This Chocolate Raspberry Mousse Cake is as beautiful as it is delicious. A decadent flourless chocolate cake is topped with a rich and creamy layer of chocolate mousse and a refreshing layer of white chocolate raspberry mousse.
If you want to really impress your sweetheart or your family with a dessert for Valentine’s Day this Chocolate Raspberry Mousse Cake will do the trick.
It is one of my top 5 favorite desserts of all time. It is amazingly delicious, however, it is a labor of love.
It is going to take you a bit of time to make this cake and you will dirty a lot of dishes, but I am 100% certain that once you try a slice of this 3-layer mousse cake, you will think it was totally worth the effort.
To make this Valentine’s Day cake, you will start by baking a flourless chocolate cake layer in a heart-shaped springform pan. Then you’ll add a layer of decadent chocolate mousse and another layer of fresh raspberry mousse on top.
To make the cake even more impressive looking, you can garnish it with freshly glazed raspberries in a heart pattern on top.
Of course, you don’t have to make this cake in a heart-shaped pan. If you want to make this dessert for Christmas, a birthday party, Mother’s Day, or any special occasion, you can use a round springform pan instead. Your round cake will be equally stunning.
Each layer of this cake is delicious all on its own and worth making to serve for dessert if you don’t have time to make all three layers.
Chocolate Raspberry Mousse Cake
Flourless Chocolate Cake Layer:
7 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs, separated
pinch of salt
1/3 cup light brown sugar
Pan:
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Prepare a 9″ springform pan or heart-shaped springform pan by removing and turning the base upside down, setting it inside the ring, and clamping the pan.
- Generously grease the sides and base of the pan with butter.
Melt Chocolate and Butter
- Place chocolate and butter in a large heatproof bowl.
- Prepare a double boiler by filling a saucepan with 1″ of water and setting it over low heat on the stove.
- Set the chocolate filled bowl over the pan and allow the chocolate and butter to melt slowly, stirring often.
- Remove the melted chocolate from the stovetop and allow it to cool for about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the vanilla and egg yolks.
Wisk egg whites and brown sugar.
- Whisk egg whites and salt until foam forms.
- Sprinkle in about 1/2 of the brown sugar and whisk until combined.
- Add the rest of the brown sugar and whisk to soft peaks (pick up the whisk and the eggs should form a peak but flop over.)
You can use a stand mixer or handheld mixer for this process if you desire, just don’t overbeat the eggs or they will become like Styrofoam.
Bake flourless chocolate cake in a heart pan..
- Gently fold 1/3rd of the whipped egg whites into the chocolate mixture.
- Fold in the remaining egg whites, being careful to not deflate them.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes.
- The cake will have risen, the edges will look set, and the center will spring back when touched.
- Set aside to cool for one hour.
- Once cooled, the cake may sink down slightly in the center.
- For a really creamy flourless chocolate cake that won’t sink, you can bake the cake in a water bath.
- Fill a roasting pan with 1 1/2 inches of boiling water.
- Wrap the bottom and sides of the springform pan with a few layers of tin foil and set the filled pan down into the water
- NOTE: The toothpick test does not work with this cake. Just follow the instructions above. You can see the top of the cake pictured at right is all one color, there are no wet spots (darker areas.) That is what you’ll look for.
- If you bake the flourless chocolate cake using a waterbath it will look more like a chocolate cheesecake when it’s finished baking.
Chocolate Mousse Layer:
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
3 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons sugar
3 egg yolks, room temperature
Make chocolate mousse.
- Whisk whipping cream to soft peaks. Set aside to warm slightly. You don’t want to use really cold cream.
- Melt the chocolate in a large bowl. Click here for detailed chocolate melting instructions.
- Pour water and sugar in a small saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium heat.
- Stir until the sugar is dissolved creating a simple syrup.
- Whisk egg yolks in a medium bowl.
- Continue to whisk while slowly adding a small amount of simple syrup.
- Slowly drizzle in the remaining simple syrup continually whisking.
- Combine this egg mixture with your melted chocolate, stirring until well incorporated.
- Heat chocolate mixture in the microwave for 15 seconds, or in a double boiler, then stir.
- Add one-third of the whipped cream and whisk until well incorporated.
- Gently fold in the remaining whipped cream until fluffy.
- Pour the chocolate mousse over the flourless chocolate cake layer.
- Spread evenly over top then refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes.
NOTE about raw eggs:
The eggs in this recipe get heated when you pour the boiling sugar syrup over top, but if you are concerned you can heat the eggs more thoroughly. See my Best Chocolate Mousse Recipe for heating instructions.
White Chocolate Raspberry Mousse Layer
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
16 ounces frozen raspberries
1 tablespoon sugar
6 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup heavy whipping cream
Garnish:
8 ounces fresh raspberries, rinsed and patted dry
Make white chocolate raspberry mousse.
