Quick & Easy Dark Chocolate Mousse Recipe you’ll want to know by heart!
I’m not a big fan of Valentine’s Day. Never have been, never will be.
To me, it’s just one of those Holidays that was invented by big corporations so they can fill their pockets with big handfuls of dollars. I don’t really need a special occasion to remind me to tell the people that are important in my life that I love and appreciate them, to offer them flowers, give them little surprises or make them a special meal or treat.
I am, however, a real fan of chocolate. And since chocolate is such a biiiiiig part of Valentine’s Day, then I guess it means that I have no choice but to, in that sense at least, show a tiny bit of appreciation for the so-called Holiday.
Not that I need a special occasion to enjoy chocolate, though, especially not when chocolate is presented to me in such a nutritious and guilt free way!
What you are looking at here might very well become your go-to solution for those days when you need a delicious yet nutritious dessert in a pinch. Not only can this Dark Chocolate Mousse be ready for you in mere minutes, it also uses nothing but ingredients that you probably have all the time in your fridge and cupboards.
Indeed, this Chocolate Mousse Recipe is so easy to whip up, it’s absolutely fool proof and honestly, it doesn’t even come close to tasting like it’s good for you.
Not in the least!
Did I tell you about how this one comes together super fast? Really, it does. I mean it!
How fast, you ask? Well, from start to finish, I would say you’re looking at oh, probably 10 minutes, tops. And that’s if you take the time to clean the kitchen after you’re done. And although it does benefit from sitting in the fridge for a couple of hours before you eat it, you could still serve this mousse as soon as it’s finished whipping.
I don’t know if you can tell from the photos alone, but the picture above was taken immediately after the mousse was transferred into the dessert cups. At this point, the texture was really soft and creamy, sort of like a mix between a pudding and a mousse, maybe close to a smooth frosting, maybe?
But after the mousse gets to sit in the fridge for a couple of hours, the texture becomes a lot firmer, silkier, crazy rich yet very fluffy still; an almost exact replica of genuine, authentic chocolate mousse, made the hard, long and complicated way.
That’s the texture you’re looking at in the picture above as well as the ones below. I wish you could experience the difference by taking a great big lick at your screen. Ha! Now wouldn’t that be grand!
Alright, so this fabulous mousse of yours comes together super quickly and it has an amazing texture. That’s all good, but how does it taste? you’re probably wondering…
Tell you what: this terrific dessert’s flavor truly matches the rest of its qualities!
It has a very intense and not overly sweet chocolate flavor, just the way I like it. Also, the addition of Ancho chili powder gives it a pleasant little touch of heat, just enough to make your palate a tad curious. It doesn’t scream chili powder at all but rather just binds and combines with the flavor of the chocolate to the absolute perfection.
And if your palate should find that it could use a little bit more sweetness, you could very well add a little bit more honey, or a little bit more date paste.
For me, this is just the perfect thing to satisfy my need for a little something sweet at the end of my meal.
Hope your sweet tooth likes it too!
Paleo Dark Chocolate Mousse
Ingredients
- 1 ripe avocado
- 1/4 cup date paste , (or 4 medjool dates, pitted)
- 1 tbsp unpasteurized honey
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk
- 1/2 cup organic cacao powder
- 1 tsp instant coffee granules
- 1/4 tsp Ancho Chili powder
- 1/4 tsp salt, I use Himalayan salt
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Process avocado, date paste (or pitted medjool dates), honey and coconut milk in a small food processor until smooth and creamy.
- Add cacao powder,instant coffee, ancho chile powder, salt and vanilla and resume processing until well incorporated. You might have to scrape the sides once or twice to get all the powder to mix in nicely.
- Transfer this mixture to the bowl of your stand mixer and whisk on high for 4-5 minutes until light and fluffy. You could also do this with a hand mixer if you don't have a stand mixer.
- Divide the chocolate mousse between 4 to 6 indidual dessert bowls, dust lightly with cacao powder or ancho chile powder and refrigerate for 4-6 hours, or up to 2 days.
- Note that this mousse can also be served immediately, but its texture greatly benefits from it sitting in the fridge for at least a few hours.
Nutrition
If you’ve tried this recipe, please take a minute to rate the recipe and let me know how things went for you in the comments below. It’s always such a pleasure to hear from you!
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61 Comments on “Quick & Easy Dark Chocolate Mousse Recipe you’ll want to know by heart!”
Chocolate + chili + vanilla + date paste??? I’m sold. This looks so scrumptious Sonia, I could definitely use a cup of that mousse while watching the Olympics.
Can you bring me one?
Oops, sorry… ate them all! But I can whip up another batch if you come and get it! 🙂
I would love one you know its vegan and vegetarian friendly and worthy of those who wanna be sugar free and could market to businesses and health food stores. Did yiu make it up?
This just looks too good Sonia not to try. I recently made a chocolate mousse as well, no added sugar but I did add dairy I there. Have never tried a paleo version of chocolate mousse but you just convinced me to give it a go!
