Lemon Mousse Cups are creamy, sweet and lemony. These little bite-sized desserts are super simple to make with lemon curd.
With all of the snow and cold weather we’re having here in New England, I think Mother Nature needs a strong reminder that Spring is just a few weeks away! (Seriously – I am SO. READY. for some warm and sunny weather!)
So what better way to get Mother Nature to sit up and take some notice than with these pretty little Lemon Mousse Cups!
These bite-sized desserts have a light, bright and creamy lemon flavor thanks to a combination of homemade lemon curd (see our recipe here), mascarpone cheese, a touch of limoncello and lemon extract, plus heavy cream. All of those ingredients are simply combined together – then piped into store-bought crispy mini fillo cups.
In our recipe below, we also show you how to make those pretty little candied lemon slices that we used to garnish the lemon mousse cups! It’s an easy way to make this simple little dessert look extra fancy – plus the candied lemon adds another sweet burst of citrusy flavor!
PrintLemon Mousse Cups
Lemon Mousse Cups are creamy, sweet and lemony. These little bite-sized desserts are super simple to make with lemon curd.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 15 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: 30 pieces 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: stir
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the Candied Lemon Slices
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 lemons sliced into 1/4 inch slices
For the Lemon Mousse
- 3/4 cup lemon curd (see our recipe here)
- 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
- 1 tablespoon limoncello
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 boxes Athens brand Mini Fillo Shells (total 30 cups)
Instructions
- Heat sugar and water to boiling. Add lemon slices, reduce to a simmer and cook 30 minutes. Dry for one hour on a rack covered with wax or parchment paper. Cut each slice into quarters and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, place lemon curd, mascarpone, limoncello and lemon extract. Mix with a whisk until fully combined.
- In a separate bowl, beat cream to stiff peaks and fold into the lemon mixture.
- Place filling into a pastry bag fitted with a star tip and pipe evenly into the mini fillo shells.
- Top each with a candied lemon slice and serve.
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I can’t rate this recipe as I haven’t made it yet, but it sounds yummy! If I make it a day ahead and refrigerate it, will I be able to pipe it the next day?
Yes – that will work!
Very tasty and relatively easy. However, the final mousse did not thicken enough to pipe. Refrigerated for 30minutes, piped it out but the design melded out. What can I do to thicken it? Very disappointed!
Hi Barbara – I’d suggest adding more mascarpone cheese to the mixture to try to firm it up.
After I fold the whipped cream, the mixture was kind of thin. Do I need to let it set or did I do something wrong?
Hi Jen – You can definitely try chilling the mixture to see if it firms up or – if you have any extra heavy/whipping cream – you could whip that up to stiff peaks and fold in more. Hopefully that will firm up the mixture for piping into the cups. It’s always hard for us to know what might have happened without being there with you – in this case, the lemon curd might have been softer than what we used – but that’s just a guess. I hope that helps!
Just found your site. I have to admit I’m very excited. I often find food blogs with a few recipes I’m interested in, but I’ve yet to see a recipe on yours that I don’t want to make! Thanks for all your hard work.
Thank you Chevelle – we’re glad you found us!
Could I substitute the juice of a lemon for the extract? Or will that break the mousse? If I can, how much would I use?
Hi Denise – The lemon extract is much more concentrated in flavor than lemon juice – to get the same flavor you’d probably need to use more juice and I do think that would ruin the consistency of the mousse. I’d recommend staying with the extract.
Hi, I’m sorry I don’t know what limoncello is & where do I find it? Thank You!
Hi Ann – it’s a lemon liquer that you can buy at a liquor store.
I’m sorry, I have never heard of limoncello, what is it & where do I find it? Thank You!
Is there any substitution for limocello? I’m not sure I can find that in my area. Thanks.
Hi Janice – I’ve seen some other recipes suggest substituting lemonade concentrate for limoncello – it will add the same intense lemon flavor without the alcohol. Or – you could add a very small amount of lemon extract as an alternative as well. Hope that helps!
Could lime be substituted?
Hi Vivian – yes – this would be delicious with lime!