Chocolate and coffee lovers will love this delicious peppermint mocha mousse pie! The creamy chocolate filling teams up with peppermint for a seasonal treat. And while these flavors are great, my favorite aspect of this holiday recipe is how easy it is. Because it’s a no-bake dessert, you won’t even need to turn on your oven. Plus, the ingredient list is short and includes items that are probably already in your kitchen.
Ingredients for this Peppermint Mocha Mousse
I repeatedly return to Oreos for many of my pie crusts. Here, I mixed them with some coffee grounds. That is the literal foundation for this no-bake dessert that mocha lovers in particular will appreciate.
For the chocolate mousse filling, you’ll chop some bars of chocolate. I’m a fan of Baker’s, Ghirardelli, and Guittard. The chocolate bars I used here were between 56% and 64% cacao; I didn’t want the chocolate to be too bitter or too sweet. This was a good middle ground for me. However, this article from Bon Appétit does a good job of explaining varieties of chocolate. Choose what best matches your preferences.
You’ll also need:
- Butter
- Fresh heavy cream
- A little salt
- Granulated sugar
- Both vanilla and peppermint extracts
- A few crushed candy canes
- And egg whites – along with peppermint extract and more granulated sugar – to make the meringue on top!
Tips for Making this peppermint mocha mousse pie
This no-bake dessert recipe is quick and straightforward, which is ideal during the busy moments of the holiday season. The recipe card below has all the details, but I’m highlighting some tips here:
- This pie is more on the miniature size. I was serving a smaller crowd and opted to use a 6″ springform pan that Wilton makes. This links to a similar pan. If you’re using a 9″ springform pan, you could double this recipe.
- This peppermint mocha mousse pie is both dense and fluffy, thanks to the combination of melted chocolate and heavy cream. To melt the chocolate without burning it, use a double boiler or create your own. For the homemade version, heat a small pot of water over medium heat. Meanwhile, in the bowl of a stand mixer or another heat-proof bowl, add 1 cup of your heavy cream, chopped chocolate, and salt. Once you place the bowl over your steaming pot of water, you now have a double boiler! Whisk until chocolate is smooth.
- To best whip the heavy cream, first, chill your bowl and whisk attachment in the refrigerator or freezer. If you don’t have the space, you can always drop a dozen or so ice cubes into your bowl for about 15 minutes. A chilled bowl will make it much easier for you to form nice stiff peaks of whipped cream. And that creamy texture creates a smoother, richer peppermint mocha pie.
Making and Torching the Peppermint Meringue
Don’t let the torched peppermint meringue intimidate you! Most importantly, you can make it in under 10 minutes. Secondly, it only requires peppermint extract, salt, granulated sugar, and egg whites. Totally doable and worth it for the “wow” factor and flavor it gives this peppermint mocha pie!
Worth noting is that you can make your meringue in advance, but do not add it to your pie until you’re ready to serve it! You may store your meringue in the refrigerator a day ahead of time in an airtight container. However, because meringue is sensitive to temperature and moisture changes, it will “weep” and become runny if added to your peppermint mocha pie too far in advance.
Now, back to making meringue. First, heat a small pot of water over medium-low heat. Then, in the bowl of a stand mixer, combine egg whites and 1 tablespoon of the granulated sugar. Place bowl over steaming pot, creating a double boiler. Continuously whisk egg whites and sugar until sugar melts completely and egg whites become white and frothy, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and place the bowl back onto the stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.
Whisk on high speed while slowly adding in the remaining granulated sugar, pinch of salt, and peppermint extract. Continue to whisk for another 3-4 minutes or until stiff peaks form.
When you’re ready to serve, spread or pipe your peppermint meringue on top of your mousse pie and then lightly torch it with a handheld kitchen torch.
And if you really want to skip the meringue, you could replace the peppermint meringue with homemade peppermint whipped cream. You do not want to torch that, though!