- Pour water into a small bowl.
- Sprinkle gelatin over top and set aside for 5 minutes to bloom.
- Pour frozen raspberries into the bowl of a food processor and puree.
- Pour puree into a fine-mesh strainer set over a bowl.
- Press down on the raspberries and allow the juice to drip into the bowl.
- Press on the solids to get as much juice out of the puree as possible.
- Discard the seeds and solids.
- Pour the raspberry juice into a small saucepan.
- Add sugar.
- Bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Continue to boil, stirring often until the juice reduces to 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add the bloomed gelatin.
- Stir until the gelatin is dissolved.
- Put the chopped white chocolate into a large bowl.
- Pour the hot rapberry mixture over the white chocolate.
- Allow the bowl to sit, undesturbed, for 3 minutes.
- Stir until melted and smooth.
Add raspberry mousse layer.
- Whisk heavy whipping cream to soft peaks.
- Whisk 1/3rd of the whipped cream into the white chocolate mixture to lighten it.
- Gently fold in the remaining whipped cream until light and fluffy.
- Pour over the chocolate mousse layer and spread evenly.
- Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
Decorate with raspberries.
- Remove from the refrigerator.
- Run a thin knife or offset spatula around the edge of the pan.
- Release the latch on the pan and carefully remove the metal ring from the cake.
- Set on a cake stand. (I usually put a dab of frosting or something on the plate to hold the cake in place.)
- Arrange raspberries in a heart on top of the cake just before serving.
How to store a mousse cake.
- Cake (without raspberry garnish) will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Keep your cake in a cake dome to keep the refrigerator smells out.
- You can freeze the cake in the springform pan. Be sure to cover it well then either place in an airtight container or wrap well in several layers of tin foil. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
Serving mousse cake.
- Remove the cake from the refrigerator and cut into slices.
- Set the slices on dessert plates.
- Allow the slices to thaw slightly for about 20 minutes before serving. Taking the chill off the cake allows the chocolate flavors to really shine through.
A decadent cake made with three layers starting with a flourless chocolate cake topped with dark chocolate mousse and white chocolate raspberry mousse.
- Flourless Chocolate Cake Layer:
- 7 ounces semi-sweet chocolate finely chopped
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs separated
- pinch of salt
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar
- Chocolate Mousse Layer:
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons water
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 3 egg yolks room temperature
- White Chocolate Raspberry Mousse:
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
- 16 ounces frozen raspberries
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 6 ounces white chocolate finely chopped
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- Garnish:
- 8 ounces fresh raspberries rinsed and patted dry
- optional 1 tablespoon seedless raspberry jam
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Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
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Prepare a 9" springform pan or heart-shaped springform pan by removing and turning the base upside down, setting it inside the ring, and clamping the pan.
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Generously grease the sides and base of the pan with butter.
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Place 7 ounces finely chopped chocolate and 6 tablespoons butter in a large heatproof bowl.
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Prepare a double boiler by filling a saucepan with 1" of water and setting it over low heat on the stove.
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Set the chocolate filled bowl over the pan and allow the chocolate and butter to melt slowly, stirring often.
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Remove the melted chocolate from the stove and allow it to cool for about 5 minutes.
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Stir in 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla and 4 egg yolks.
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Whisk the 4 egg whites and salt until foam forms.
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Sprinkle in 3 tablespoons of the brown sugar and whisk until combined.
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Add the rest of the brown sugar (2 1/2 tablespoons) and whisk to soft peaks (pick up the whisk and the eggs should form a peak but flop over.)
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Gently fold 1/3rd of the whipped egg whites into the chocolate mixture.
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Fold in the remaining egg whites being careful to not deflate them.
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Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan.
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Bake for 15-18 minutes until the top no longer looks wet.
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Whisk 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream to soft peaks then set aside.
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Melt the 12 ounces of finely chopped chocolate in a large bowl.
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Pour 3 tablespoons of water and 3 tablespoons of sugar in a small saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium heat.
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Stir until the sugar is dissolved creating a simple syrup.
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Whisk 3 egg yolks in a medium bowl.
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Continue to whisk the eggs while slowly adding a small amount of sugar syrup.
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Slowly drizzle in the remaining sugar syrup continually whisking.
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Combine the whipped egg yolks with the melted chocolate, stirring until well incorporated.
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Heat this chocolate mixture in the microwave on high power for 15 seconds then stir. Alternatively, you can heat it using a double boiler, until smooth and creamy.
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Add one-third of the whipped cream to the warmed chocolate mixture and whisk until well incorporated.
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Gently fold in the remaining whipped cream until fluffy.
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Pour the chocolate mousse over the flourless chocolate cake layer in the springform pan.
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Spread the mousse evenly over top then refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes.
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Pour 1 tablespoon of water into a small bowl.
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Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of gelatin over top and set aside for 5 minutes to bloom.
