This is the creamiest, the dreamiest low carb dessert ever. Sugar-free chocolate mousse in a grain-free chocolate cookie crust. It’s no bake and so easy to make!
For a recipe developer, there are some recipes that bring with them that AHA moment. That “Aha, this method/ingredient/recipe is so perfect, so right, so easy, I need to remember this for future use”. I find that those moments stick with me, and I can call them up at will. It’s amazing, really, since I can’t remember what day it is half the time, or what I walked into that room to get. My life is busy and my brain is over-cluttered, and I lose my keys and my phone (and my mind!) constantly. But those little recipe AHA moments seemingly get filed away in some very organized brain-space and then are put on lockdown, awaiting the moment I need them. It certainly makes my job easier that I don’t have to struggle to recall those important bits and pieces.
And in this particular case, that little bit of recipe information didn’t have to wait long to be recalled. When I created my Easy Blender Chocolate Mousse, I was most eager to put that sucker to use again. It’s such a good recipe on its own, of course, but my brain instantly recognized that it would also be great as a component of other recipes. Cakes, tarts, pies, fillings for cookies maybe, oh, how about in pavlova? The possibilities are endless. I have plans for this stuff. Important, chocolate-filled plans.
Plan Numero Uno has already been executed. A super easy, no bake tart with a chocolate crust, chocolate mousse filling, and a whipped cream topping. An impressive low carb dessert that looks and tastes like you put some serious elbow grease into it, but that honestly only takes 30 minutes to whip up. It does need to set for while, but this is one dessert you can make a few hours in advance of guests arriving, all without turning on the oven. Just press that crust into place, blend the filling ingredients, pour in and let set. Then spread some lightly sweetened whipped cream, shave a little dark chocolate and you’re done. No fuss and minimal muss.
And mind-glowingly chocolate-y deliciousness ensues. This was so, SO good that I’ve been dreaming about it ever since. Plan Number One of Operation Blender Mousse is a resounding success.
No Bake Chocolate Mousse Tart
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1 ¼ cups almond flour
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ¼ cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 5 tablespoon butter melted
Chocolate Mousse Filling:
- ¾ cup whipping cream
- ¾ cup unsweetened nut milk
- ¼ cup butter
- 3 ounces good quality unsweetened dark chocolate chopped (do not use sweetened chocolate here, as your mousse may not set properly)
- 3 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 6 tablespoon powdered Swerve Sweetener
- ½ teaspoon espresso powder optional, boosts chocolate flavour
- 3 large eggs*
Topping:
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 2 tablespoon powdered Swerve Sweetener
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ ounce dark sugar-free chocolate
Instructions
Crust:
- Lightly grease a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, cocoa powder, and sweetener. Add melted butter and stir until the mixture clumps together.
- Press firmly and evenly into bottom and up sides of prepared tart pan. Refrigerate until filling is ready.
Chocolate Mousse:
- In a small pan, combine cream, almond or cashew milk, and butter. Bring to a full boil and then remove from heat.
- In a blender, combine unsweetened chocolate, cocoa powder, sweetener, and espresso powder. Pour in scalded cream mixture and blend until smooth.
- Add eggs and blend again until smooth (*if you are concerned about the eggs, use pasteurized shell eggs such as Safest Choice). Pour into chilled crust and chill until firm, at least 1 hour. Gently press the tart pan from the bottom to remove the sides and place on a serving platter.
Topping:
- Beat whipping cream with sweetener and vanilla until it holds stiff peaks. Spread over mousse to the edges of the tart.
- Using a cheese grater, shave the dark chocolate over the whipping cream. Let set a bit in the refrigerator before serving.
Notes
Total fat: 33.46g
Calories from fat: 301
Cholesterol: 122mg
Carbohydrate: 7.95g
Total dietary fiber: 4.04g
Protein: 6.64g
Spaceranger says
I just made this. It’s delicious. Really really delicious. It’s way at the top of the list of my favorite low carb desserts.
