Chocolate Mousse Pie Recipe (No Bake)

Name: Chocolate Mousse Pie - No Bake Recipe
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 270 min
Ingredients: 20 oreo cookies with filling; 3 Tablespoons melted butter (salted or unsalted is fine); ⅔ cup white granulated sugar; ¼ cup heavy whipping cream; 2 large eggs; 7 ounces dark chocolate chips; 1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional); ½ teaspoon sea salt; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; ¼ cup butter (room temp (salted or unsalted is fine)); 1 cup heavy whipping cream; 1 cup heavy whipping cream; 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; ¼ ounce chocolate (for sprinkling on top)

Recipe Time :4 30

Servings: 8 people

Recipe Rating

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Chocolate Mousse Pie is not only perfect for the chocolate lover, it's a no-bake pie that takes less than 30 minutes to make!

chocolate mousse pie in a pie pan with one slice removed

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The hardest part of making this pie is waiting for it to set up in the refrigerator, which takes about 4-6 hours. There are several different methods for making this pie and I will be sure to cover them all so no matter what appliances or kitchen tools you have, you can make it!

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can You Freeze Chocolate Mousse Pie?

Yes, absolutely! I suggest waiting for it to set up in the refrigerator, and then placing the entire pie on a sheet of parchment and freeze for 1-2 hours. Cut the slices, if desired, and then wrap in cling wrap so it's as airtight as possible. I usually also put a second layer of foil around the pie and then freeze. I would only keep the pie in the freezer 2-3 months for the best flavor. To thaw, simply remove the pie from the freezer, unwrap and place it on a plate. Let it thaw in the refrigerator.

What Type of Pan Works Best for this Recipe?

I used a (affiliate link)Fat Daddio 9 inch pie pan which is about 8 ½" in the inside diameter. You can use any 7, 8, or 9" pie pan and this recipe work just fine. If you are using a deep dish pan or something larger than 9", you will want to increase the ingredients in the crust so you can cover the entire pie pan. As far as the filling goes, the size of your pan will determine the depth of the pie. The smaller the pan, the higher the filling will sit. If you have too much of the chocolate mousse filling, simply put into another container for a delicious crustless mousse. Or, you can use all the filling and make a piled high chocolate mousse pie.

You can also use a 7 or 8" springform pan or any casserole dish will work, but it might be a little harder to get the slices out of a casserole dish.

Does this Pie use Raw Eggs?

The eggs in this recipe are gently cooked to a safe temperature of 150-160℉/66-71℃ and held for 5 minutes to kill any salmonella that may be present. There are several ways you can do this and I will go over the options in detail in the written post below; or you can purchase pasteurized eggs at the grocery store and they are perfectly safe to use raw.

Pasteurize Your Eggs at Home

There are many recipes that call for raw eggs that aren't going to be cooked. Although the incidence of salmonella contaminated eggs is very low in the US, there is always that chance of getting sick from raw eggs.

The good news is you can still make these recipes and feel completely safe in doing so. You can purchase pasteurized eggs at most grocery stores, but they are going to be more expensive. You can also pasteurize them at home using one of these techniques.

Sous Vide Method for Pasteurizing Eggs

The process is extremely simple. Heat the water with your sous vide appliance to 135℉/58℃. Place the eggs in the container of water and let them sit for 90 minutes. This time and temperature will pasteurize the eggs without cooking them. When the time is up, put them in an ice bath to cool for 30 minutes. Then you can either dry them off, label them and store them in the fridge or use them in your recipe right away.

The important thing is accuracy of temperatures. I have several appliances that sous vide. The (affiliate link)Anova Immersion Style sous vide, the Instant Pot Duo Crisp, and the Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooker & Air Crisper. The only one that is consistently accurate with temperatures is the Anova Immersion Circulator.

I'm not saying that you can't use the sous vide function on the Ninja Foodi or the IPDC, but you will want to check your temperatures because, if they are too low, you won't kill the bacteria if it's present; and if they are too high, you will have partially- to fully-cooked eggs.

Low Heat Method for Pasteurizing Eggs

Although I love the idea of using the sous vide method, I never seem to plan ahead enough and I don't think to pasteurize the eggs ahead of time and keep them in the fridge (labeled) until I need them.

