sugar has left the room: chocolate mousse

I made sorbet for the family get together this last weekend, but since my Grandpa is diabetic, I ventured into the fearful world of sugar-free desserts, searching hopefully for one not over-burdened with artificial sweeteners. Most of the recipes I encountered had at least a cup of artificial sweetener, and I was determined not to buy any.

In the end, I had to compromise a bit with boxed pudding mixes . . . something I rarely do but didn’t want Grandpa to be left out of the all-important dessert course. The recipe was relayed to me by the food specialist I work with, Pascha, who passed along “Sugar-Free Chocolate Mousse to Die For” by Dana Carpender, from 500 Low-Carb Recipes.  Admittedly, I went into this one without high hopes (anything claiming to be “to die for” or “death by chocolate” is certain to raise my ire, and since I view mousse as a beginner sort of dessert, I already had a snobbish chip on my shoulder). . . but I was quite pleasantly surprised.  I doubled the recipe . . . which makes more than enough, but since everyone wanted seconds, including Grandpa, that was a prudent choice.

Here’s the standard 6-serving recipe, tweaked with a bit more coffee flavor than the printed recipe.

1 pkg (4-serving size) chocolate or chocolate fudge sugar free instant pudding mix

1 package (about 10 oz) soft tofu (no substitutes)

1 heaping Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 to 1 teaspoon instant coffee (I use Medaglia D’Oro instant espresso)

1 to 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream, chilled

Beat pudding mix, tofu, cocoa powder, and espresso powder until very smooth.  In a separate bowl, whip cream until just about stiff.

Turn your mixer to low and blend the pudding mixture into the cream…just until blended. Do not over-beat or you’ll end up with chocolate butter.

..hmm, which doesn’t sound all that bad, actually.

lick the bowl? duh!

It’s also a good idea not to reveal the ingredients before your tasters have given it a try.  Turns out I had one tofu hater and one coffee hater in my group, and both were completely fooled.  Thick and super-creamy, this dessert has only a bare essence of sweetness, but the texture is like heavenly-thick whipped cream. Serve with fresh berries. Especially tasty paired with a berry sorbet.

Even so, I’ve not been converted into a boxed mix dessert maker, so you die-hard chocolate lovers stay tuned for a rather involved piece of pure chocolate decadence…