The story of my search for the perfect lemon mousse recipe ended up being very similar to a well-known children’s fairy tale. I always make Eric lemon desserts for special occasions. I also make them for myself. We both love lemon desserts. I’ve made a ton of lemon desserts for us over the 30+ years we’ve been together. We’ve also made a ton of dishes using lemon that were not desserts over the years, including soups, breads, pastas, meats & vegetables. Wanting to go with a new lemon dessert, instead of one of our much-loved, but already blogged about favorites, I started experimenting with lemon mousse recipes to use for a Spring dessert around Mother’s Day.

After perusing many recipes, I chose 3 to make. There were subtle differences between them. From experience, I knew the variations would make a difference in the finished product, but I wasn’t sure which version we would end up preferring. All 3 were light & lemony & delicious. It came down to consistency. Eric, Kelly, Gilbert, my sister, Andi & myself judged the taste test. Of the 3 versions of Lemon Mousse, one was too thick, one was too thin, and you guessed it, one was juuust right! My experiment, “Golden Locks & the 3 Mousses”  yielded a Lemon Mousse recipe we all love that we’ll be making for a long time to come!

Lemon Mousse

Lemon Mousse (adapted from bonappetit.com)  Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
• 6 large egg yolks
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 tablespoons grated lemon peel
• 1 1/2 cups chilled whipping cream
• fresh mint sprigs, berries & whipped cream for garnish

Preparation:

Combine the sugar, lemon juice, egg yolks, whole eggs, and the grated lemon peel in the top of a double-boiler or in a large metal bowl.

Combine the eggs, juice, zest & sugar.

Set the top or bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, ensuring the water does not touch the bottom of the double-boiler or bowl. Whisk the mixture until it thickens, about 10 minutes. Do not allow it to bubble or boil.

Whisk the curd constantly while it cooks.

Transfer the lemon curd to another large bowl and chill it until it is cool, at least an hour, whisking it occasionally.

Refrigerate the curd when it has thickened.

Using an electric mixer, beat the cream until medium-firm peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the whipped cream into the lemon curd.

Incorporate the whipped cream into the curd.

When it is combined, fold in the remaining whipped cream.

Fold the remaining cream into the curd.

Divide the lemon mousse into 8 serving dishes, then cover and refrigerate them until ready to serve. Garnish the mousse with berries in season, mint sprigs and additional whipped cream, if desired.

Garnish with berries, fresh mint, Marcona almonds, whipped cream . . .

This lemon mousse was just right!  ~Linda

Lemon Mousse (adapted from bonappetit.com)  Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
• 6 large egg yolks
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 tablespoons grated lemon peel
• 1 1/2 cups chilled whipping cream
• fresh mint sprigs, mixed berries & whipped cream for garnish

Preparation:

Combine the sugar, lemon juice, egg yolks, whole eggs, and the grated lemon peel in the top of a double-boiler or in a large metal bowl. Set the top or bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, ensuring the water does not touch the bottom of the double-boiler or bowl. Whisk the mixture until it thickens, about 10 minutes. Do not allow it to boil. Transfer the lemon curd to another large bowl and chill it until it is cool, at least an hour, whisking it occasionally.

Using an electric mixer, beat the cream until medium-firm peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the whipped cream into the lemon curd, until it is combined, then fold in the remaining whipped cream.

Divide the lemon mousse into 8 serving dishes, then cover and refrigerate them until ready to serve. Garnish the mousse with berries in season, mint sprigs and additional whipped cream, if desired.