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Pour 16 ounces of frozen raspberries into the bowl of a food processor or blender and puree.
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Pour puree into a fine-mesh strainer set over a bowl and press down on the berries.
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Allow the raspberry juice to drip into the bowl.
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Press on the solids to get as much juice out of the puree as possible. You'll want 1 cup of puree.
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Discard the solids including the seeds.
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Pour the raspberry puree into a small saucepan.
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Add 1 tablespoon of sugar.
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Bring to a boil over medium heat.
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Continue to boil, stirring often until the juice reduces to 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes.
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Remove from heat and add the bloomed gelatin.
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Stir until the gelatin is dissolved.
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Put the 6 ounces of chopped white chocolate into a large bowl.
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Pour hot juice over chocolate.
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Allow to sit for 3 minutes.
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Stir until melted and smooth.
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Whisk 1 cup of heavy whipping cream to soft peaks.
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Whisk 1/3rd of the whipped cream into the white chocolate mixture.
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Gently fold in the remaining whipped cream until light and fluffy.
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Pour over the chocolate mousse layer and spread evenly. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
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Remove the cake from the refrigerator.
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Run a thin knife or offset spatula around the edge of the pan.
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Release the latch on the pan and carefully remove the metal ring from the cake.
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Set on a cake stand or serving platter.
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Optional, heat 1 tablespoon seedless raspberry jam for 10-20 seconds on high in the microwave, until it's thin.
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Allow it to cool then brush it over top of fresh raspberries.
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Arrange fresh or glazed raspberries in a heart on top of the cake just before serving.
Cake (without raspberry garnish) will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Keep in a cake dome to keep the refrigerator smells out. Serves 8-12.
This recipe was originally posted on February 1, 2011. It was one of my very first blog posts here on Hungry Happenings.
If you enjoy this raspberry chocolate mousse cake you might also like these other dessert recipes…
Chocolate Mousse Desserts for Valentine’s Day
- Three Layer Chocolate Cherry Mousse Cake
- Black and White Mousse (Chocolate Cheesecake Swirl)
- Chocolate Mousse Cup Hearts
- Chocolate Raspberry Mousse Cake
- The BEST Chocolate Mousse Recipe
If you are looking for other Valentine’s Day desserts be sure to check out my round up of over 100 Valentine’s Day recipes.
Great recipe. The wife and I really loved this dessert.
I’m so happy to hear that! It is one of my all time favorite dessert recipes.
Made this delicious cake for New Year’s Eve. It was time consuming but worth it. I did have to cook the raspberry slush after processing because the consistency was like tomato paste and wouldn’t strain. But after heating it up, it thinned out and I could strain the seeds out. I also made raspberry sauce to serve with it (as one commentator suggested). It made the cake even better as the chocolate was the prevalent flavor. Excellent cake!!
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this mousse cake recipe. I think adding raspberry sauce is a fantastic idea. That would definitely enhance the raspberry flavor.
Made this for a Valentine’s day treat for my family and it was divine! It was worth the work.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe! It’s one of my favorite desserts.
Just curious, did you thaw the frozen raspberries before putting them in the food processor? It didn’t say. Everything else went fine and tasted great.
The raspberries were slightly thawed then the friction from the food processor helped, but you can thaw them completely if you want. I’m glad your cake turned out well!
Yes, I did thaw the raspberries first. If they had been frozen, it would probably have been even more difficult to get the liquid strained out
Hi Beth,
Thank you for a great recipe! I am repeating it for a Christmas Party. One question though: I want to make the chocolate mousee layer a litter stiffer as I want it to be the top layer and add some decoration on top. Can I add gelatine powder to that at some point of the process?
Hi Aina,
The chocolate mousse layer will firm up quite a bit and slices really nicely. You could add some gelatin powder if you’d like. I’d combine a tablespoon of water with a teaspoon of gelatin and allow it to bloom. Once you’ve cooked the sugar and water, pour in the gelatin and allow it to melt then proceed with the recipe. That should be enough to help make the layer even more firm.
Have fun and have a wonderful Christmas.
Hi, so I have an upcoming party and would like to surprise all the guests, however, I was wondering if this mousse was stiff enough to handle being coated with chocolate glaze?
Yes, I'm sure it would be, just be sure the glaze isn't hot when you pour it on or it might melt the top layer a bit. If it's warm, it should be alright. Have fun. I hope your friends love this cake as much as I do.
Hi Ashley, I'm sure your husband will be very surprised!
The mousse will thicken as it cools, so I'm sure your chocolate mousse layer will be fine. The raspberry puree is pretty much juice, and it's very thin. The addition of gelatin, white chocolate and whipped cream will make a very nice layer of mousse. The gelatin really helps set this layer.
I love your idea of adding a chocolate chip in each raspberry. Great tip! I do hope your cake turns out great and that you get some sleep.
I think I'll try to make this for my mom's birthday! It looks so delicious!