My mousse set up fine, and I didn’t follow the recipe to the letter. I did however use a high speed blender (Vitamix). As someone else suggested above, I do wonder if it’s a blender issue for many people. It’s easy for me to imagine that running uncooked eggs through a high speed blender would result in a firmer final texture than running uncooked eggs through a regular blender. I blended for quite a long time as I adjusted the sweetness to my liking, and by the time I poured it into the pan I used, I had to use a spatula to get into the corners (I used a square 8X8 casserole dish because I don’t have a tart pan and I only have very small pie plates).
Here are the ways in which I did not follow the recipe exactly–I baked the crust (just because I really really like baked crusts made with almond flour and butter), to sweeten the filling I used powdered erythritol, stevia, and Just Like Sugar in fairly random amounts until I liked how it tasted, I sweeteend the crust using only stevia and Just Like Sugar, I used Scharffenberger unsweetened baking chocolate for the filling. Otherwise I followed the recipe. I think the key to the thickening for me was blending for a long time in a Vitamix.
Thank you for your work! This is yet another keeper for me!
Spaceranger says
Oh! And I instead of cashew milk I used water blended (in a high speed blender) with several cashews. I wouldn’t try this with a regular blender, but it worked fine with a Vitamix and didn’t have any of those weird ingredients often added to nut milks.
spaceranger says
Oh, actually the amount of erythritol I used was not random–it was 3 tablespoons, when swerve is the sweetener I almost always substitute with this formula–however much swerve was called for, I instead put in half that amount of erythritol and then add stevia and Just Like Sugar until I like it. I like erythritol a lot as long as I keep the total amount in a recipe fairly low. The amount of erythritol in Swerve is usually too much for me once it has made whatever I’m making sweet enough.
spaceranger says
Um, OK maybe I’m obsessing on this a bit. I just google “blend raw eggs in vitamix” and found a bunch of people dumping raw eggs (and cream and maybe cheese) into a vitamix and ending up with scrambled eggs. (I am so going to try that in the morning.) So, maybe those of us with high speed blenders are cooking the eggs more than people with traditional blenders? This seems very possible to me even in a short period of time considering how hot the cream is when it goes into the blender. I really don’t think a traditional blender could cook an egg, but those of us with high spend blenders all know we can heat things up with them just from the friction caused by the speed of the blades. That might really make a difference for how firm this mousse gets!
Carolyn says
Thanks for all of your input but I don’t think the blender is necessarily the issue here. I have a Blendtec, not a Vitamix. I have made this recipe multiple times and I don’t blend for very long. Certainly not long enough to cook an egg. 🙂 It is high powered but I think the issue has a lot more to do with the size of the eggs and/or the kind of sweetener or chocolate used.
Denise says
I used coconut creme from the oriental market and stevia. It was more like a pudding. It was not a thick texture. It seemed to melt really quickly. Any tips or suggestions.
Carolyn says
This recipe requires a powdered sweetener with bulk to set properly. So that’s your problem right there.
Eerika says
Hi! I tried making this tart today and faced the same issue many others did, the mousse does not set. I was wondering would it be because I’m reading the recipe wrong. In the part where you have blended chocolate, cocoa, sweetner etc. Should you pour the cream in to the blender or the chocolate into the pot and the cream?
Carolyn says
You add the very hot cream to chocolate mixture. So I have to ask…what brand of chocolate did you use? What sweetener? I”ve made this recipe probably a dozen times and it works for me every time. I use Swerve sweetener, and Ghirardelli unsweetened chocolate.
Chriss says
I wonder if the blender makes a difference? I made this recipe using different sweetener (can’t remember if I made any other changes), but the mousse set perfectly. I have a Vitamix blender. Maybe the amount of blending makes all the difference?
