional! Horlicks is a malted milk drink that’s made with wheat flour, malted barley and milk. It adds a nutty, caramelised malted flavour to the mousse which works great with the white chocolate.
- Gelatine – Unlike a dark chocolate mousse, white chocolate mousse needs some help to set. The easiest way to do this is to add some soaked gelatine sheets into the custard base. I use Dr Oetker platinum grade gelatine but other brands/grades will work (the size of the sheet is different for each grade, so the setting power is the same).
- Salt – Added to enhance the flavour of the chocolate.
- Cream Of Tartar – Adding a tiny amount of cream of tartar to the egg whites gives them more volume when you whisk them and makes them more stable.
How To Make Malted White Chocolate Mousse
The way I make my chocolate mousses is to make an egg custard which is poured over chopped chocolate, to melt. Once cooled, whipped egg whites are folded into the custard base, followed by softly whipped cream. As this mousse is set with gelatine, this gets dissolved in the warm custard.
1. White Chocolate Custard
The first step is to make a white chocolate custard. To do this, we warm milk with sugar, malted milk powder, vanilla & salt then whisk in egg yolks and cook until thick (it should reach a temperature of 82°c/180°f). Pretty much the same as making a regular egg custard!
Once the custard is cooked, you take it off the heat, stir in soaked gelatine leaves then pour it through a sieve, over a bowl of finely chopped white chocolate. Then let the custard stand for 1 minute then whisk by hand, to melt the chocolate.
Now this chocolate custard needs to be slightly warm when you add in the whipped egg whites and cream, so make sure to get on with the next steps straight away!
2. Meringue
Next, we need to make what is essentially just a French meringue. We’re going to use a stand mixer to whisk egg whites with cream of tartar, to soft peaks then gradually add in caster sugar before whisking to stiff peaks.
3. Softly Whipped Cream
Whilst the egg whites are whipping, you can get on with the whipped cream so that they’re both ready at the same time. It’s best to do this by hand, as the cream needs to be at very soft peaks. We’re talking barely whipped!
4. Folding Together
Now it’s time to bring everything together. First, we add a quarter of the meringue into the chocolate custard then gently whisk by hand to combine. This loosens off the custard, which makes it easier to fold in the rest of the meringue & whipped cream.
Next, we fold the rest of the meringue into the mousse, in 2 additions, followed by the whipped cream (also in 2 additions). Each addition should be folded in gently & should be fully combined by the end of this process. It’s important to keep the number of folds as low as possible, to avoid knocking the air out of the mousse.
5. Leave To Set
Once the mousse is mixed, you can transfer it into your choice of serving dish or into a tub, so that you can scoop it to serve. I use 190ml serving glasses, which in my opinion makes the perfect serving size. It’s best to chill these mousses for at least 6 hours, to give them plenty of time to set.
Serving Suggestions
My favourite garnish for any type of chocolate mousse is a dollop of vanilla whipped cream and some fresh fruit that’s either been macerated, poached or roasted. Plus some dark chocolate that’s been finely grated on a microplane. With that being said, you can serve your mousse with pretty much whatever you like!
Whipped Cream, Poached Cherries & Dark Chocolate Shavings
I developed this mousse recipe whilst cherries are at their peak season, so I poached some in vanilla syrup then use them as a topping. As this mousse is sweet already, I didn’t add any extra sugar to the whipped cream, just some vanilla paste. Then I topped the whole thing off with some grated dark chocolate, for some contrasting colour and a touch of bitterness to offset the sweetness.
Tips & Tricks For Perfect Mousse
- Use a good quality white chocolate; something you’d eat on it’s own! This makes all the difference when making a homemade chocolate mousse. It’s key to use a white chocolate with a cocoa content of at least 25%.
- Use a stand mixer to whip the egg whites but whip the cream by hand. The meringue needs to reach stiff peaks but the whipped cream should be barely whipped.
- Add some Horlicks (malted milk powder) to the white chocolate custard, to add a subtle nutty, caramelised malt flavour.
- For flecks of vanilla, scrape the seeds out of a vanilla bean then use for the custard. Or use a good quality vanilla bean paste.
Frequently Asked Questions
Using a good quality white chocolate makes all the difference when making mousse. So that your mousse sets properly, make sure to use a white chocolate with a cocoa content of at least 25%. A chopped up bar works best.
This recipe has been designed to use gelatine, so that it sets properly. White chocolate doesn’t have the same setting power as dark or milk chocolate (due to the lower fat content & zero cocoa solids), so mousse needs the gelatine otherwise it will be soupy!
