Gretchen's Vegan Bakery

Vegan Peanut Butter Mousse Cake

By

JUMP TO RECIPE

You are going to flip over this new vegan peanut butter mousse cake!

So creamy and light with a double layer of mousse, chocolate mousse and peanut butter
And don’t forget the globs of edible peanut butter cookie dough!

Vegan Peanut Butter Mousse Cake

 

My favorite brownie recipe is baked into a 5″ cake pan 

Because this entire peanut butter mousse cake is only a 5″ cake!
It’s basically a single serving!

Vegan Peanut Butter Mousse Cake

This website may contain links as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, which means when you click a link and make a purchase through my website I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you

Notes for Success

Get ahead by baking the brownie days ahead and just keep it wrapped well in the refrigerator until you are ready to build the cake.

Decide ahead of time which vegan whipped cream you are using
Note that I have an in depth article with video explaining all about the vegan whipped cream with a homemade recipe too

If you are using canned coconut milk like I did, be sure to get them refrigerated the night before you start

Aquafaba is a replacement for the original meringue from egg whites that is used in traditional non vegan mousse recipes

It is the water from a can of chickpeas that when whipped, will transform into the most beautiful glossy thick meringue you have ever seen!

 

Safety around Raw Dough!

Raw cookie dough garnish is completely optional but I think it really ties the whole look together!

Just be sure to toast your flour for the recipe first so make it safe to eat raw!
Since there has been some trouble with raw flour and salmonella and EColi associated with eating raw flour

 

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR HOW TO MAKE THIS AWESOME CAKE!

Vegan Peanut Butter Mousse Cake

 

Yield: Serves 6 people

Peanut Butter Mousse Cake

Vegan Peanut Butter Mousse Cake
Prep Time 4 hours
Total Time 4 hours

Ingredients

You will need

For the Peanut Butter Mousse

  • Creamy Peanut Butter ¾ cup (195g)
  • Plant Milk 2 tablespoons (30ml)
  • Vanilla Extract 1 teaspoon (5ml)
  • Aquafaba ¼ cup (60ml)
  • 1½ cups whipped cream
  • Granulated Sugar 2 tablespoons (28g)
  • Cream of Tartar ¼ teaspoon

For the Chocolate Mousse:

  • Semi Sweet Vegan Chocolate 1 scant cup (113g)
  • Brewed Coffee 2 Tablespoons (28g)
  • Vanilla Extract 1 teaspoon (5ml)
  • Aquafaba ¼ cup (60ml)
  • Granulated Sugar 2 tablespoons (28g)
  • Cream of Tartar ¼ teaspoon
  • 1½ cups whipped cream

for the icing & garnish

Instructions

  1. Prepare the brownie recipe as per the instructions on that recipe post and bake it into the same size pan as you will be building your final mousse cake, I have used a 5" ring mold for mine, so I baked the brownie in a 5" cake pan
  2. Prepare the peanut butter mousse by slightly melting the peanut butter in the microwave or a small sauce pot just to make is easier to mix, then add the plant milk and vanilla extract, whisk smooth
  3. Whip the aquafaba with the cream of tartar on high speed and gradually add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time~ Whip to stiff peaks.
  4. Whip the vegan whipped cream to soft peaks (you will need 1½cups total volume of whipped cream) then fold into the peanut butter base.
  5. Fold in the aquafaba last and then pour into the ring mold fitted with the brownie base.
  6. Freeze while you prepare the chocolate mousse.
  7. Melt the chocolate and then add the brewed coffee and vanilla extract. Whisk smooth
  8. Whip the aquafaba with the cream of tartar on high speed and gradually add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time~ Whip to stiff peaks.
  9. Whip the vegan whipped cream to soft peaks (you will need 1½cups total volume of whipped cream) then fold into the chocolate mousse base.
  10. Pour over the peanut butter mousse layer and then freeze for at least 4 hours or until it is set and firm and then refrigerate it until serving time (up to 1 week refrigerated)
  11. While the mousse cake is setting prepare the cookie dough recipe as per the instructions on that page just be sure to toast the flour on a sheet pan at 350°F for 10 minutes to kill any bacteria that could be present since you are not going to be baking the dough into cookies.
  12. Also, you will see that the cookie recipe I am using listed fudge filling, but you will only prepare the dough part, not the fudge filling part. Scoop the cookie dough into balls for the garnish for the top of the cake as shown in the picture. Any remaining cookie dough can be frozen or baked into cookies
  13. For the drip, prepare the ganache by warming the chocolate with the plant milk together in a small sauce pot over low heat stirring constantly until smooth.
  14. Pour the ganache over the top of the frozen mousse cake, then refrigerate until serving.
  15. The remaining ganache will set to a pipeable consistency for the rosette decor
  16. *Optional garnishes as shown in the video

Notes

Mousse cake must be kept refrigerated at all times.