So, I use the low heat method. My eggs are always combined with another ingredient like sugar for Swiss buttercream and sugar with cream for eggnog and, of course, this recipe.

This can be done using the Ninja Foodi Cold & Hot Blender or a double boiler set up on the stove. The instructions for both methods are included in the How to Make a Chocolate Mousse Pie section of this post.

You might notice that this method calls for heating the eggs to a higher temperature than the sous vide method and this is because of the timing. When using the low heat method, you are only holding the temperature for about 5 minutes, so you need a higher heat to be effective in killing the salmonella.

Purchase Pasteurized Eggs

Most eggs sold at the grocery store are not pasteurized, but many grocery stores do sell pasteurized eggs. They will be clearly labeled as pasteurized and usually are more expensive.

This is a great option if you don't want to use raw eggs and don't want to have to heat up the eggs yourself. I will go over the instructions for making this pie using pasteurized eggs later in this post.

*Egg products, like Egg Beaters, are pasteurized, however from what I've read, they are not the best for making desserts like this chocolate mousse pie.

More Great Desserts!

If you are a dessert lover like me, I bet you will love these recipes as well. When I owned my restaurant, I was the one in charge of desserts and people would call daily to find out if I had my key lime pie and would quickly drive over to buy a slice or the whole pie. It's delicious, so I hope you give it a try!

Ingredients & Substitutions

The Crust

The recipe calls for an oreo cookie crust, but you can change that to a regular baked pie crust and it will be more like a French Silk Pie. You can also use a graham cracker crust and top with with a marshmallow cream for a s'mores pie!

The type of crust you use is completely up to you, so get creative. I like to look at all the different sandwich cookies when at the grocery store and try different ones to make a cookie crust. I bet peanut butter sandwich cookies would be great in this recipe!

To keep the recipe a no bake chocolate mousse pie, I suggest adding a little bit of powdered sugar to any cookie crust made with cookies without a filling. The sugar mixes with the butter and the cookie crumbs and helps hold it together so you don't have to prebake the crust for it to set.

You can also make a keto crust with crushed almonds, some almond flour, sugar substitute and butter. Consider roasting the almonds before crushing for added flavor.

Let me know in the comments if you try a different crust!

Chocolate Mousse Filling

Chocolate

I used dark chocolate chips to make this pie and the level of sweetness was perfect. I do recommend using a good quality chocolate and that can be in bar form or in chip form. I always use Ghiradelli bittersweet chocolate chips and they taste fantastic.

I don't recommend using milk chocolate or even semi-sweet because the pie will be too sweet. Unsweetened bakers chocolate would work just fine. In fact, you can make a decadent keto chocolate mousse pie by using an almond crust, unsweetened bakers chocolate, and a sugar substitute.

Sugar

I have not tried this recipe with sugar substitutes, but I have heard that making a mousse with a 1:1 sugar substitute like Swerve works just fine. Please let me know if you try it!

Whipping Cream

You can take a shortcut here and use prepared cool whip for the mousse filling, but keep in mind that cool whip is sweetened so I would use unsweetened chocolate instead of bittersweet so the pie isn't overly sweet. When you combine the sugar and the eggs, you can use half & half or milk instead of the heavy cream.

If you haven't made your own whipped cream at home, I hope you give it a try. There is nothing like homemade whipped cream and you can flavor it and sweeten it however you like. I haven't bought store-bought whipped cream in years and don't plan to.

Espresso Powder

This ingredient is optional, however it really gives the chocolate a nice rich flavor and I use it often in my chocolate desserts to boost the chocolate flavor. I have used Instant espresso granules and espresso powder, both work fine. Here is the brand of espresso powder I used in this recipe:(affiliate link) Delallo Espresso Powder

How to Make this EASY Chocolate Mousse Pie

This is perhaps the easiest pie I've ever made and I hope you think so, too! Because it can be made so many ways with different tools and I want to be as detailed as possible, I've focused on the three most common appliances and tools and given directions for each of them.

Oreo Crust Instructions

Melt 3 Tablespoons of butter and set it aside. Get a large zip lock bag or you can use your food processor for this step. Place about 20 oreo cookies in the bag and use something heavy, like a rolling pin or meat tenderizer (with a smooth side) to crush the chocolate cookies into fine crumbs. Add the butter to the bag and mix so the cookie crumbs are well-coated.

