No Bake Chocolate Mousse Cake

A silky smooth dark chocolate mousse that sits on a crunchy layer of crushed Oreos, this no-bake chocolate mousse cake almost feels like a dessert that’s meant for royalty! It’s rich, decadent, melts in your mouth, and best of all, it’s so easy to make!

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About This Recipe

This chocolate mousse cake is made up of two parts: the crushed Oreo base and the dark chocolate mousse. Of course there’s way more mousse than crushed Oreos! It’s super simple to prepare and requires no baking at whatsoever.

What is chocolate mousse?

Chocolate mousse is a rich and creamy dessert made by combining melted chocolate with whipped cream or egg whites, resulting in a light and fluffy texture. It is typically flavored with vanilla and sugar, and can be served chilled in individual cups or as a filling for cakes and pastries. But this my friends, is a whole entire cake made of this goodness! By the way, this recipe is made with whipped cream not egg whites, so it’s vegan too.

The chocolate mousse cake itself is stabilized using gelatin (you could use agar agar instead), unfortunately you cannot make this cake without gelatin otherwise your cake will be sloppy.

As for the crushed Oreo cookie base, you can use whatever type of cookies you’d like. You could also take this chocolate mousse cake to another level by using a layer of chocolate cake on the bottom instead of crushed Oreos.

This cake is ideal for parties and gatherings. It’s gorgeous, tasty, and simple! Your guests will be amazed at how delicious it is.

What You Need To Make This Cake

Heavy Cream: you’ll need cold heavy cream that has a fat percentage of 35% or higher, otherwise it will not beat into stiff/soft peaks.

Oreos: I used a random brand of chocolate sandwich cookies, you could use Oreos or any of you favorite chocolate cookies.

Melted butter: this is for the base, make sure you use unsalted butter though, you don’t want a salty cookie base.

Gelatin: you’ll need unflavored gelatin powder. If you want a plant-based option, you could use agar agar. Use it in the ratio of 1:1, gelatin to agar agar.

Sugar: you only need very little sugar for this chocolate mousse cake, because most of the sweetness comes from the dark chocolate.

Dark Chocolate: I used 42% dark chocolate. You could also use chocolate chips. Just make sure to use a bar of good quality chocolate. The better the quality of the chocolate, the richer the chocolate mousse will be. Also the chocolate flavor will be more intense.

Water: this is needed to bloom the gelatin, make sure to use room temperature water for this.

How To Make Chocolate Mousse Cake

Step 1: Use a zip-lock bag and a rolling pin, or a food processor to crush up the Oreo cookies. Add in melted butter and mix. Press the mixture onto the bottom of a 6 inch(15 cm) cake ring or a spring form pan. I like to line the sides with parchment paper to make it easy to remove the cake ring later. Refrigerate while you make the rest of the cake.

Step 2: Bloom the gelatin, set it aside for 15 minutes. In a large bowl placed on a double boiler (pot of boiling water) combine chopped dark chocolate, granulated sugar, and the bloomed gelatin. Melt and combine all of the ingredients. Remove from the double boiler and let the mixture cool down.

*Sorry for the uneven pics.*

Step 3: Whip up cold heavy cream to soft peaks.

Step 4: Add the melted dark chocolate mixture into the whipped cream and fold to combine. Pour the mousse mixture on top of the cookie base. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight. Once chilled and set, carefully remove the cake ring, dust with cocoa powder and enjoy!

Storing Instructions

Store the chocolate mousse cake in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. In fact you can make it the night before giving the mousse plenty of time to set.

Pro Tips

Line the sides of your cake ring, This makes it super easy to remove it once the chocolate mousse cake has set.
Don’t like a cookie base? Use a layer of chocolate cake instead! Here’s my chocolate cake recipe.
Top your chocolate mousse cake with fresh berries for an extra pretty looking cake.
When blooming gelatin, do not use hot water, use room temp. water.
It’s best to let the cake set overnight or up to 7 hours. If you’re really short on time, 4 hours will do!
I don’t recommend topping the chocolate mousse cake with chocolate ganache, it will make the cake too sweet.
Make sure your heavy cream is chilled before whipping it, otherwise it will not whip into soft peaks.

FAQ’s

How long does chocolate mousse cake take to set?

Chocolate mousse cake typically takes about 4-6 hours to set in the refrigerator. However, it is best to allow it to chill overnight for the best results.

Can I use milk chocolate instead of dark chocolate?

Yes, you can use milk chocolate in place of dark chocolate. However, keep in mind that milk chocolate has a higher sugar content and a milder flavor compared to dark chocolate, so the mousse may turn out sweeter and less intense in chocolate flavor. Adjust the amount of sugar in the recipe accordingly to balance the sweetness.

Check out my YouTube Channel for detailed recipe tutorials! Made one of my recipes? Tag me on Instagram, I would love to see your creations!

Recipe Card

Prep Time: 20 min

Chill Time: 4 hrs.

Total Time: 4 hrs. 20 min

Course: Dessert

Servings: 12

Calories: 286kcal

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Ingredients

15 Oreos
40g unsalted butter, melted (2 1/2 tbsp.)
8g gelatin powder (2 1/2 tsp)
40ml water, room temp. (3 1/2 tbsp.)
150g dark chocolate (~1cup)
15g granulated sugar (1 1/2 tbsp)
400ml heavy cream, cold (1 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp.)
cocoa powder for dusting

Equipment/Utensils

Zip-lock bag
Rolling pin
6 ” cake ring or spring form pan
Large bowl
Medium sized bowl
Electric hand/stand mixer (or whisk)
Spatula
Medium sized serving plate

Instructions

Line the sides of a 6″ cake ring and place in on a flat serving plate.
Crush up Oreos using a zip-lock bag and a rolling pin or a food processor. Add in melted butter, close the bag and use your hand to mix the butter into the crushed cookies.
Press the mixture on the bottom of the prepared pan using a spatula, flat glass, or your hands. Place in the fridge while you make the rest of the cake.
Bloom the gelatin: in a small bowl add in water, sprinkle on the gelatin powder and let it sit for 15 minutes untouched.
In a medium sized bowl placed on a double boiler (a pot of boiling water) combine the chopped dark chocolate(or chocolate chips), granulated sugar, and the bloomed gelatin. Give this a mix until the chocolate has fully melted and the sugar has dissolved. Remove the bowl from the double boiler, and let the mixture cool down for at least 10 minutes.
In a large bowl beat cold heavy cream to soft peaks, this takes 4-5 minutes.
Add the chocolate mixture into the whipped cream and fold together with a spatula until fully combined. The chocolate mousse is now ready!
Pour all of the mousse onto the cookie base you made earlier. Give it a slight shake to level off the top, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or preferably overnight until set.
Once set, carefully remove the cake ring and the parchment paper. Dust with cocoa powder and serve cold. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 285.81kcal

Total Fat: 22.46g

Carbs: 19.42g

Sugars: 13.15g

Protein: 2.94g

Sodium: 60.75mg

Fiber: 1.73g

** Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more. **