Will stay fresh refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Freeze for longer storage, wrapped well for up to 1 month

© Gretchen

 

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Terri

    Again Gretchen you have made a masterpiece. I will need to get 5 friends over or I’ll eat the whole.thing thing myself. I noticed that this time you didn’t reduce and chill overnight the aquafaba. Obviously it works without that step.

  2. Lillian

    This looks fabulous! Is there a way another alternative to a ring mold, which I don’t have? Would a spring mold work?

  3. lillian

    I made it and it was delicious! Everyone loved it, espcieally the peanut butter mousse. I will cut down on the milk because my ganache came out too runny. Definitely a hit! Thanks for the recipe!

  4. CiCi

    This looks amazing! Does it scale well? I’d like to make a larger version for a party – maybe 8 or 9″ ?

  6. V. Gomathy hri

    Hi Gretchen, all your. Recipes are awesome. In this mousse recipe. Can I replace coconut fat with normal heavy cream. If so how much heavy cream I need to use.

      • V. Gomathy shri

        Hi Gretchen, substituting heavy cream with coconut milk. coconut milk in 15oz can. Out of that we are not using the sedimented water in that after refrigeration. 15oz comes to 444ml. If I use 444 ml of heavy cream. Won’t it be more of heavy cream. Kindly clarify how much of heavy cream to use.

  7. V. Gomathy shri

    Hi Gretchen, I would like to make white chocolate Mousse. Can just replace the quantity of semi sweet chocolate with white chocolate. Or how much quantity of white chocolate I need to use. Can quantity of other ingredients be same. Please suggest

      • V. Gomathy shri

        Hi Gretchen, I have small doubt. You have not used agar here in this recipe. Is it not necessary to use gelatin or agar agar for mousse. Or is it not needed. Please clarify.

        Also I have some queries outside of the above recipe. Queries about agar agar that is used in “agar agar mentioned recipes”. I get only agar agar bar here in my country. Also it is not standard size bar. Here it is measured in grams. I get 2 to 3 bars together 10g. I tried to powder it in coffee blender as you said. But it s not getting powdered to fine powder. It is becoming smaller flakes. I saw photo of agar flakes. The flakes that I made are smaller than the agar flakes that is available in amazon.com. Also the flake are yellowish in US market, but the the one I made is whitesh transparent. So I don’t know how to measure. Will the agar agar powder available in US market be very fine powder ? The agar bar I get here is whitesh transparent one. Can I use this whitesh agar flakes in recipe. Please clarify.

        Is it possible for you to tell in the amount of agar agar used in recipe in grams. How many grams does 1 teaspoon of agar will be ? Please clarify.

  8. V. Gomathy shri

    Hi Gretchen, I have small doubt. You have not used agar here in this recipe. Is it not necessary to use gelatin or agar agar for mousse. Or is it not needed. Please clarify.

    Also I have some queries outside of the above recipe. Queries about agar agar that is used in “agar agar mentioned recipes”. I get only agar agar bar here in my country. Also it is not standard size bar. Here it is measured in grams. I get 2 to 3 bars together 10g. I tried to powder it in coffee blender as you said. But it s not getting powdered to fine powder. It is becoming smaller flakes. I saw photo of agar flakes. The flakes that I made are smaller than the agar flakes that is available in amazon.com. Also the flake are yellowish in US market, but the the one I made is whitesh transparent. So I don’t know how to measure. Will the agar agar powder available in US market be very fine powder ? The agar bar I get here is whitesh transparent one. Can I use this whitesh agar flakes in recipe. Please clarify.

    Is it possible for you to tell in the amount of agar agar used in recipe in grams. How many grams does 1 teaspoon of agar will be ? Please clarify.

