Chocolate Mousse with Olive Oil and Fleur de Sel

Zurich-based chef Ralph Schelling has worked in some of the world’s top kitchens, from El Bulli in Spain to RyuGin in Tokyo. His new book from AT Verlag, Simple is Best, is unsurprisingly full of simple recipes influenced by his global background. Since the Swiss are so synonymous with chocolate, we’re thrilled he wanted to share his chocolate mousse recipe with us, which is simpler to make than you might expect, and has the perfect, savory twist.

Salt is a must in soup, we all agree. But in dessert? It’s amazing how, especially in sweet dishes, a few crumbs of salt can make all the difference between ordinary and sophisticated. I was inspired to create this mousse by the chocolate pudding at the bar Asturianos, one of my many favorite spots in Madrid. The pudding is mixed at the table with a little salt and olive oil – when your mouth is full of chocolate flavors and you bite into a salt crystal, it’s simply amazing. —Ralph Schelling

Ingredients:
1 egg
1 tbsp sugar
150g dark chocolate
400ml single cream
Extra virgin olive oil
Fleur de Sel

Beat the egg and sugar in a thin-sided bowl over a gently simmering pan of water using a whisk or hand mixer until frothy. Be careful that the egg does not curdle.

Turn off the heat. Chop the chocolate, add it to the egg mixture in the bowl, and melt in the residual heat. Stir everything together and let cool slightly.

Whisk the cream until fluffy and carefully fold it into the mixture with a whisk.

Cover the mousse and refrigerate for about 3 hours. Scoop out dumplings with a tablespoon, arrange on plates, drizzle with olive oil, and finish with fleur de sel.

Tips:
Like many of my colleagues, I prefer chocolate from the Schwyz producer Felchlin; their factory shop in Ibach is a must for chocoholics. For my mousse, I used the Grand Cru “Maracaibo Clasificado 65%” couverture from Venezuela. For white chocolate mousse, replace the dark chocolate with white chocolate.

For chocolate mousse fans, a visit to the “Kronenhalle” in Zurich is worthwhile. There, it is served with Crème de la Gruyère.