I can't wait to try this recipe! It looks absolutely beautiful! How long can I keep the cake for? Can it lasts up till a week?
I would say you should eat this within 4 or 5 days, but it can easily be frozen and will keep for at least a month. Just thaw it out in the refrigerator overnight before you want to serve it.
The cake looks fantastic! Raspberry and chocolate is a great combo. Do you use metric cup or US cup?
Hi Susan, I use US cup measurements.
Thank you so much for your blog. It sounded just like my husband and family waiting for me to get a photograph, any photograph, before the item is consumed. They wait with their tongues hanging out. I made some cream horns with raspberry, chocolate, and others with some gold sprinkles, and the cream was melting as I was trying to get a photo. They are hemming and hawing, and impatiently waiting. 🙂 Thanks so much for all your ideas. I am still working on RUGBY, not football, food items. I made a full sized Rugby ball in krispie treats and dipped it 3 times in white chocolate but it was still 'lumpy'. I don't want to use fondant. I have tried chocolate clay/modeling chocolate was wasn't successful even the 'professional coaches and pastry teachers" couldn't get it right. Next week is the annual Rugby banquet with over 500 people attending in a Sports Museum for which I will be doing deserts again. I need individual servings, fairly large servings for those very hungry and carnivorous boys and girls. I will try your version of modeling chocolate. I also have a GOLF EVENT coming up in two weeks that I need to make goodies for. Thanks for all your inspiration and your writings. I really appreciate them.
It's been so long since I wrote this blog post, but I still remember this day very well. I recently got a DSLR camera and a little over a week ago, it came crashing down onto my table. The tripod was not set correctly and the camera was just too heavy. I about fell apart. Thankfully my husband was there to calm me down. I thought I lost them both. I ruined my table top, but so far my camera and lens are still working.
I've covered lots of rice krispies treats with chocolate and if I want a smooth finish, I make sure my cereal treats have no holes or dimples. I smash more cereal into all of the holes, trying to get the surface as smooth as possible. It's a lot of work, but eventually it does work.
Have fun making all your treats!
Valentine's Day Chocolate Raspberry Mousse Cake Recipe Sounds Good.
I would like to try this recipe in this Valentine's Day.
Thanks for Sharing.
I was referring to the finished cake.
Sorry for not being specific.
Clodishk
I know it's a pretty substantial cake, at least a few pounds, but I really never weighed it, so I can't say exactly. Sorry.
Hy,
I was wondering how much this cake weights using your recipe exactly?
Thanx,
Clodishk
I'm not sure what you are asking. Do you need conversions for the measurements or are you wanting to know how much the finished cake weighs?
Hy,
I was wondering how much does this cake weigh using your recipe exactly?
Thanx,
Clodishk
how big is a "cup"? 250 ml?
There are 236.59 ml in a cup. I found a great site that does every type of conversion you can need here http://www.easysurf.cc/cnver2.htm#cptoml3.
Just wondering if I can make the chocolate mousse layer without eggs?
Yes, you can. I actually just made some chocolate mousse today by just folding in some whipped cream to chocolate ganache. Heat 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream just until it starts to bubble. Stir in 12 ounces chopped chocolate. Whisk 1 cup of heavy whipping cream to stiff peaks. Stir one third of whipped cream into the chocolate mixture (ganache) loosening it up. Fold in remaining whipped cream. Then use like the other mousse in the cake.
Thanks for sharing the recipe. This looks so delicious! I only have semi-sweet baking chocolate chips though. Do you think I can use them to substitute the chocolate bars in this recipe? Claire
You can use chocolate chips, but just be aware that chips are made to hold together even at 350 degrees in an oven. They don't melt as nicely as the bars do. Also, just make sure you really like the flavor of your chips as that is what you will taste in the cake.
I made this last night for Valentine's Day. What a bunch of work that was! I am exhausted today, but I pulled it out of the springform pan without a hitch. I think I also put my base the wrong way because I might not have had it the right way to begin with, so I turned an upside-down base upside-down again. Oops. I also had an issue because I did not thaw the frozen raspberries. I didn't see it mentioned in the recipe above, and stupidly thought I could just take them out of the freezer. So I pureed them still, warmed them up in a saucepan, strained them, and then went back to reducing the liquid. If I had tried this years ago, I would have thought I was stuck. Oy.
I will let you know how it is tomorrow. I just wondered though, how did you run a knife along the sides of the cake without smearing the layers on the outside? I'm sure it all tastes the same, but mine doesn't look as neat from the outer edge like yours.
Hi Gil, I understand your exhaustion. This is by far my most time consuming recipe, but I assure you it will be worth the effort. It tastes heavenly. My frozen raspberries pureed in my food processor, but maybe my freezer isn't quite as cold and they weren't rock solid. They can certainly be thawed in advance. I have also just cooked them from frozen then pureed then like you did when making chocolate truffles. I'm happy you were able to solve the problem and move on with the recipe.