  10. V. Gomathy shri

    Hi Gretchen, substituting heavy cream with coconut milk. coconut milk in 15oz can. Out of that we are not using the sedimented water in that after refrigeration. 15oz comes to 444ml. If I use 444 ml of heavy cream. Won’t it be more of heavy cream. Kindly clarify how much of heavy cream to use.

  11. V. Gomathy shri

    Hi Gretchen, I have small doubt. You have not used agar here in this recipe. Is it not necessary to use gelatin or agar agar for mousse. Or is it not needed. Please clarify.

    Also I have some queries outside of the above recipe. Queries about agar agar that is used in “agar agar mentioned recipes”. I get only agar agar bar here in my country. Also it is not standard size bar. Here it is measured in grams. I get 2 to 3 bars together 10g. I tried to powder it in coffee blender as you said. But it s not getting powdered to fine powder. It is becoming smaller flakes. I saw photo of agar flakes. The flakes that I made are smaller than the agar flakes that is available in amazon.com. Also the flake are yellowish color in US market, but the the one I made is whitesh transparent. So I don’t know how to measure. Will the agar agar powder available in US market be very fine powder ? The agar bar I get here is whitesh transparent one. Can I use this whitesh agar flakes in recipe. Please clarify.

    Is it possible for you to tell in the amount of agar agar used in recipe in grams. How many grams does 1 teaspoon of agar will be ? Please clarify.

  13. Margaret Berger

    I just made this for Thanksgiving with an Oreo crust – I’ve made the PB a few times now but this was the first time with the double layer. It was devoured. I love this recipe. I drizzled chocolate and PB over it because I think it looks pretty but I just used your ganache recipe. FYI I subbed the coconut water wherever you called for nut milk, and it worked out just fine. Delicious! Love this!

  14. Magda

    Hi 🙂 My mousse cake tasted perfectly, but unfortunately it didnt have such a great stability as yours.. any idea why? Its really like a mousse, almost impossible to cut it and not ruining the rest of the cake. My piece definietly doesn’t look like yours 😀
    I didn’t have cream of tartar (its hard to get it in Poland), so i used a small amount of apple vinegar (as i always do in recipies with aquafaba). I also didnt use a milk alternative as my peanut butter seemed to be runny even without warming it up – so i didn’t do it either ;x I also skipped the brewed coffe as I cannot drink any coffee. Could any of that things can be a reason or is it sth else? Maybe you cut it just before freezing, like.. when it is a little bit freezed out? I freezed it for 3 hours and then the cake went to the fridge for a night. In the morning I took it from a fridge, tried to cut into pieces and it was messy.

    If you have any idea what can i change next time (I’m not giving up! :D) – i would be very greatful.
    Thank you in advance! 🙂

    • Gretchen

      Hmm, seems that by leaving out some of the liquid (coffee) if would be more stiff rather than runny!. I do find the aquafaba to be tricky sometimes, if you do not get the right consistency it will break down and get runny over time (or not set at all) The cream of tartar has definitely proven to help, but I know not meny people can easily get that.
      You mentioned your peanut butter was runny even before melting, but I am not sure that was the culprit since I actually melt mine to get it to that consistency.
      CLICK HERE for more about AF Success in recipes

  16. Nima

    Hello, two questions please. For those with coconut allergies, do you think a vegan whipped cream substitute could work in place of the coconut? Also, when you say “freeze for longer storage” is there a special technique for wrapping/protecting it? I would like to experiment this weekend, when I have time, but not for immediate consumption. Thanks so much!!!

  17. Karen

    Hello Gretchen,
    I only have a 6″ pan, would the cake times baking be the same? (actually it measures 5-1/2″ across the bottom).

  18. Kristy

    How long should the cake be moved from the freezer to the fridge before serving for desired consistency? Also, the recipe tells you to make the peanut butter cookie, but doesn’t tell you what to do with it. Can you elaborate?

    • Gretchen

      Hey thanks for pointing out the confusion in my directions! I made a smaller 5″ cake so for me it took about 2 hours to come to serving temperature. For a larger cake (double recipe = 8″ cake) it would probably take about 3-4 hours.
      I will update this post (*as this one one of my first vegan recipes way back in 2017! So I realize my instructions have gotten better since then)

      RE: cookie dough ~ I used it as the edible decoration for this cake, as you can see from the picture (and the video show it as well)

Skip to Recipe