Hope you like it, Simone! Little by little… paleo is getting to you! 😀
Yes, please, and thank you! I’ve seen recipes for avocado mousse before but have yet to try it – I think my mind has finally been convinced that I need to have this in my life right now. Would make the perfect Valentine’s Day treat 🙂
Oh, you have no idea how badly you need to have this in your life right now, Alyssa. I truly hope that you like it as much as I did. Please do let me know how you liked it if you end up trying it! 🙂
it looks amazing!
All I have to say is, wow! This looks incredible, totally would have never thought of adding the ancho chili powder but I bet it works! Love it! Pinned!
And you wouldn’t believe the difference that this little addition makes. It adds such a cool little kick. I really hope you try it and tell me what you think! 🙂 And thanks for pinning!
Sonia the lighting in this photo sequence is exquisite. That first shot is mesmerizing. Love how simple you kept this recipe with such well chosen ingredients — I’m looking forward to trying this one.
Oh wow, thank you so much for saying that, Kelly! I really wasn’t convinced, I was even considering redoing this entire shoot (as well as the recipe, which would be a bonus!) but after reading your kind comment, I think I’ll just leave it be (although I might redo the recipe, still, just because…)
Please do let me know how the recipe worked for you if end up trying it! 🙂
Hi, I just made this, and while it tastes wonderful, it is a strange shade of green instead of brown like yours!I followed the recipe to the letter.What can I have done wrong? Karen.
Strange, really strange. Apart from asking if you are really sure you didn’t forget to add the cacao powder, I really can’t think of anything… Cacao will *usually* hide ANY trace of avocado almost instantly. I really am at a loss, here, sorry Karen. Wish I could be of more help. Glad to hear it tasted good, though! 🙂
I look forward to trying this… I’ve made a variation using avocado, cacao, and honey. The additional ingredients in your recipe will surely enhance the flavour though. I am pinning this to one of our Pinterest boards.
Cheers!
Hope you like it, Adam! and thanks for pinning! 🙂
Have couple avocados in freezer, do you think they would work in this recipe??
If you thawed them, perhaps… in fact, I really wouldn’t see why not, but I don’t have much experience working with frozen avocado, so I wouldn’t be able to tell for sure… Let me know how it turned out if you do decide to give it a go! 🙂
Wow, thank you for writing this amazing recipes. As one of hot choco lovers, i want to try this recipe.
^_^
I can’t wait to try this. I have a serious chocolate thing especially since I’ve gone Paleo and this will be just great for that.
Hey, congrats on going Paleo, Angela! I think you’ve made a great decision for yourself and for your health! You’ll see that it gets really easy with time, and recipes such as this one make you want to stick with it forever! I hope you like it if you do end up trying it. Make sure you share your impressions, I would like that very much! 🙂
I went paleo jan.1st.
Totally winged it for the first few days then got the paleo book for dummies. I enjoy looking asst regular recipes and turning them into ingredients that only walk or grow. My kids are joining me the first 3o days, ages 14 and 9,
Im making this for Valentine’s day, let’s see if they can tell its healthy.
Best of luck in your journey, Sara, and I hope the mousse is to your liking!
Just fabulous! Delicious! Amazing! Wow I am so happy! Thank You for Your blogg and thank You for this wonderful and nutritious recipes! I am humbly starting to try them out and this “Mousse” passed my husbands test, I mean I loved it but then I am not the one crazy about chocolate mousse, he is! I am more a “salty” kind of person, but love sweet things too! Wow who knew that one could be eating such a delight and still be eating “healthy”!?
Gonna try the chichen fingers and filled dates tonight, its friday after all!:), and they look delicious and healthy! Yumm!
I am so inspired by Your blogg You cannot believe it…am hopping to soon get hold of coconut flour and try out those chocolate cakes…if they taste half as good as they look, I think my hubby is gonna fall in love with me all over again! lol…(we have been married for 5 years now) I´d say I found your page just in time! Thank You again! so exited! I just…wow!
HAHAHA! Thank you so much for your enthusiastic feedback and incredibly kind words, Alejandra! You are a real sweetheart and just made my day! I certainly hope that you will let me know how the cakes turn out if you do try them, and especially how your husband liked ’em! 🙂 Again, thanks a bunch. Comments such as the one you just left are simply priceless! 😀
Do you find the chili and instant coffee necessary?
They do add a lot of depth to the flavor of the mousse, but they are not absolutely mandatory… feel free to leave them out if you can’t get a hold of them!
Wow! Great recipe. I found your site today and love it! Lots of treats to try this week.
Totally OMG amazing! Thank you. I have made as a chocolate pie with an almond flour crust and honey sweetened coconut cream for topping. Non-Paleo’s loved it!
Oh, now that sounds scrumptious! Thanks a bunch for the great feedback, Lisa. It’s greatly appreciated! 😀
Oh my goodness!! This is insane who would have thought you could make healthy choc mousse?! I’m so so impressed they are delicious my three young boys absolutely love it too! Thank you for posting definitely going to make this a regular in my no sugar dessert rotations!! Blessings from Australia!
Oh, thank you so much for your amazing feedback, Rosa! Your three young boys loved it? Wow, that is music to my ears. So, so happy to hear that the mousse is to your liking and that you will be making it on a regular basis. And thanks for letting me know, too. I greatly appreciate that! 🙂
Thanks Sonia for submitting this great recipe to our Paleo Recipe link party!