I used a very thin offset spatula and ran it around the edge of the pan while the cake was still cold. I didn't seem to have much smearing at all, but I remember once I made this with a white chocolate mousse layer on top and I was in a hurry to bring it to a party, so I removed it too soon from the refrigerator and it did smear a bit. To ensure a nice clean removal, you could put the cake in the freezer for about 30 minutes. That should keep all the layers from blending together.
I hope you enjoy the cake and that you have a wonderful Valentine's Day.
It turned out deliciously! Thanks for the well wishes. I hope your family had a wonderful day. Thanks for the recipe. (BTW, you weren't kidding. If someone asked me to make this for them, I'd have to charge for the ingredients at the very least.)
Hey Beth!! I just wanted to ask if i can use half and half instead of the whipping cream! Thanks a bunch! Judi
Hey Beth!! I just want to ask you if i can use half and half instead of the whipping cream. Thanks a bunch! Judi
Hey Beth!! I just wanted to ask if i can use half and half instead of the whipping cream! Thanks a bunch! Judi
Hi Judi, half and half wont whip up exactly like heavy whipping cream. You can whip half and half if it is extremely cold, but the end product will not have the same mouth feel or creaminess as the whipped cream which is so important in this recipe.
Hi Beth ! first time here. wow!! the cake is super cool…and love your detailed presentation. Happily following your blog.
cheers,
Sona
hey beth
thanks for the wonderful chocolate mousse recipe…this is the first time i made chocolate mousse successfully…
however, the flourless chocolate cake shrunk quite a bit after cooling…so for the mousse i made a mould from the foil…as i didnt want the mousse would not fall over the chocolate cake…I am not sure if the edges will be as clean as yours….I wanted to ask you if I can smoothen the edges with warm spatula like its done for cheese cake…
hey beth…i was going to make just the flourless chocolate cake (with the recipe of david lebovitz) with raspberry mousse….i didnt think of adding choccolate mousse as I never made a chocolate mousse successfully before…but while looking for the raspberry mousse recipe I came across ur recipe…and I made the chocolate mousse successfully….so thank u for this recipe 🙂
although i had one problem, my flourless chocolate cake shrunk quite a bit after cooling…i wasnt getting even thick layer of mousse at the sides… I removed the springform sides and used foil to make mould around the cake to set the mousse coz i didnt want the mousse to dribble over the cake….its still in process so i dont know if the edges of the mousse are going to be as smooth and beautiful as yours….so I wanted to ask you if you too faced this problem??? and can I smoothen the mousse using warm spatula like we do it for cheese cake??
also as I dont use gelatin….so I am going to use another recipe for raspberry mousse…
thanks a ton for the idea of making this triple layer cake…and also for this excellent mousse recipe…as my chocolate mousse turned out very good 🙂
Hi, I'm glad the chocolate mousse worked out for you. It is the best mousse I've ever eaten. The cake does shrink in the center once it cools. Mine didn't shrink around the edges making the cake smaller, but I understand what you are saying. I think you made a good decision to add a tin foil band around the edge of the cake. Then when you add the chocolate mousse the layers should look nice. I think any raspberry mousse that isn't too thin will work well as the top layer.
I hope the cake turned out well for you and that you enjoy the flavor and the look of it.
hey beth…i was going to make just the flourless chocolate cake (with the recipe of david lebovitz) with raspberry mousse….i didnt think of adding choccolate mousse as I never made a chocolate mousse successfully before…but while looking for the raspberry mousse recipe I came across ur recipe…and I made the chocolate mousse successfully….so thank u for this recipe 🙂
although i had one problem, my flourless chocolate cake shrunk quite a bit after cooling…i wasnt getting even thick layer of mousse at the sides… I removed the springform sides and used foil to make mould around the cake to set the mousse coz i didnt want the mousse to dribble over the cake….its still in process so i dont know if the edges of the mousse are going to be as smooth and beautiful as yours….so I wanted to ask you if you too faced this problem??? and can I smoothen the mousse using warm spatula like we do it for cheese cake??
also as I dont use gelatin….so I am going to use another recipe for raspberry mousse…
thanks a ton for the idea of making this triple layer cake…and also for this excellent mousse recipe…as my chocolate mousse turned out very good 🙂
Hi Beth! I did add height with 8 layers of foil in a ring. It was hard, but it turned out beautiful! Although, not as pretty as yours… I garnished it with fresh raspberries stuffed with chocolate chips. Huge hit at my dinner party! Thanks so much for the great recipe. I'll email a picture.
Oh, I'm so happy to hear that you made it work. I look forward to seeing your picture.
I guess my pan was supposed to be 3" high, but it's only 2". My husband thinks I should wrap aluminum foil around it to create another inch of height, then trim after its set to make it pretty and smooth. Does this seem like a ridiculous idea? If so, what would you do?
