Mixed Review: Dr. Oetker's Double Chocolate Mousse Supreme
Julia Child's recipe for perfect chocolate mousse calls for two kinds of chocolate, freshly brewed coffee, 4 separated eggs, a splash of dark rum, vanilla extract, plenty of sugar, a pinch of salt, and a garnishing dollop of whipped cream, if desired. The whole heavenly production takes quite a while to prepare, not to mention the minimum 4 hours of chilling time, or the sink full of dirty bowls, spoons, and whisks.
Julia's recipe is worth it, of course, on special occasions when you've planned ahead, but what about those random Tuesday afternoons at work, when you find yourself fantasizing about digging in to a dish of creamy, lighter-than-air mousse after dinner? Is it possible to prepare luscious chocolate mousse in less than two hours, including chilling time?
That's what Dr. Oetker promises with their Double Chocolate Mousse Suprème mix. I put it to the test for this week's Mixed Review.
Dr. Oetker's mousse mixes are available in myriad flavors including pistachio, mocha, and strawberry, each of which is "easy to prepare—simply whip and chill." Simply is right. In order to make my mousse, all I had to do was empty the contents of the box into a bowl, add a cup of milk (I used low-fat, but the instructions didn't specify), and beat them together with an electric mixer for three to five minutes.
The mix packet was filled with a generous amount of powder that resembled instant hot chocolate, and for the first minute or two of beating that's what it looked like: a bowlful of chocolate milk. But after three minutes the mixture had stiffened and gained volume, and after five minutes it had reached the consistency of whipped cream.
I divided my mousse evenly between three small teacups, filling each one generously but not to the point of overflowing. While the back of the box claims the mix serves four, if you're planning on feeding that many I would definitely suggest that you double up. The mousse looked good enough to eat right then, but I resisted and put my teacups in the fridge to chill for an hour (as opposed to Julia's four hours!).
Later, I garnished one serving with a strawberry and dug in. The mousse was light, cool, and creamy, with a gentle sweetness that wasn't overpowering. I did find the chocolate flavor a bit lacking. It certainly wasn't "double" as the name suggested—more like "mild." I would have preferred a deeper, darker cocoa flavor.
Still, in a pinch, on a weekday night, it wasn't half bad.
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12 Comments:
So weird! I was just looking at this box in the store today wondering if it was worth buying. Thanks for the review! Maybe i'll try it out when I go back to school and have only a bowl and a whisk!
veggieout at 7:52PM on 05/28/09
I love this stuff! Probably no better dessert in a box!
katshumar at 9:47PM on 05/28/09
Think it would hold up to being doctored a bit? Maybe the addition of some drinking chocolate will help boost the chocolate flavor.
shale at 10:16PM on 05/28/09
I can't believe how complicated these chocolate mousse is. I make the stuff all the time and my friends rave about it.
200g of chocolate any kind
8 eggs
Melt chocolate (any kind) over very low heat or in a bain-marie.
Remove from heat and mix in 8 egg yolks.
Beat egg whites until they are firm.
Mix in 1 third of the egg whites into the egg and chocolates.
Gently fold the remainder of the egg whites into the chocolate and egg mixture making sure not to break too many bubbles.
Pour into smaller cups and chill for at least 1 hour before serving.
This recipe works for me every single time and works best with very dark chocolate or sweetened chocolate.
xutopia at 11:20PM on 05/28/09
There's a simpler substitute for chocolate mousse without all the eggs: chocolate chantilly. It's honestly the most intense chocolate 'mousse' I've ever had, and made it in
200ml water (yes, water.)
225g/8oz dark chocolate.
Melt both in a double boiler, then fill the bottom of the double boiler (or another large bowl) with ice+water, and whip until it forms stiff peaks.
(http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/database/chocolatechantilly_74864.shtml)
milkytea at 11:44PM on 05/28/09
I'll never buy this mix. Miz Juila rules and sweets should be a pain to make. Made a web archive out of Mister Lebovitz's page.
Grumpy Old Man at 1:08AM on 05/29/09
I hate to be a naysayer, but I've tried this stuff before and found it tasteless. Also, the texture was so light, it didn't feel like I was eating anything--caloric but not filling.
HeartofGlass at 5:56AM on 05/29/09
not for nothing, but every week when this feature gets posted, people rail against whatever was made, complaining that it should have been made from scratch. that is not the point of this feature. stop reading it if you are the kind of person who thinks that a person should not cook at all if he doesn't make his own chicken stock, as someone once posted on this site. i pretty much never make any of these items, either from a mix or homemade, but thoroughly enjoy the reviews. my two cents.
carriebwc at 9:34AM on 05/29/09
I agree with carriebwc's comment but think that these reviews should also list the ingredients for these packaged products. Serious Eaters should know that they aren't really eating chocolate mousse from this box but corn syrup and soy products and various other chemicals and dubious ingredients: Fructose, Dutched Cocoa (Processed with Alkali), Hydrogenated Coconut and Palm Kernel Oil, Maltodextrin, Sugar, Modified Potato Starch, Gelatin, Monoglycerides, Acetylated Monoglycerides, Sodium Caseinate (Milk), Artificial Flavor, Salt, Sodium Alginate.
marimann at 10:55AM on 05/29/09
amen carriebwc!
_greenbean at 11:35AM on 05/29/09
may I jump on the bandwagon and applaud carriebwc? It really is so tiresome to read comments that really aren't relevant to the topic at hand. These reviews are about mixes. I read them because I want to know which mixes are worth a try. Please don't read them to stoke your culinary superiority complex and demean the rest.
i8alot at 1:57PM on 05/29/09
Another nod for carriebwc. I don't always want to take all day to make something completely from scratch. Sometimes I want something quick and crappy.
Also, I missed the comment about how someone shouldn't cook at all if they don't make their own chicken stock - that may be the most obnoxious thing i've ever read on the internet.
Shamefree at 4:42PM on 05/29/09