Gina says
Hi, I just made this for Thanksgiving. It did not firm up. Taste delicious more like a thun pudding. Any suggestions? Thank you
Carolyn says
I am going to guess that you did not use the exact same ingredients as I did. What sweetener did you use?
juliendbq says
Hmmm, I read all the reviews, hoping to see my question already addressed … I don’t have a tart pan. Though it might not look as lovely, would a regular pie pan be an alright substitute? Am I one of the very few that don’t own a tart pan? … based on the reviews, ya’ll own one! 🙂
Carolyn says
Yes, a pie pan will be fine!
Pam says
I made this delicious recipe last night and taste tested it today. However, for me a well, it did not setup completely. My eggs were organic large. The only thing I can think of is I used Truvia (because I have not swerve at this time). Next time I will use swerve. It was very tasty thou.
Thank you Carolyn!! Looking forward to a piece tomorrow with my coffee. 🙂
Leisa says
Hi I can’t wait to try this recipe. Could I replace the swerve with xylitol or would it have the same setting problems? Also we don’t like the taste of almond milk could I use more cream or pouring cream?
Carolyn says
You can use milk or pouring cream (I assume you mean half and half?). But I don’t know how well xylitol will work, it’s a bit different than erythritol and may not set properly. However, if it doesn’t, you can always freeze it and eat it as a frozen chocolate pie!
Stephanie Deal says
OK — I used the link and bought the tart pan and it arrived last night. I also found Cashew Milk at Whole Foods last night — so I am definitely making this sweet treat this weekend. As I’ve already made the mousse and it turned out perfectly (and so yummy) – I can only imagine how fabulous this tart will be!! YAY — I’m so excited!!
Amanda says
I don’t know about this swerve stuff.. what’s its consistency? Like granulated sugar or powdered sugar? Would it be possible to sub regular granulated sugar instead?
Carolyn says
Why would you want to use real sugar?
Amanda Hosler says
theres alot of factors ..because not all alternative sugars react in the same way as real sugar in your body- some even spiking the blood sugar. Also, I’m an ectomorph which means I have an insanely fast metabolism and I need all the calories I can get and I don’t have sugar replacement in my house because I like the real deal .
Carolyn says
Well, the mousse is tested with confectioner’s Swerve and may not set properly with sugar, although you are welcome to try. And as a diabetic, I am not about to put up a recipe that raises people’s blood sugar. I have tested erythritol over and over on myself.
Marie says
Has anyone tried adding mint extract? If so, how much extract to make the filling chocolate mint?
Carolyn says
Depends on how strong your mint extract is. 3/4 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon.
Nicole says
I just made this and bought the exact ingredients you use in your recipe, except for Swerve. I like Etheryiol better. It’s definitely not thickening, so next time, I’ll add the xanthum gum. It’s WONDEFUL THOUGH!!!!!
Kelly says
I just love everything chocolate! and this recipe looks so good!.
Chriss says
I love this dessert! I made it this week with a stevia/erythritol mix for sweetener. And I used coconut flour for the crust simply because I didn’t want to grind almonds for flour. The mouse turned out perfectly! I only wish it would have lasted twice as long!!! Thank you!
Chriss says
That would be mousse and not mouse! ☺️
Carolyn says
Haha, I understood!
Luka says
So disappointed in this recipe. The consistency never happened despite following this recipe to the letter. And as seen in the comments, I’m not the only one.
Should have just gone with the simple whipping cream + cocoa powder solution to get a nice creamy mousse(minus the eggs and butter also saves on carbs).
The crust worked perfectly though and served well to hold the…well, more chocolate sauce than chocolate mousse :/
Carolyn says
I have made this filling multiple times so I can assure you it works. In each case where it did not work, people were not following the recipe exactly. Extra large eggs, different sweeteners, etc. Tell me what brands you used, I can probably identify the problem.
Lisa says
Just chiming in to say that I LOVED this dessert! I’ve been following a ketogenic diet for IBS/colitis management, and this is the first low carb dessert I’ve tried that makes me feel like I’m not punishing myself. Best of all, I brought it to a party and no one else could tell the difference!