Hi Amber, I am so sorry I wasn't around yesterday to answer your questions. I was busy in a conference all day then had a fun filled evening. I hope you took your husbands advice, because it was really a great idea. You can always make a collar using foil to increase the height of your pan. The raspberry layer is just slightly smaller than the chocolate mousse layer, but still it is best to have more than enough room. I sure hope it worked out for you. Be sure to send me a pic- beth[at]hungryhappenings.com
I've got my cake and first layer of mousse in the fridge. My concern is that my cake took up half of the pan and the mousse the other half. It is full. How should I get that raspberry layer on there? The strange thing is, I was concerned that my pan was too BIG, because it's 9 1/2 inches.
Hi! This is a great recipe! Looks fantastic..Love the texture too!
I'm planning to try this one out soon..But I need to know..
Can I add on two more layers of chocolate mousse over the raspberry mousse?? Do you reckon the raspberry mousse will hold it's shape while doing so?
Also, Can I skip the white chocolate in the raspberry mousse?
Hi Nirmala,
Thanks! The raspberry mousse has a pretty good structure, so you should be able to add more layers on top of it. If you eliminate the white chocolate, you wont have as much structure, so you will want to keep it on top. I'd look around the web to find other raspberry mousse recipes instead of just eliminating the chocolate. You may need to change the amounts of ingredients to get it right. Let me know how it turns out.
Thank you much! I made this for Father's Day and it turned out AMAZING!! I'm 15 years old and I'm very inexperienced in the culinary division, but your directions were absolutely perfect! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Everyone LOVED it! I also used your modeling chocolate recipe to make a beautfil flower n top!
Hi Melissa, I am so happy to hear you had success making this cake. It is a big undertaking and it's great that it turned out so well for you and that your family really enjoyed it. If you snapped any pictures, I'd love to see them and share them in my Reader's Gallery. You can send them to me at beth@hungryhappenings.com
hi beth '
i baked the cake today.but it too long time(about35min) to cook.when i put a toothpick inthe middle it came wet.is it supposed to be like that?when i took the cake
out of the oven there were cracks in the cake.pls help me
You definitely baked your cake way too long that's why it cracked. Being this is a flourless cake, it doesn't test done like a traditional cake. It will be wet if you put a toothpick in it. It is a very fudgy moist cake. To tell if it is done, you should press gently in the center of the cake, it should spring back up. You can, if you prefer, put a thermometer in the cake to test if it's done. Once it reaches 140 degrees Fahrenheit, it is ready to come out of the oven.
hi beth i just baked the cake.it took me more then 30 min cook.(when i checked with the toohpick cake wasn't cooked .is it supposeto be like that?so i have to bake for longtime)but finally it cracked.pls help me…………i'm making this for a party tommorow
Dear Beth,
Before I start my comments on the cake I would like to say that this is the first time I have EVER left a comment on an internet blog. I normally just get what I need off a site and 'off I go…'. So for me to leave a comment is a HUGE deal ! The time you have taken on your entire site to add pictures and explain your recipes in such detail definitely deserves the time to leave a comment!
My husband just completed his MBA (phew) and I wanted to surprise him with a nice cake. His favourite flavour hands down is raspberry! So… I had been searching a few weeks for a cake recipe that involved raspberries. I saw lots, but the raspberry layer was all too often something that looked suspiciously close to raspberry jam!
When I found your recipe I was very happy! I am a fairly experienced cook/baker, but of course I was extra worried about how this cake would turn out… would it fall apart after I released the metal ring… how would it taste? etc.
As a finishing touch, I saw your 'graduation cakes' and made one brownie in a small pyrex baking dish, added at the square chocolate 'cap' , made the tassel by hand out of white chocolate and honey and then placed the finished cap on top of the cake. It looked great and it was completely made out of organic ingredients. It is also great that this cake is 'gluten free!'
My husband was out of town until yesterday morning so I made the cake on Thursday. We had a small barbecue last night with family and I brought the cake out with one sparkler after dinner. Everyone absolutely LOVED the cake! It was all GONE in no time! My husband also loved the cake, but his only 'complaint' (he is really good at constructive criticism) was that the chocolate 'over powered' the raspberry mousse flavour. I'm not sure what to do about this next time I make the cake. Half the chocolate in the middle section? Use another package of frozen raspberries in the top section? Thoughts? The white chocolate raspberry layer was by far the nicest flavour.
In conclusion, I would like to thank you again for posting this lovely recipe on the internet for all to enjoy. VERY generous and gracious of you! Thanks again! Angie
Hi Angie,
Thanks for taking the time to leave such a nice comment. I am so happy your family enjoyed the cake. This recipe does make a really rich chocolate cake that has a hint of raspberry instead of the other way around. If you would like a more distinct raspberry flavor there are a few things you could do next time; make a raspberry sauce to drizzle over the cake, double the ingredients for the raspberry mousse layer and skip the chocolate mousse layer, or double just the raspberries and cook them down to a thick syrup to intensify the flavor. All three of these will ramp of the raspberry flavor and I'm sure will taste fantastic.