Press the cookie mixture into the pie pan or springform pan. I like to start around the sides of the pan and if you see your cookie crumbs are not sticking well, add a little more melted butter. Set the pan aside while you make the filling, you can refrigerate the crust, but the filling doesn't take that long, so I usually just leave it out on the counter.

crushing the oreo cookies and forming the crust

Chocolate Pie Filling

Chocolate Mixture

I used the Ninja Foodi Cold & Hot Blender to make this recipe because it heats the eggs up to the perfect temperature for safety without cooking them and it's hands off, however you can cook the eggs using a double boiler on the stove OR simply purchase pasteurized eggs from the grocery store and then you can use them raw. *Most eggs sold at US grocery stores are NOT pasteurized.

Ninja Foodi Cold & Hot Blender Instructions

Add the ⅔ cup sugar, ¼ heavy whipping cream, and 2 large eggs to the blender. Select the Cocktail function and let it run. I check a temp about halfway through the cycle to make sure it's coming up to the desired 150℉.

Using room temperature eggs is best for this method. If for some reason your mixture does not get up to 150℉/66℃ (which you want it to hold at that temp for 5 minutes to kill any salmonella that may be present), then use the manual temp button on low and pulse every couple of minutes.

blending and heating the eggs, cream and sugar in the Ninja Foodi Cold and hot blender

Once the cycle is done and your egg mixture has reached the desired 150℉/66℃ and held there for 5 minutes, then add the espresso powder and chocolate to the blender. The residual heat will start to melt the chocolate. You can either pulse a few times or press the cocktail function again. You do not need to let the cycle finish, but it doesn't hurt anything if you do.

I usually stop it a few minutes in and make sure the chocolate is fully melted and the mixture is smooth and then stop the cycle by turning the blender off.

Add the salt, vanilla extract, and room temperature butter and select the smoothie function. This will make your filling very smooth.

blending chocolate, salt, vanilla, and butter into the egg mixture

Transfer the mixture to a medium size bowl and allow to cool at room temperature while you make the whipped cream. You don't want your chocolate filling too hot or the whipped cream will melt. Stirring it a few times will help cool it down.

pouring chocolate mixture from blender into a bowl to cool

Stovetop Directions

Place a medium saucepan on the stove and add a few inches of water. Place the double boiler (or any heatproof bowl) on top of the saucepan. You want the water level to be below the bottom of the bowl so the boiling water transfers heat via steam to the double boiler for a gentle heat. If your bowl is in the boiling water, the egg mixture on the bottom can overheat and you'll end up with scrambled eggs.

Bring the water to a boil and then turn it down to a low heat so the water is simmering. Add the sugar, ¼ cup heavy whipping cream and the eggs to the double boiler (or bowl) and whisk over the heat until the sugar is completely melted and your mixture does not feel grainy at all. In my experience using this technique, by the time your sugar has completely melted, the eggs are up to the correct temperature to kill any salmonella that might have been present. The best way to make sure is to take a temperature with an instant read thermometer. You want the temperature to reach at least 150℉/66℃ and hold there for about 5 minutes.

I've made batch after batch after batch of Swiss buttercream using this technique and my mixture is almost always closer to 160F and the eggs never cook. So, if this is your first time using the double boiler to "cook" your eggs, don't worry. As long as you constantly whisk the mixture and maintain a low heat, it will work just fine and it sounds much harder than it really is.

Once the sugar is melted and the mixture has reached the desired temperature, add the chocolate and the espresso powder and whisk periodically as the chocolate melts. I do this with the double boiler, but turn the heat off. When the chocolate is fully melted and the chocolate mixture is nice and smooth, remove the double boiler and add in the salt, vanilla extract, and room temperature butter. Whisk until well incorporated. The mixture should be a rich brown color and completely smooth. Set aside to cool.

Whipped Cream

The easiest way to make your own whipped cream is by using a stand mixer, but if you don't have one, you can use a hand held electric mixer or you can whip the cream by hand. Here are instructions for all three.

