Vegan Dark Chocolate Mousse + Cashew Cream

Difficulty Easy

Decadent, luscious, light, airy. The Vegan Dark Chocolate Mousse that everyone will love! Made extra delicious with dairy-free Cashew Cream and flaky sea salt.

I’m not vegan but I love vegan desserts. And this one has become one of my favorites!

There’s just enough bittersweet intensity to keep things interesting. A sprinkle of flaky sea salt enhances all the flavors. And a swipe of Cashew Cream makes for a light, dairy-free dessert!

The mousse base is inspired by Ful-filled’s Two Ingredient Chocolate Pots de Creme. I was intrigued by the idea of transforming a classically decadent dessert into a plant-based one.

Traditionally, Chocolate Mousse is very rich. But sometimes, I’m craving something light and sweet. That’s where Vegan Dark Chocolate Mousse comes to save the day!

Ingredients:

  • Coconut Cream. At room temperature, coconut cream is completely solid. Do not use Coconut Milk! The added fat of coconut cream will help the vegan mousse set.
  • Coffee Powder + Vanilla. Flavor boosters that bring out the intensity of chocolate!
  • Bittersweet Chocolate Chips. I like the not-too-sweet intensity of bittersweet chocolate. But if you prefer, milk chocolate is also a nice option. To keep things vegan, make sure to find completely dairy free chocolate chips!
  • Cashew Cream. A vegan alternative to whipped cream. So creamy, smooth, fluffy, and light! Delicious!

What is Cashew Cream?

Cashew Cream is a non-dairy, plant-based substitute for creamy sauces and dips.

Cashew Cream can be the starting base for sweet or savory vegan adaptations of whipped cream, cheese sauce, tzatsiki, sour cream, etc.

I like the versatility of cashew cream and the fact that it’s especially good for lactose intolerant friends and family members. Make it once and you’ll see how simple and easy to make it is! And delicious! FYI, it stores a long time in the fridge, about 1-2 weeks.

For sweet preparations, the texture is very similar to whipped cream — light, fluffy, silky.

Cooking Tips:

  • Melt Chocolate Chips COMPLETELY. The method requires a gentle melting of the chocolate chips. Whisk to make sure the chocolate is fully melted — with no chunks sticking to the bottom.
  • Chill overnight to make sure the mousse sets. Makes for an easy, make ahead dessert this way.
  • Use a good blender to make the Cashew Cream! Many recipes recommend soaking cashews 1-8 hours. But using a good blender makes the soaking time unnecessary. (For reference, my 20-year old blender is an Osterizer blitzed the unsoaked raw cashews with ease. And produced a fluffy and airy texture in 3 minutes!
  • Blend Cashew Cream longer than you think. The texture should be light, fluffy, and creamy — without a hint of graininess whatsoever!
  • Garnish with flaky sea salt. Adding flaky salt enhances all the flavors of this delicious dessert!
teacup filled with dark chocolate mousse

How to Make Vegan Dark Chocolate Mousse:

Heat coconut cream until steaming. Do not let it come to a boil! Remove from heat and add dairy-free chocolate chips, instant coffee powder, vanilla, and salt. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes.

Whisk, making sure all chocolate chips are fully melted. Scrape the bottom with a spatula and whisk again. Pour into individual cups. Cool completely at room temperature. Transfer to fridge and chill overnight.

To serve, place a dollop of Cashew Cream over each cup and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. A dusting of cocoa powder is optional. Eat immediately!

teacup filled with dark chocolate mousse

PIN FOR LATER:

More Vegan Dessert inspiration:

teacup filled with dark chocolate mousse

Vegan Dark Chocolate Mousse + Cashew Cream

The Subversive Table | Lis Lam
Decadent, luscious, light, airy. The Dark Chocolate Mousse that everyone will love! Made extra delicious with Vegan Cashew Cream and flaky sea salt.
5 from 2 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Chilling time 8 hours
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 6
Calories

Equipment

  • 6 small ramekins or teacups (at least 4 oz)

Ingredients
  

Dark Chocolate Mousse:

  • 2 400ml/13.5oz can full-fat coconut cream (completely solid at room temperature)
  • 1 cup/6 oz/170g bittersweet chocolate chips *use dairy-free chips for completely dairy-free mousse (see note below)
  • 2 tsp instant coffee powder
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Cashew Cream:

  • 1 cup raw cashews
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 Tbsp vanilla

To serve:

  • flaky sea salt (I use Maldon)

Instructions
 

Dark Chocolate Mousse:

  • In a small saucepan, heat coconut cream until steaming. At first, the coconut cream should be completely solid. Do not let it come to a boil! Remove from heat and add chocolate chips, instant coffee powder, vanilla, and salt. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes.
    ingredients for dark chocolate mousse
  • Whisk, making sure all chocolate chips are fully melted. Scrape the bottom of the pot with a spatula and whisk again. Pour into individual cups. Cool completely at room temperature. Transfer to fridge and chill overnight.
    pouring dark chocolate mousse into teacups

Cashew Cream:

  • Add raw cashews, water, maple syrup, and vanilla to a high powered blender. Blend on high speed until creamy and thick, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the blender from time to time. The cashew cream is done when the texture is light and fluffy with no graininess whatsoever. Store in the fridge, tightly covered. The Cashew Cream will keep for about 1-2 weeks in the fridge.
    plastic container filled with vegan cashew cream

To serve:

  • To serve, place a dollop of Cashew Cream over each cup and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. A dusting of cocoa powder is optional. Eat immediately!
    teacup filled with dark chocolate mousse

Notes

*Coconut Cream is completely solid at room temperature and necessary to make the mousse set.ย  If you use regular Coconut Milk that separates into liquid and solid at room temperature, it will not set as firmly.ย ย 
**To make these truly vegan, use dairy-free chocolate chips.ย  Regular chocolate chips contain a small amount of dairy — usually in the form of milk powder or milk solids.ย ย 
***If using a high powered blender, soaking the cashews is not necessary.ย  But if your blender is not powerful enough, I recommend soaking in cold water overnight.ย  Or cover with hot water for 1 hour before blending.
ย 
Keyword Dark Chocolate, Mousse, Vegan Cashew Cream
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4 Comments

  1. When you chill these over night, did the mousse become hard/not spoonable? My chocolate is 66% dark chocolate. I wonder if that is affecting the texture. What chocolate(s) did you make your recipe with?

  2. 5 stars
    These pots de creme sound amazing! So happy that you were inspired by my recipe ๐Ÿ™‚

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