I love that you also made a graduation cap cake. I love that you used the idea but created one large cake out of it. The flourless chocolate cake is a fantastic gluten free dessert and by using honey in your modeling chocolate, you made it a bit healthier too.
If you took any pictures, I'd really enjoy seeing then and sharing them in my reader's gallery.
hi i was wonder .. can i use any bottom layer ? like instead of chocolate cake bottom can i make a sugar cookie crust bottom? I knoe it wont come out as thick but will it ruin the mousse or the consistency be different?
I think you could use a cookie crust. It will be harder to cut through than the cake, but I think it would taste pretty good.
This looks like the dessert in the Truvia commercial, so I tried writing them for the recipe and this is the response I received from them:
Thank you for your email. We regret to let you know that the only recipes
that we have are on our website. What you see on our commercials, is that of
our Advertising Agency hiring a 3rd party to make the delicious desserts in
our commercials; therefore, we do not have the recipe. Please continue to
visit our website as we update the recipes to suit the holidays as well.
Thank you
TruviaR Customer Service
Isn't that unbelieveable? They are promoting their product with a fake dessert!!!!!
Thank you for posting this recipe – I see there is no Truvia in it!
That is amazing. It's too bad they didn't have a recipe available. I've not ever used Truvia and haven't seen the commercial, but will try to keep a look out for it.
Hi Beth, I just made this cake last night for V-day and it was delicious! Thanks for the recipe 🙂 I did have an issue with the simple syrup though – as soon as I would add it to the egg yolks and whisk, some would dissolve but most of the sugar in it would just solidify and become large, hard chunks. I ended up having to fish the chunks out and try again, but the same would happen. Is there a trick to this (I'm not a very experienced cook)? Also noticed that the chocolate mousse layer and the cake layer were the same colour whereas your mousse is a lot lighter in the pictures… not sure why mine turned out that way, but it was still very yummy!
I'm so glad your cake did turn out in the end. This recipe is pretty advanced, and you say you aren't a very experienced cook. Well, I'm impressed that you tackled it and I'm sure everyone you made it for appreciated your efforts. It is a stunning looking cake and tastes so good. As far as having issues with the sugar crystalizing when it hits the eggs, but my best guess is that you cooked the simple syrup too long so it became like hard candy. You just want to bring it to a boil and once the sugar is all dissolved take it off the heat. If it gets too hot it will go from a liquid to a gel to rock hard candy. The reason the chocolate cake and mousse layer can be different or more similar in color will have to do with the chocolate you used. Each has different properties and some are darker than others. I've seen lots of chocolate mousse desserts that are much darker than mine. I'm glad in the end you got it all to work and enjoyed the cake. Happy Valentine's Day.
Thanks, Beth! Yes it still turned out delicious, and you're right – I did heat the syrup for a while, it looked like a lot of liquid to me and for some reason I thought I needed to evaporate it off a bit, so that's where I went wrong. I used a 75% cocoa cooking chocolate, so it was quite dark/rich. I figured it would be different in colour due to the different chocolate, however I was expecting it to end up being lighter in colour than the cake base (as it looks in your pictures) but that was not the case. It still tasted great, I just thought the three colours was a neat look, but it still turned out better than I had anticipated, or expected for my first attempt. Thanks 🙂
Yep, you were making candy out of your simple syrup. The hot liquid helps to heat the eggs up to a safe temperature and will help sweeten the mousse. If you used chocolate with such high cocoa content, I'm sure your mousse was really dark in color and very rich in taste. The chocolate I use has a much lower cocoa content. If you make it again and want more variety in color, just use a chocolate with lower cocoa content for the mousse. I'm just happy in the end your cake was delicious.
Hi Charles, that is a great idea. I have always made it on the stove, but next time, I'm going to do it in the microwave.
Hi Beth, I am planning on making this today, but was wondering if I could use the chocolate mousse and the raspberry mousse as layers on shortbread cookies instead of the cake ? I just need something that will travel easy and stay firm. Not too sure if its a great idea, thoughts ? 🙂
Dhana.
I think the mousse would taste great on a shortbread cookie. The only challenge may be in cutting through the cookies depending on how sturdy they are, but the mousse might just soften the cookies enough that they are easy to cut. I'm not sure, but think it would work well. Sorry it's a bit of a wishy washy answer. Let me know how it works out.
Do you know if strawberries instead of raspberries will work
Strawberries should work just fine. The color may not be quite as vibrant but the flavor should be nice.
I am attempting this cake today for a dinner party tomorrow night. I really hope it turns out. The pictures of each step are super helpful, Thanks!
Hope all goes well Shannon. I know you'll love the cake.
