3-Ingredient Butternut Squash Chocolate Mousse

This easy 3-ingredient Butternut Squash Chocolate Mousse is a healthy dessert made with a light, fudgy chocolate texture. It’s dairy-free, vegan, and a great way to add some veggies to your day while enjoying a treat.

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We love simple healthy desserts made with surprising ingredients like my Tofu Mousse, Avocado Popsicles, or Carrot Cake Banana Bread. This mousse is no exception!

Why You Will Love This Chocolate Mousse

• It’s packed with veggies
• Healthy
• Easily made with just 3-ingredients
• Dairy-free
• Gluten-free
• Egg-free
• Oil-free
• Kids friendly

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Butternut Squash Puree – The recipe works with pumpkin puree or sweet potato puree.
• Semi-Sweet Good Quality Chocolate Chips – My tip is to avoid extreme dark chocolate because this mousse has no added sugar. If you use 85% cocoa chocolate, the flavor will be bitter, not sweet at all. You can also use sugar-free chocolate for a low-carb mousse.
• Almond Milk or any plant-based milk like coconut cream for a richer, fudgier texture. My tip is to add the milk gradually. If you add too much, the mousse will be watery. Anything from 5-7 tablespoons is perfect. If you didn’t add much milk, the texture of the mousse will be harder, closer to a fudge.

Preparation

Peel, core the squash, and cut it into cubes.

1. Place the cubes in a saucepan, cover with cold water, place a lid on top of the pot, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until the veggie is fork-tender. Or, cook in a veggie steamer until fork tender.
2. Drain over a sieve, and keep at room temperature for at least 30 minutes or until no more steam comes out. The squash must be at room temperature, not cold or steamy. My tip: if you can touch the vegetable and don’t burn yourself it’s perfect.

3. Melt the chocolate in a glass bowl using a double broiler method. It means to boil water in a pot, and stop the heat. Then, place the glass bowl with the chocolate chips above the warm pot and stir them with a silicone spatula until they are fully melted.
4. Add all the ingredients at room temperature to a blender or food processor. The room temperature is crucial as if it were to contact cold milk or cold squash straight out of the fridge, the melted chocolate would firm up, form lumps, and ruin the dessert.

5. Blend until smooth and thick. You will have to stop the food processor 3-4 times, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula, and repeat until it is creamy and smooth.

6. Divide in 4 ramekin – 1/2 cup in each. Film the top with a piece of plastic wrap that touch the top of the mousse.
7. Refrigerate at least 24 hours up to 36 hours for best firm texture.

Expert Tips To Improve The Mousse Taste And Texture

Now, taste the mousse and adjust using the following ingredients if you like:

• Sweetness – Add 1-2 drops of vanilla stevia drops or 2 tablespoons of maple syrup.
• Firmness – If you added too much milk and the mousse looks runny, or you simply want to boost the cocoa flavors at 1-2 tablespoons of unsweetened cacao powder or cocoa powder.
• Flavors – Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract or 1/4 teaspoon of peppermint extract for a chocolate mint flavor.

Serving

Serve with some of the below chocolate mousse ideas:

• Vegan whipped cream
• Dollop of coconut yogurt
• Cashew frosting
• Coconut frosting
• Berries like raspberries, strawberries
• Cacao nibs or grated dark chocolate
• Sprinkles
• A pinch of salt
• Nuts- like crushed peanuts or chopped almonds

Frequently Asked Questions

More Vegan Mousse Recipes

Chocolate Avocado Mousse

Tofu Mousse

Vegan Whipped Cream

Vegan Banana Pudding

Butternut Squash Chocolate Mousse

This easy 3-ingredient Butternut Squash Chocolate Mousse is an healthy dessert made with a light, fudgy chocolate texture. It's dairy-free, vegan, and a great way to add some veggies to your day while enjoying a treat.

5 from 11 votes

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Prep Time: 10 minutes mins

set in the fridge: 1 day d

Total Time: 1 day d 10 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 4 servings (1/2 cup)

Calories: 213 kcal

Author: Carine Claudepierre

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Ingredients

US Customary – Metric

• ▢ 14 oz. Butternut Squash - cooked, cooled at room temperature (note 1)
• ▢ 4 oz. Semi-Sweet Vegan Chocolate Chips - – I used 55% dairy-free chocolate chips (note 2)
• ▢ 2-3 tablespoons Almond Milk - at room temperature, not cold! (note 3)

Instructions

• Peel, dice, and cook the butternut squash – you can steam it in a veggie steamer basket or place it in a large saucepan. Cover it with cold water, bring to a boil, and cook for 10 minutes or until the cubes are fork-tender.
• Drain the squash over a sieve, let the squash cool down, and steam out completely before using. The vegetables should be at room temperature, no more steam comes from the veggie, and the cooked squash shouldn't be cold from the fridge. Weight the amount called by the recipe.
• Melt the chocolate chips in a glass bowl using a double broiler method. To do so, first, boil water in a pot and stop the heat. Then, place the glass bowl with the chocolate chips above the warm pot and stir. Use a silicone tool to stir the chocolate chips gently, until they are fully melted.
• In a high-speed blender, add the cooked butternut squash at room temperature, warm melted chocolate, and blend. It's gonna burst on the sides of the jug, stop, scrape sides and ready until smooth. Gradually add the room temperature plant-based milk (not cold from the fridge, or the chocolate will firm up and form lumps).
• Divide the mixture into ramekins, film the top of each ramekin with a piece of plastic wrap – make sure it touch the top of the mousse. R Refrigerate at least 3 hours to overnight.
• The next day, remove the plastic film. The texture will be very thick and fudgy and you can absolutely eat it this way, or, for a mousse texture, stir very well with a spoon. As you stir the texture become light and creamy like a mousse.
• Serve with a dollop of coconut yogurt and shredded dark chocolate.

Notes

Note 1: The cooked squash must be at room temperature, not cold out of the fridge. If too cold, the melted chocolate will harden, and the mousse will not form. I didn’t try another vegetable, but orange sweet potato puree or pumpkin puree should work.

Note 2: Use semi-sweet vegan chocolate from 55% cocoa for a sweet mousse. This mousse has no added sugar, so if you use dark chocolate, the taste is bitter.

Note 3: Any plant-based milk works. Make sure it’s not cold out of the fridge, or it hardens the melted chocolate and forms lumps. You can use coconut cream or soy cream for a richer mousse texture.

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Nutrition

Serving: 1serving (1/2 cup) | Calories: 213kcal | Carbohydrates: 26.6g | Protein: 2.9g | Fat: 11.3g | Saturated Fat: 6.3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3.5g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 1.7mg | Sodium: 45.8mg | Potassium: 510mg | Fiber: 4.3g | Sugar: 12.6g | Vitamin A: 10561.6IU | Vitamin B12: 0.1µg | Vitamin C: 20.8mg | Calcium: 101.2mg | Iron: 2.5mg | Magnesium: 83.6mg | Phosphorus: 106.5mg | Zinc: 0.9mg