Alice's Luscious Chocolate Mousse

Description
This recipe is from Alice Medrich's Bittersweet. This recipe is quite easy, especially if you're not concerned about eating raw eggs (I've made this 3 times now, and I'm still here! LOL). The mousse is luscious and intense - the flavor of the chocolate is the star here so use the best quality that you can find. You may use this as a filling for cakes or tortes as well (enough for 2 thick layers of mousse for a 9" cake).



Ingredients

 * 6 	 ounces   bittersweet chocolate or  semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
 * 1/4 	cup water or coffee or milk or 1/2 cup heavy cream (if you want a creamier, not-too-intense mousse)
 * 1 1/2 	tablespoons brandy or rum or liquor, of choice (optional)
 * 3 	eggs, at room temperature
 * 3 	tablespoons water
 * 3 	tablespoons sugar

Directions
1. Place chocolate and 1/4 cup of water (or liquid of your choice) in a medium microwave-safe bowl. 2. Melt chocolate in the microwave for 30 sec on HIGH, stir. 3. Repeat the zapping and stirring until chocolate mixture is smooth and completely melted. 4. Stir in brandy (or other liquor), if using and set aside. 5. In a medium heatproof bowl, whisk eggs with the 3 TB water and sugar until well-blended. 6. Set bowl in a skillet of barely simmering water, stirring constantly, cook egg mixture until it registers 160°F on instant-read thermometer (remove bowl from the skillet to check temp). 7. Once the temp has been reached, remove bowl from skillet and beat with an electric mixer at high speed for at least 3-4mins, until eggs have a texture similar to softly whipped cream. 8. Fold about 1/4 of the egg mixture into the melted chocolate. 9. Scrape the lightened chocolate mixture into the remaining beaten eggs and fold gently, until evenly incorporated. 10. If egg safety is not an issue, omit the heating step- whip the eggs with the sugar (omit the water, as it's added just to 	 prevent eggs from scrambling) and proceed accordingly. 11. Now you may divide mousse into individual ramekins or glasses, chill for at least 1 hour until set; cover with plastic wrap if you're not serving within a few hours. 12. You may also use the mousse as a cake filling - I've done this with success, using a cake ring (or a springform pan). 13. If you're using very high percentage chocolate (70% and above), you may want to increase sugar to 4 1/2 TB.