I have an 8 1/2 in and 9 1/2 in spring foam pan…which one should I use?
9”. Mine barely fit.
Hi Shannon, either of the pans will work fine. You will probably fill the smaller pan up completely and the layers will be thicker but it should still work.
I used the 9 1/2- I'm 2/3 of the way done the cake (I have a 5 month old so it's taking me longer than I originally thought). I think the bigger pan was definitely the way to go.
I used a 9-inch spring form and found it full after adding the chocolate mousse layer. I will have to abandon the raspberry mouse layer and am making a coulis instead. Very disappointing!
Sorry to hear you didn’t have room to add the raspberry mousse in your pan. I’ve made that recipe using a 9 inch round pan before, so I’m surprised you ran out of room. I’m sure the coulis will taste wonderful though. Enjoy!
Dear Beth,
thank you for the fantastic recipe. We totally adore it. I made some changes in the chocolate mousse, because I didn't want to use raw eggs. I used only cream and chocolate. I believe it didn't change the flavour:)
You can see my pictures on my blog:
http://vkusnoteka.blogspot.com/2012/02/blog-post.html
I have linked the recipe in Hungryhappenings.
Thank you once again.
I'm so happy to see how beautiful your cake turned out. Thanks for sharing your pictures. I will add a picture of it to my Reader's Gallery. Your entire meal looks divine. Happy Valentine's Day!
And again – so cute!!! That's it, you just got yourself a new follow, miss!
Saw you over at Bacon Time's Crafting/Cooking from the heart contest. Your cake looks amazing and after all you had to go through, girl you have my vote!
Great pics. Looks perfect. Thanks for linking up at Bacon Time. Good luck!
Stunning cake! It's beautiful and delicious looking.
I love the combination of chocolate and rasberries.
I've saving this recipe and planning to nake it.
Thank you for sharing this!:)
Thanks Winnie. I absolutely love this cake and hope you do too.
Just finished making the cake! So much work, I'm tired lol and my feet hurt haha. I haven't tried it yet but I can't wait I had some left over raspberries so i made a sauce from them, because I tried the white choc. raspberry mixture and they only one i could taste was the white choc. I don't think I made it correctly, I was running out of time. These are my favorite three flavors together. Glad you posted it I will try AGAIN andd not give up haha. Thanks for posting
Hi kjoy, It is definitely a time consuming cake to make, but wait until you taste it. It is worth the effort. I made this again for Christmas Eve and everyone raved about it. Oh, I think a raspberry sauce drizzled over the cake would be wonderful. I hope you enjoy it and take some pictures to send me to be displayed in the reader's gallery.
wow, beautiful! im sure raspberry & chocolate make for a killer combination… im gonna substitute wth strawberries 🙂
Hi Anonymous, yes you can use frozen raspberries to make the mousse. I would find something else to top the cake with if you don't have any fresh raspberries as thawed ones don't look quite as nice. You could pipe on some whipped cream or cut a heart stencil and dust some powdered sugar over the stencil. Even some heart shaped chocolates would be nice.
Wow looks super yummy…can I use frozen raspberries instead?
Hi Anonymous, so happy to hear the this was the best dessert you ever made. I have to agree with your, it is my favorite dessert too!
Beth @ Hungry Happenings
This cake was delicious! I love baking and am always first to put my hand up to make dessert for whatever the occasion. I made this cake was dessert at our father's day lunch yesterday. I can honestly say, it was the best dessert I have ever made!
love that flavor combination!
Hi Madeleine,
As with most recipe creations, I took inspiration from a few other recipes. Over the holidays I tried out a cake recipe from Cooks Illustrated and I liked certain elements but not others. I made a couple of changes to the bottom cake layer in their recipe including using semi-sweet chocolate instead of bittersweet because I enjoy a sweeter flavored cake. Then I topped that cake with a chocolate mousse recipe that I have been using for many years, that I liked so much better than their version. I learned to make this mousse in a cooking class about 10 years ago and am not sure of it's origin. The chef who taught the class was French, so I assume it is a pretty classic recipe. This mousse is amazing all on it's own. It is velvety smooth, incredibly rich, and full of chocolate flavor. I wanted to round out the recipe with raspberry flavor so I started with a raspberry ganache that I make to fill chocolates, and turned it into a mousse. The combination of all three layers is incredible. I've never made or eaten a cake that I like more. I wouldn't doubt that there are other versions of this recipe out there because the flavor combination is such a classic.
Hi Beth,
This mousse is so beautiful!! I love raspberries and chocolate.
Are you taking credit for this recipe or did you get inspiration from someone? It just seems so familiar to me!
Yum! This looks delicious!
what a class preparation you have delivered, Maam…Wanna see more
Even with all the mishaps it seems to have come out perfect! So glad your camera survived 🙂
OK Sis, that is what I want to Valentine's Day. Or any day.
I think there is drool on my desk.