Easy Chocolate Mousse Tart
This Easy Chocolate Mousse Tart is egg-free and no-bake! Just stock up on heavy cream and chocolate and you’ll be ready to create this easy, decadent chocolate dessert recipe.
Why You Must Make
- This recipe comes from an old issue of Fine Cooking magazine.
- Most mousses I’ve made contain raw eggs, resulting in an uber silky texture to the mousse. No raw eggs here!
- This mousse was just chocolate and cream! So simple and exquisite.
Expert Tips
- Use salted butter for your crust. The tiny bit of salt enhances the flavor of the crust without tasting salty.
- Whip your cream to stiff peaks. This means when you lift your beaters out of the cream, peaks of cream will remain in place instead of slumping back into the bowl.
- If you overwhip and the cream becomes clumpy, you can add slowly mix in more cream until it’s smooth again.
- Folding is when you use a rubber spatula and in a circular motion, cut down through the middle of the two components that need to be combined. Once you hit the bottom, scrape along that lower part of the bowl and bring it up along one side. Rotate the bowl a bit and repeat over and over until the mixture is combined. The goal is not to deflate the cream, so restrain from rushing the process.
How to Garnish
Instead of my usual chocolate curls, I jazzed up this chocolate mousse cake with chocolate shards. Boy, was this a lot easier! Since this was my first attempt making and using them, I haven’t perfected the skill of scattering them artfully. But they did kick this dessert up a notch or two. Basically, you melt 4 ounces of chocolate, spread it out over a sheet of waxed paper, top with another sheet of wax paper, roll, and chill. When you unroll, the shards are formed. Simple as that. Here is the recipe.
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- More Chocolate Dessert Recipes
Easy Chocolate Mousse Tart
A no-bake chocolate mousse tart adapted from Fine Cooking.
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, melted; more for the pan
- 8 ounces chocolate wafer cookies, ground into crumbs (I use Nabisco Famous Wafers)
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 9 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract, divided
- A pinch of salt
- 3 1/4 cups heavy cream, divided
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Butter a 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.
- Mix together butter, crumbs, and sugar. Spread the crumbs over the bottom of the pan and press evenly to form the crust. Refrigerate.
- Combine the chocolate, 1 teaspoon of the vanilla, and the salt in a large bowl. In a microwave-safe measuring cup, heat ¾ cup of cream to almost boiling.
- Pour the cream over the chocolate, let sit for 1 minute, then whisk until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for about 30 minutes to cool.
- Beat 1-1/2 cups of the cream in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Whisk the chocolate mixture to loosen it, then fold in a large dollop of the whipped cream into the chocolate to lighten the mixture. Fold the lightened chocolate mixture into the whipped cream with a rubber spatula until no streaks are left.
- Scrape the mousse into the pan, gently spreading it to the edges. Smooth the top with an offset spatula. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.
- Before serving, beat the remaining 1 cup cream, powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla in a medium bowl to medium-stiff peaks. Run a knife around the pie to loosen it from the pan and then remove the side of the pan.
- Slide a spatula under the crust to loosen it from the pan, then use a large spatula to transfer the pie to a serving plate.
- Mound or pipe the whipped cream over the mousse and top with chocolate curls, shards, or shavings. To serve, use a hot, dry knife (dip into very hot water, then wipe dry).
- Store leftovers in the refrigerator.
Notes
Garnish with chocolate shards for an impressive presentation!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 494Total Fat: 39gSaturated Fat: 23gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 88mgSodium: 194mgCarbohydrates: 37gFiber: 2gSugar: 28gProtein: 4g
32 Comments on “Easy Chocolate Mousse Tart”
This is so yummy and such a show stopper of a dessert!
I have made this multiple times now because it was so easy and it never lasts more than the day in our house! Thank you
I love no bake recipes. It was so easy and quick to make, and so yummy!
Looks amazing and beautiful too. I have a hard time finding those chocolate wafer cookies, can I use crusted oreos instead with cremes removed?
Cindy,
Yes, that would definitely work! I have used recipes in the past where they even kept in the creme filling, but most likely less butter was used! If I can find a recipe, I’ll add it here later 🙂
Didn’t find an exact recipe, just comments that you’d need less butter. Good luck!
P.S. The wafers are usually by the ice cream toppings if you haven’t looked there!
This tart is PERFECTION. I love love love it
If I wanted to take this to a Potluck at work, would I be able to with the whipped cream on top or would I have to add it before serving?
Hi, Elizabeth, The powdered sugar does a pretty good job stabilizing the whipped cream. You can definitely add it ahead of time (like the night before)—but closer to serving time is always better.
Earlier today I was searching for no-bake desserts. Perfect timing and I think I hit the jackpot!
Love how do-able this elegant chocolate wonder looks. Definitely need to try the shard trick =)