I don’t know what’s going on, but I sure am having fun with the vegan eats right now. I mean, don’t get me wrong, you guys know I love all things dairy, especially goat dairy, but it’s fun playing around with different foods. To recap, in the last month I’ve made a total of five vegan desserts. Say hello to this Chai Cashew and Hemp Latte, these Dark Chocolate Covered Coconut Bars, these Vegan Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Muffins, this Vegan Chocolate Custard Cake, and this Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie Granola. All of these are some of my favorite vegan desserts. The coconut bars and custard cake are especially unreal…meaning so so good. This brings me to today’s chocolate chia mousse, which was inspired by my mom’s love of chocolate mousse. The woman loves anything light and airy and chocolate mousse is one of her favorites. I wanted to see if I could recreate one of our favorite desserts into a vegan and semi-healthy..ish dessert. I did some research, taking into account chia seed’s magical thickening powers, and got to work. A couple of hours later I had chia mousse and am now obsessed with it. It is so easy, so good, and pretty freaking healthy too. Cool. Cool.
Here’s how this works, and it’s pretty simple. Mix everything together, letting the chia seeds soak for a bit so that they can absorb the liquid and become plump. Then blend everything until extra light, smooth, and creamy, chill the mousse for a few hours to allow it to set up, and then eat. Simple as that. One bowl, one blender, and done. It does take a little time to prepare because of all the chilling, so plan a little ahead when making this chocolate mousse. What I love about this recipe is that even though it is vegan, you’d never guess it. The texture is a little heavier than an egg based mousse recipe, but this chia mousse is silky smooth, perfectly sweet, and extra chocolatey. Oh, and I almost forgot, I made some optional coconut whipped cream for topping. It’s not needed, but it sure is good dolloped on top of the mousse. If you’re new to chia seeds, they are crazy little seeds that when added to liquid, plump up and become soft and pudding like. They can even be used in place of eggs in most recipes. They’re truly one of the coolest and craziest ingredients. Chia seeds are high in omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, antioxidants, iron, and calcium. A single serving of chia seeds contains 5.6 grams of protein, making this mousse a healthy dose of vegan protein.
I made this mousse before I left for South Korea and had every intention of sharing it before Valentine’s Day, but an Olympic Gold Medal got in the way and I had to re-work my content calendar a bit to make room for a South Korea recap post. Not mad about it all, but this is why these photos have a very pink and semi-romantic vibe. Oh well, I still love the chocolate mousse, and I equally love the photos. I swear, roses make all dessert photos better…no matter what time of year. Speaking of flowers, I just spent way, way, way too much money on edible flowers, so expect lots of flowers in upcoming spring recipes. I am pretty excited about using them. And if you are still working to eat healthier this year (good for you!), soak up this chia mousse, because I have Easter brunch and desserts on my mind and they all involve butter…and sugar. But for now, healthy…ish chocolate chia mousse is our Tuesday treat! Also, I shared this recipe with the awesome team over at The Chriselle Factor. Be sure to check out this post to learn more about all the amazing health benefits of this chocolate chia mousse.
Watch the How To Video:
PS. this is totally healthy enough for breakfast…just saying.