This recipe is beautiful! I love that they are individual sized! 2 questions….#1 do you use any alternatives to dates? #2 which recipe plugin do you use. I love the look of it!
Such a lovely post!
Thank you Diana! I suppose you could use raw honey instead of dates, only I think I would use only a few tablespoons, since honey is a lot sweeter than dates.
As for the delimited recipe area, my web designer coded it to make it look like that. Just using the same plugin wouldn’t generate the same look, unfortunately!
Can I make this without the honey? I am trying eat as less sugar as possible. Thanks.
Absolutely, Ahalya. It’ll only taste a little less sweet, that’s all.
Thank you!
Help please 🙂
The mixture is so yummy, but my texture is so runny. I followed the recipe exactly and used a hand beater.
I mixed the ingredients in the kitchen aid initially, what do you think I am doing wrong?
Thank you so much for sharing 🙂
The only thing I could think of would be the coconut milk, Jessica. Did you use the thick, full fat, canned variety?
Hi Sonia,
No I used the powder mixed with water kind…definitely makes sense.
I also used Date syrup, come to think of it, maybe that’s it?
Thanks for your reply
1 question, 1 comment…
Question~liquid instant coffee, or the actual grounds?
Comment~I did something fun and non-commercial with my family for Valentine’s Day every year. I called it the “love-fest”. I had each person (2 adults, 4 kids) write out 2 things about each person in the family that they loved or appreciated. Took all the answers and typed them into word documents with cute graphics for each individual, framed them in cheap cute frames, and then mad a big dinner with everyone’s favorite foods for V-day. After dinner we went around the table and shared what had been written about us by the other family members. Made great memories and keepsakes through the years! Dawn
Is there really such a thing as liquid instant coffee? I’ve never seen this in my part of the world. It comes in granules, here, so that’s the kind I used.
And what a beautiful thing you did on Valentine’s Day. I love it!
Haha…no=no such thing as liquid instant coffee; I meant should I prepare the instant granules so that they are liquid.
D’OH! *taps herself on the forehead* I suddenly feel a bit silly! 😉
So hum, no… no need to dilute the coffee. Just add the granules directly into the recipe.
Really good!
I didn’t have ancho so just used regular chilli powder, although after reading the differences I now know why my mousse was a bit on the hot side. Lesson learned, research before substitution.
Oops! Must’ve been a tad hot indeed, but still good nonetheless! Happy to hear you liked it still! 🙂
This was *sooooo* good! Skipped the coffee powder, but otherwise followed the recipe and it turned out great. You could feed this to a hundred people and 99 would never guess there’s avacado in there! Delicious!
Real happy to hear, Brian! 🙂
Thanks a bunch for the great feedback, I greatly appreciate it!
This recipe looks amazing, I will be making it this weekend! I love that you used himalayan salt in this recipe, it has so many health benefits!!!
Wow! This looks amazing!
Came out great and love every bite of it! Awesome and a definite in any home!
Awesome, real happy to hear, Danie! Thanks a bunch for taking the time to let me know, too. I greatly appreciate that! 🙂
Great recipe! This is the second of yours that I’ve tried– after your paleo shortbread cookies came out exactly as I’d hoped (I only subbed out the lard, using margarine), I decided to follow you over all others on my first alt ingredient chocolate mousse journey. I personally love how it came out, though it was too bitter and too spicy for others who tried it. My alterations: only half a huge avocado, smaller dates than Medjool, cocoa instead of cacao (all I had), and I skipped the coffee. I also had to hand whip it once the cocoa was in; my food processor couldn’t handle that much dry, but I loved that there were still specks of dates, personally. I served it with raspberries and raw coconut flakes on top– it was incredible. If I did it again for others, I’d follow your recipe exactly, except for a smaller amount of Ancho, maybe subbing vanilla bean for your extract (have you tried that?), and grinding a teensy bit of my fav fruity but smoky coffee in, following your lead. Thanks lady! Look forward to the next adventure.
Thank you so much for all the great feedback, Sarah! I’m not sure I understand the part about your food processor not being able to handle that much dry, though. The mixture should not really be dry at all, it should be creamy and unctuous… I’m real happy to hear that it turned out great, still! Thanks for taking the time to let me know, I greatly appreciate that!
Had to sub 2 T honey for date paste and cayenne for ancho chile; turned out great. Really delicious, perfect creamy texture; I will make this often. Thanks for sharing recipe!
Happy to hear, Sharon. Thanks for taking the time to let me know! 🙂
The recipe was delicious, smooth and creamy until it set in te refrigerator for an hour.; then the texture became grainy. Any idea why?
Can’t really think of anything, Tammy… real sorry about that!
Hi Sonia,
I would really like to try this recipe but as a person would loves to batch cooking, would you say the mousse can be frozen like regular chocolate mousse? Regular ones freeze well due to the heavy whipped cream, not sure about the avocado. Thanks!
I haven’t personally tried it, so can’t really tell for sure, but I see no reason why not…