I’d like to also plug another thumbs up for the espresso powder. This was my first time using it, and it really added a whole new dimension to the flavor. I would consider it a must-have!
Melinda says
Made this last night and mine also didn’t set. Based on others’ comments, the only thing I can think of is perhaps an egg issue, since I get eggs from a farm and the sizes may not be completely consistent with grocery store eggs. That said, I love the suggestion to freeze it! This stuff is seriously delicious and I would eat it as chocolate soup if there were no other option!!!
When are you going to release a cookbook? I’ve filled up a couple of binders printing your recipes out, would love to get a book I could have on hand, especially one with your best snack and dessert recipes.
Carolyn says
Just signed a publishing deal!
Melinda says
Yay! Congratulations on the book deal, can’t wait for the book!
Also, re the problem with my mousse setting, it took a little over 24 hours but it did ultimately set up just fine. Still may try the extra egg yolk per your suggestion next time just to see if it speeds things up at all. I’m about half-way through this one already!
Carolyn says
Good to know!
Stephanie Deal says
OH MY GOODNESS — I’m just seeing this!! I cannot wait to buy your book!!! Your recipes are simply the best and are my favorites!!! 🙂
Carolyn says
Thanks, Stephanie. How did you miss this one???
Carolyn says
If you make it again, try an extra egg yolk…
Beverly says
I made my 1st attempt at making this lively mousse tart. Big failure for me. Here’s what I used:
11″ quiche/tart pan (all I had at time)
Ghirardelli 100% Cacao unsweetened chocolate
3 large eggs (Eggland Best)
Just Like Sugar
King Arthur Almond Flour
and the other ingredients.
Didn’t thicken up in fridge so I put in freezer. After an hour or so it was still loose but could cut.
It was not sweet other than the delicious whipped cream.
What did I do wrong so when I try again, I might have success. Thanks.
Carolyn says
Hi Beverly. It’s your choice of sweetener that’s likely the problem. I have tested this only with Swerve, which has oligosaccharides, a sweet tasting prebiotic fiber. They help it taste sweet AND the help thicken the filling. I can’t see the other ingredients being the issue at all here, but when you said it didn’t taste sweet and it didn’t set, that indicates the sweetener is the issue.
If you want to make it again with the same ingredients, try adding about 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of xanthan gum to the filling and whirring it in at the last minute.
Beverly says
I think instead of the sweetener choice it was the chocolate…I didn’t use a chocolate with added sweetener such as stevia like the Lily’s you used. I missed that! I’ll also try using the xanthum gum to see if that thickens. I wonder I’d living in hot, humid Florida has any thing to do with the thickening issue?
Thanks. Still a wonderful recipe. I’ll get it right next time.
Carolyn says
I think you are misreading the recipe, because I use Ghirardelli 100% unsweetened and I specifically so NOT to use a pre-sweetened chocolate in the filling because it won’t set. I only shave some Lily’s over it at the end. Unsweetened chocolate is thicker because it has more fiber so it is the way to go. I think the sweetener still was the issue here.
Beverly says
Thanks for your patience! I’ll use Swerve powdered next time.
Carolyn says
No problem. It’s such a good recipe, I want it to work for you! 🙂
Beverly says
Can this be frozen for later?
Carolyn says
I didn’t try. It might change consistency a little but would still be good.
Heather says
Hi! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! I made this for my birthday last Saturday (the 9th) and it came out wonderfully!! I turned the big 3-0. Low carbing is hard for me sometimes because I desperately miss my chocolate but this dessert was jam packed with chocolate! So thank you so much for making my birthday awesome 🙂
Carolyn says
Well belated happy birthday, then!
Stephanie says
Hi, can I use THM Super Sweet instead of the sweetener in the recipe?
Carolyn says
Sure, but you will need to use a lot less. Convert it in terms of sugar, because Swerve is as sweet as sugar.
Jessica says
Could i substitute coconut cream for the whipping cream? I can not tolerate milk products. Thanks!