White chocolate mousse needs to be stored in the fridge and is best eaten within 3 days.
Yes, white chocolate mousse does contain raw eggs as this is what gives it it’s light, fluffy texture. Although in this recipe, the yolks are made into a custard & the whites are made into meringue. I’d give this recipe a miss if you’re concerned about eating raw eggs or if you can’t eat eggs raw.
More Desserts To Try
- Apple Cornflake Crunch
- White Chocolate Basque Cheesecake
- Profiteroles With Chocolate Sauce
- Dark Chocolate Mousse
- Sour Cream Chocolate Cake With Dark Chocolate Sauce
- Amaretto Tiramisu
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Malted White Chocolate Mousse
Equipment
- Serving Glasses (See Notes)
- Stand Mixer
- Mixing Bowl
- Digital Food Probe
- Saucepan
- Sieve
Ingredients
White Chocolate Custard
- 280 g White Chocolate (See Notes For Best Type)
- 2 Gelatine Sheets
- 275 g Whole Milk
- 15 g Horlicks (Optional – See Notes)
- Half A Vanilla Pod (Or 1 tsp Vanilla Paste)
- ¼ tsp Sea Salt
- 60 g Egg Yolks
Chocolate Mousse
- 120 g Egg Whites
- ¼ tsp Cream Of Tartar
- 60 g Caster Sugar
- 300 g Double Cream
Instructions
White Chocolate Custard
- Chop the white chocolate into small pieces then add into a large, heatproof mixing bowl. Set aside for now.
- Fill a small bowl up with cold water then add in the gelatine sheets and leave to soak.
- Next, add the milk, Horlicks (if using), vanilla and salt into a medium sized saucepan then set over a low heat.If you're using a vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds then add both the pod and seeds into the pan.
- Warm the milk, until steaming hot, whisking to dissolve the Horlicks. Don't let the milk boil though!
- Whilst your milk is warming, add the egg yolks into a mixing bowl then whisk together.
- Once the milk is steaming hot, pour half of it into the yolks, whisking as you do so. Pour the now tempered yolks into the pan of milk.
- Cook the custard over a low heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon & has reached a temperature of 82°c/180°f. Once cooked, take the pan off the heat.
- Next, squeeze as much water as you can out of the soaked gelatine leaves then stir into the warm custard. Then pour the custard over the chocolate through a sieve and leave to stand for 1 minute.
- Whisk the custard and chocolate together, until melted and smooth then set to one side and leave to cool slightly. It should be slightly warm when we add in the egg whites & cream.
Chocolate Mousse
- Add the egg whites & cream of tartar into the bowl of a stand mixer then whisk on a medium speed until they've reached soft peaks. This will take 2-3 minutes.
- Next, turn the mixer speed down slightly then add in the caster sugar a tablespoon at a time, making sure to let the sugar mix in fully before adding in more. I find that adding a spoonful of sugar in every 20 seconds or so is best.
- Once all of the sugar has been added in, turn the mixer back up to medium then continue whisking until the egg whites have reached stiff peaks. This will take another 4-5 minutes of whisking.
- Whilst the meringue is whisking, add the double cream into another mixing bowl then whisk by hand until it has reached very soft peaks. Be careful not to over whisk it as this will affect the texture of the mousse.I like to whip the cream whilst the meringue is whisking, so that they'll both be ready at the same time. Make sure to keep an eye on the meringue though, so that it doesn't get over whisked!
- Now, add a quarter of the meringue into the chocolate custard then gently whisk by hand to combine. This loosens off the custard, making it easier to fold in the rest of the meringue & cream.
- Next, add half of the remaining meringue into the chocolate then use a spatula to fold the whites into the custard, until mostly incorporated. Add the rest of the meringue in then fold again.Don't worry about a few streaks of egg white at this point, as it will be incorporated as we fold in the cream. Try to keep the number as folds as low as possible, to avoid deflating the mousse.
- Once the egg whites have been incorporated, fold in the whipped cream in 2 additions. Again, make sure to keep the number of folds as low as possible but make sure that the cream is fully combined.If there's any lumps of cream or meringue in the mousse, gently fold the mousse with a whisk to get rid of them. Do this very gently though!
- Spoon the mousse into serving glasses, cover with clingfilm then refrigerate for at least 6 hours to set. Alternatively, transfer the mousse into a tub, leave to set then scoop to serve.
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