Death by Chocolate Mousse--Potentially Paleo

No. Really. This is seriously seriously rich. It can also be very very dark (but you can lighten it up if you want by using semi-sweet or possibly even milk chocolate chips).

It is surprisingly not coconut-y. There's a hint of it to be sure, but just a faint faint hint. If you want more coconut, you can add some coconut extract or top that whipped cream with some shredded coconut. Or you could whip the thick part of a can of coconut and make coconut cream and top it with that. Kip doesn't like coconut, so I was glad that that flavor wasn't too intense.

The best thing about it is that it is so so so stupidly easy to make. Sometimes I think that I should have called this blog "Stupidly Easy" instead of "The Tasty Cheapskate." (Seriously, we're looking at 5 minutes plus chill time.)

Or maybe the best thing about it is that it could be considered somewhat virtuous as a dessert--dark chocolate and coconut milk. It's gluten-free and can be paleo, dairy-free or vegan if you use vegan chocolate chips.

Or maybe the best thing is that a very very little can be satisfying. I poured this into four 4-oz ramekins. I wish I'd poured it into 8 miniature vessels of some type (I'm thinking Chinese-style tea cups would have been gorgeous).

Happy Valentine's Day!

Death by Chocolate Mousse
adapted from The Darling Bakers
Serves 4-8
Prep time: 5 minutes
Chill time: At least an hour
Cost: $1.70 (or about $.42/serving)
coconut milk: .75, chocolate chips: .80, egg: .10, other stuff: .05

Note: Doubling would be nice since then you could use a larger blender and a can of coconut milk instead of a partial can. Just keep in mind that this dessert is intense and filling.

Note on chocolate chips: I used 60% Ghiradelli chips and got a very dark final result (I looove dark chocolate.) I think this was intended for semi-sweet chips and I even think that milk chocolate chips would work great.

Note on extracts: I'm sure you could use some type of orange (probably even a Tbsp or two of orange juice) or raspberry or even mint as well, but I didn't want any flavors that would detract from the chocolate.

2/3 C coconut milk
1 C chocolate chips
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp almond extract
good pinch sea salt

Heat coconut milk to near-boiling (I did this in microwave).

Meanwhile blend chocolate chips, egg, and extracts in blender (it'll kind of chop the chips small and beat that egg a bit). Note: With such a small amount you'll likely need a smaller blender. I used my Magic Bullet and that worked. I'm not sure a large blender would work with the small amounts.

When your coconut milk is nice and super hot, pour it into the blender. I was worried it might lump the egg up, but it totally didn't. Pulse, then blend until it's smooth and creamy.

Pour into your tiniest, cutest dishes and let chill.

After it's cool, you can top it with homemade whipped cream or homemade whipped coconut cream.

PRINTABLE RECIPE