Chocolate mousse with Baileys

General

• Serves 6
• Make ahead, it needs chilling well, at least 2 hours

Ingredients

• 3 free-range eggs
• 100g caster sugar
• 300g dark chocolate, broken into small pieces
• 125g unsalted butter
• 500ml whipping cream
• cocoa powder, to finish (optional)

Bailey's cream

• 200g mascarpone cheese
• 75ml baileys
• 30g caster sugar

Procedure

1. Put the eggs and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk until light and airy - the longer you whisk, the better, so give it at least eight to 10 minutes. (You could do it by hand, but that would be a big effort.)
2. While the eggs are whisking, put the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and place over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir with a wooden spoon until they melt completely.
3. With the mixer running on medium speed, add the chocolate mix to the egg mix in a steady stream - it is important to combine the two gradually but continuously, with the chocolate going into the eggs and not the other way around.
4. Whisk the cream until it firms up just a little - it needs to reach a loose ribbon stage (when you lift the whisk, the cream dribbling off should create clear lines in the surface before disappearing). Gently fold the semi-whipped cream into the egg and chocolate mix, and pour into a serving bowl. Chill for at least an hour to set.
5. Make the Baileys cream in advance, or just before serving. Put all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk. The cheese will go loose and runny, but it should firm up again. Stop when it reaches a very soft peak consistency.
6. Serve the mousse directly from the bowl with a huge dollop of Baileys cream on top. Dust with cocoa powder, if you like.