Stand Mixer

Make sure the bowl of your stand mixer is clean and dry. Pour 1 cup of cream into the bowl of the stand mixer and using the whisk attachment, whip the cream on high speed until soft peaks form. This takes 3-5 minutes and you want to keep an eye on the cream because it is really easy to over beat and if you end up with really stiff peaks, the whipped cream is harder to mix into the chocolate.

whipping the cream to fold into the chocolate mixture

Electric Hand Mixer

Pour the 1 cup cream into a medium size mixing bowl. Place the electric beaters into the bowl and begin beating the cream on a medium low speed and increase the speed as the cream starts to thicken. This will prevent the cream from flying everywhere when you start whipping it. Continue to beat until soft peaks form. This means that the cream is thick enough form a peak, but the very top of the peak won't stand straight up.

By Hand

Pour 1 cup of cream into a medium size mixing bowl and using a whisk, whisk the cream until it forms soft peaks. This can take anywhere from 5-10 minutes or even longer depending on how vigorously you can whisk.

Assemble the Chocolate Pie

Add about 1 cup of the whipped cream to the chocolate mixture to loosen it up which makes it easier to incorporate all of the whipped cream. Do this using the folding technique in the video below.

You don't want to whisk it in or the whipped cream will deflate and your pie will be dense. The idea is to keep the all of the air in the whipped cream so you have a nice light filling in your pie.

folding the whipping cream into the chocolate

When all of the whipped cream is folded in and you no longer see streaks of white, your mixture should be nice and smooth. If there are any stubborn lumps of whipped cream, press them against the sides of the bowl.

Pour the chocolate mousse into the pie pan with the oreo cookie crust and smooth out the top. You can also make designs on the top, like swirls, if you are not planning on covering the pie with whipped cream before serving.

pouring and smoothing the filling in the pie crust

Now, the hardest part! Put the pie (uncovered) into the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours, but 6-12 hours is even better.

Decorate the Chocolate Mousse Pie

When your pie has completely chilled or before you want to serve it, it's time to decorate! This can be as simple as spreading whipped cream over the top and sprinkling on chocolate shavings or you can put a design on top using a pastry bag with a large tip. The pastry bag set that I love using is from Pampered Chef. It comes with 2 large pastry bags that are super easy to clean and a variety of large decorating tips. Here is my affiliate link if you are interested in checking them out.

(affiliate link)Pampered Chef Decorating Bags

filling pampered chef decorating bag with whipped cream

You can even skip this part and just eat the pie! it's delicious without anything on top.

Using a stand mixer or one of the other methods above, make another batch of whipped cream. This time adding a small amount of powdered sugar and vanilla.

Pour 1 cup of chilled whipping cream into the bowl of a stand mixer and using the whisk attachment, begin to whisk the cream on medium speed.

When it starts to thicken, add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and whisk on medium speed for about 30 seconds. Turn the mixer to high speed and whisk until the cream thickens and forms stiff enough peaks to hold it's shape, but not stiff enough that it will be hard to work with.

If you are going to spread it over the top, keep the whipped cream a little softer than if you are using a decorating bag.

Remove your pie from the refrigerator and decorate with the whipped cream. I like to use a large star tip and make a simple star design, but you can simply spread a layer of whipped cream over the top and it looks beautiful.

To make the star decorations, attach a large star tip to your pastry bag. Fill the bag ¾ of the way with whipped cream and squeeze some of the whipped cream out into the bowl to remove any air bubbles.

Place the tip about ½" above the pie and squeeze some of the whipped cream onto the pie and pull up gently to create the design. Repeat along the edges only or over the entire pie.

You can get really fancy here and shave chocolate to make chocolate curls, but I simply use the remaining chocolate chips and crush them up, then sprinkle them over the top. It's super quick and easy!

decorating the chocolate mousse pie with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

Cutting the first slice is usually the hardest and it does help if you put your pie back in the refrigerator after decorating for about an hour. However, if you are like me, you are ready to dig in! Go ahead, cut a slice and enjoy!

slicing and serving chocolate mousse pie

Chocolate Mousse Pie - No Bake Recipe

Recipe By: Louise

Delicious oreo cookie crust with a light and chocolatey mousse filling, topped with whipped cream.

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 20

Cook Time 10

Chilling Time 4

Total Time 4 30

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings people

Calories 688 kcal