Copycat Chocolate Mousse Recipe From Chapon’s Famous French Mousse Bar

There’s something magical about this truly decadent chocolate mousse recipe. With its velvety texture and deep chocolate flavor, this copycat recipe, inspired by the legendary Chapon mousse au chocolat, brings a touch of Paris to your kitchen or next dinner party. It’s rich yet light and airy. Add a few fun toppings, and it’s a dessert that everyone will love.

I am sharing this for the last Sunday Favorites before Christmas with Cindy and Mary Ann.

Chocolat Chapon

A couple of years ago, on one of our buying trips to Paris to stock up on products for ShopMostLovelyThings.com, we were walking one afternoon through St. Germain and stumbled upon Chocolat Chapon. We first noticed people strolling through the neighborhood with paper cones filled with chocolate mousse and fun toppings. It didn’t take long to find the source. So we stopped in, sampled our first mousse au chocolat, and have been returning, at least once, on all of our subsequent trips.

A little history about Patrice Chapon – the man behind the chocolate

Chapon started his career as an ice cream maker for Buckingham Palace. However, after visiting Harrods in London and discovering the chocolate hall, he decided to pursue his passion and the art of chocolate making. He started by making chocolates in the basement of his parent’s home in a suburb of Paris in 1985. He grew fairly quickly and opened a workshop. Then, in 1993, he opened his first storefront (right next door to his workshop) in the same small town where he grew up.

In 2001, he opened his first storefront in Paris. What sets him apart from many other chocolate makers is that he sources his beans from all around the world and roasts them himself. He is one of the few artisanal chocolate makers not to use soy lecithin or cocoa butter in his recipes. 

In 2005, he opened his second Paris location, and in 2023, his company was acquired by FrenchFood Capital. It will be interesting to see if that gives him the ability to expand and yet maintain his focus on the quality and uniqueness of his chocolate. But I can assure you we will be stopping in for a chocolate treat on each of our trips to our favorite city.

The popular rise of chocolate mousse

After World War II, French cuisine’s popularity in America rose. Many French chefs came to America and opened restaurants. In the early days, they would make a large vat of chocolate mousse every morning that would serve the entire restaurant each night. This was the beginning of chocolate mousse becoming so popular. 

Fun fact about chocolate mousse

Did you know that back in the early days of the 19th Century, chocolate mousse was called “mayonnaise de chocolat.”

What’s the difference between chocolate mousse and chocolate pudding?

Although very similar, pudding and mousse have different textures, and they are cooked differently. Pudding is thicker and more dense, and mousse is a little bit lighter and more airy. Also, pudding usually has some kind of thickening agent, such as cornstarch, gelatin, or flour. 

How I like to serve this copycat chocolate mousse recipe

For a dinner party, a gathering of friends, or other special occasions, I like to set it up as a self-serve chocolate bar and let everyone create their own version. I start with a large bowl of chocolate mousse. Next to the bowl of mousse, I usually have 4 oz paper cups and small ramekins filled with chocolate shavings, crumbled shortbread and Biscoff cookies (in separate ramekins), and some Pepperidge Farms Pirouette cookies. Because the mousse is so rich, filling the cup only half full and adding some toppings seems to be best. It’s such a fun and memorable way to serve dessert to a large group. 

​Special equipment needed for making chocolate mousse

• Large saucepan and heatproof bowl (for a double boiler)
• A medium bowl
• Stand mixer with whisk attachment or an electric hand mixer
• Rubber spatula
• Wooden spoon

Ingredients for easy dark chocolate mousse recipe

• Eggs (room temperature)
• Heavy cream or heavy whipping cream
• Good quality dark chocolate (if you prefer, you could also use milk chocolate)
• Vanilla extract
• Salt
• Sugar (some for the chocolate mixture and some for the egg mixture)

Directions for classic chocolate mouse

1. Add water to the sauce. Place a heatproof glass bowl over the saucepan, making sure the water does not touch the heatproof bow. Turn stove to medium heat and bring water to a simmer. Reduce heat and continue to simmer. 
2. Chop the chocolate and add it and the heavy cream to the bowl. Stir regularly until the chocolate has melted and mixed with the cream and becomes smooth and velvety.
3. Remove the bowl and melted chocolate mixture from the saucepan and set aside.
4. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until the sugar has dissolved. Add a few large spoonfuls of chocolate and whisk again until combined. You only want to initially add a little bit of the chocolate mixture to warm the eggs and keep them from scrambling. Add the remainder of the chocolate mixture and whisk until completely combined. Add the vanilla and set aside to cool.
5. While the chocolate mixture is cooling, add the egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment and beat the eggs until they are foamy. With the motor of the mixer running at medium speed, slowly pour the sugar into the bowl and continue whipping until soft peaks form. You don’t want to over-whip the egg whites. 
6. Carefully fold half of the egg white mixture into the chocolate mixture and stir to combine. Add the rest of the chocolate mixture and carefully fold it in just until almost combined. Resist the urge to over-mix. The whipped egg whites are what give the mousse its light, airy texture. 
7. Pour the mousse mixture into a large glass serving bowl. Place a sheet of plastic wrap over the top making sure to not let the plastic wrap touch the mousse. You want a nice even and undisturbed surface for presentation. Place the covered mousse in the refrigerator for a minimum of 5 hours or preferably overnight.

We used a crystal Tiffany bowl, but any glass bowl that shows off the gorgoues chocolate mousse will work!

More Sunday Favorites:

Buche de Noel Cake

If you are feeling a bit more ambitious, this Christmas cake from Sue of The View From Great Island is a show stopper for sure!

Last Minute Stocking Stuffers from Amazon

Read the post here for 17 stocking stuffers that will arrive before Christmas.

My Favorite Cashmere Sweaters from Quince

It is officially cozy sweater season. The weather has turned quite cold in NYC/Connecticut. We even had snow!

Mongolian Cashmere Oversized Crewneck Sweater – I love this sweater with jeans, midi skirts and wearing over work out wear. It’s super cozy and versatile. I have heather gray – it comes in five colors. 

Mongolian Cashmere Tee – The perfect neckline for layering or just weatring on its own. A cashmere tee for for $44 that comes in 9 colors.

And now Quince has Luxe Cashmere Sweaters that cost a little more at just under $200 for a crew neck, but are comparable to sweaters by Lora Piana that would cost $1,900.

Let’s check in with Cindy and Mary Ann!

Cindy Hattersely Design

Classic Casual Home

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You might also like these other dessert recipes

• Cranberry curd tart
• Authentic French hot chocolate
• Cranberry and lemon bars
• Hot chocolate and marshmallow bundt cake