More Holiday Dessert Recipes
Looking for additional desserts to add to your Christmas menu? Check out my mini cranberry Bundt cake recipe! Or maybe my no-bake mini eggnog pies are more like what you had in mind!
Also, if Oreos and coffee sounded good to you here, my Oreo pie with coffee and mascarpone may be just what you’ve been searching for.
And if you’ve been here for a while now, you know I love decorating cakes! I have this Christmas tree farm cake tutorial that you can recreate in under 30 minutes. Definitely check that out if you’re looking for a sweet and simple Christmas cake design!
PrintPeppermint Mocha Mousse Pie
Hosting holiday parties can be hard, but dessert doesn’t have to be. This peppermint mocha mousse pie is a quick and easy no-bake dessert that guests will gobble up.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Refrigerator Time: At least 4 hours
- Total Time: 4 and a half hours
- Category: Dessert
Ingredients
For the no-bake crust:
- 14 Oreo cookies, finely ground
- 3 tbs (40 grams) butter, melted
- 3 tbsp (15 grams) coffee grounds
For the chocolate mousse filling:
- 170 grams chocolate bars, chopped (The bars I used were between 56% and 64% cacao)
- 1 1/2 cups (325 grams) heavy cream, divided
- Pinch of salt, like Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt
- 1 tbs of granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp (3 grams) vanilla extract
For the peppermint meringue and design on top:
- 60 grams egg whites (about two eggs)
- 60 grams (1/3 cup) granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp (1 gram) peppermint extract
- Pinch of salt
- 1–2 tbsp (5–10 grams) ground coffee or espresso powder
- About 5 miniature candy canes, crushed into small bits
Instructions
For the crust:
- Butter the bottom and sides of a 6-inch springform pan with 2 3/4 inch sides.
- With a blender or food processor, combine and grind up your Oreos and coffee grounds. Then pour crumbs into a bowl with your melted butter, and mix butter and Oreo crumbs until moistened. Transfer and press crust evenly into greased pan.
For your chocolate mousse filling:
- Heat a small pot of water over medium heat. As it’s warming, in the bowl of a stand mixer or another heat-proof bowl, add 1 cup of your heavy cream, chopped chocolate, and salt. Place bowl over steaming pot to create a double boiler. Whisking continuously, heat until chocolate is fully melted and smooth. Then pour it into a bowl to cool to room temperature.
- Clean and chill (~15 mins in the refrigerator) the bowl of your stand mixer or another bowl and using a whisk attachment, beat your remaining 1/2 cup of cold heavy cream with vanilla extract and 1 tbsp of granulated sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Fold homemade whipped cream into cooled chocolate mixture before adding all of it to your cooled crust in the springform pan.
- Let firm in the refrigerator at least four hours before serving and adding meringue.
Meringue Topping:
- Heat a small pot of water over medium-low heat until it steams. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine egg white and 1 tablespoon of the granulated sugar. Place bowl over steaming pot, creating a double boiler. Continuously whisk egg whites and sugar until sugar melts completely and egg whites become white and frothy, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and place the bowl back onto the stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment.
- Whisk on high speed while slowly adding in the remaining granulated sugar, pinch of salt, and peppermint extract. Continue to whisk for another 2-3 minutes, until your meringue forms stiff peaks.
- Transfer mousse pie to serving dish, and dust with your espresso powder or coffee grounds for additional coffee flavor. Pipe or spread peppermint meringue atop your mousse pie, and torch with a hand torch.
- Spread crushed candy canes around the edges for additional color. Enjoy!
Notes
To make this mousse pie simpler to prepare, feel free to make your meringue a day ahead of time and store in the refrigerator in an airtight container. However, do not add it to your mousse pie until you’re ready to serve it, as meringue is sensitive to temperature changes. It will “weep” and become runny.
Keywords: dessert, no-bake dessert, peppermint mocha pie, peppermint mocha mousse pie
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