Creamy and boozy Baileys chocolate mousse is the easiest vegan mousse you will ever make. With only 3 ingredients, you’ll want to serve this Irish cream dessert with every meal.
This vegan recipe is inspired by chocolate mousse made out of crème anglaise or custard. By replacing the more complex custard with some pre-made dairy-free Irish cream, we have a mousse that is as creamy and rich as the original, but with a more complex taste and that is easier to make.
Pair this chocolate mousse with some chocolate Viennese swirl cookies, layer it between paper-thin French crêpes, or pipe it into a chocolate pâte sucrée tart shell topped with fresh raspberries.
This vegan Irish cream mousse is:
- Extra creamy and boozy
- Quick and very easy to make
- Only has 3 ingredients
- Is accidentally gluten-free
This recipe is definitely NOT for kids. This vegan Irish cream mousse does back a boozy punch. If you want a bit less of an alcoholic taste, replace part of the Irish cream with, vegan crème anglaise, soy milk, or canned coconut milk, depending on your taste preferance
This recipe is very easy so feel free to skip right ahead to the recipe. If you need a bit more help, I left additional instructions, and things to look out for in the blog post.
📋 Ingredients
- Vegan Irish cream, I used Vegan almond Baileys but any vegan Irish cream will work. If you live in Québec, I also recommend this Vegan Irish Cream from Aléa.
- Substitution: Make a homemade vegan Irish cream following this recipe from Simple Vegan Blog.
- Dark chocolate. Since this is a chocolate mousse, I recommend using high-quality chocolate. My favorite brands are Valhrona, Cacao Barry, and Belcolade. I used Valhrona Caraïbe 66% in this recipe. Try to use a chocolate with a similar percentage of cacao mass since this can change the texture of the mousse. I do not recommend using chocolate chips, as they are not made to be melted.
- Vegan heavy whipping cream, I use Ambiante by Puratos, which I find in restaurant wholesaler stores. Try to find a whipped cream that you whip yourself like Flora or Elmlea. If all you can find is “already whipped” creams like so delicious cocowhip, it should also work, but you will see large air bubbles in the mousse. I do not recommend the Silk whipped cream or whipping coconut cream from a can.
- Substitution: Aquafaba. If you can’t get your hands on vegan whipped cream you can replace it with the same amount of whipped aquafaba which is the liquid found in a can of chickpeas. The mousse will be lighter, and a bit more liquid but will be light and creamy once it spends an hour in the refrigerator.
See recipe card for quantities.
🥣 Instructions
This vegan Irish cream chocolate mousse is so easy that it only has 3 steps:
- Making a ganache
- Whipping the cream
- Folding the cream into the ganache
There are a couple of things to look out for while making this mousse. So let's see those steps in depth so that I can explain some of the techniques a bit more if this is your first time exploring vegan pastry making (or if your name is Moira Rose and you have no clue what folding means).
Ganache
A ganache is an emulsion of melted chocolate and a liquid, in this case Irish crema. Start by bringing the Irish cream to a simmer over low heat while stirring. We don’t want the cream to boil since it could scorch, reduce too much, boil over or lose all its alcohol content.
The cream is then poured over the chopped chocolate. Make sure all the chocolate is covered by the cream but don’t stir. Set the mixture aside for 1 minute, again without stirring. Do not rush this step. If we start stirring the chocolate and cream mixture too early, the cream might cool down too quickly and the chocolate might not melt completely.
Then we are going to emulsify the ganache using a silicone spatula. Placing our spatula into the middle of the mixture, you want to make very small circular motions until you see that the cream and chocolate start to mix together in the middle of your bowl, or what is called an elastic center.
Once you get that emulsified ganache in the center of your bowl, you can then slowly start making bigger circles and incorporating the rest of the chocolate and cream. This will give you a smooth and glossy ganache without large air bubbles or unmelted chocolate.
TIP: If your ganache does break, you can bring it back together by mixing it with an immersion blender pushed all the way to the bottom of your bowl so that the blade is completely covered by the mixture.
Whipped cream
For the whipped cream, I recommend whipping on medium speed with an electric mixer or tho whip it by hand.
For mouse recipes, we actually do not want to whip until we get stiff peaks. Instead, try to get a nice and loose medium-peak whipped cream. You should see whisk trailers when you whip it but when you pull the whisk from the cream, some should stay on the whisk but it should slightly slump on itself and lean to the side.
TIP: If you overwhip your cream by accident, stir in some unwhipped heavy cream a tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency
Folding
Now it is VERY important that the ganache's temperature is between 97°F and 100°F (36°C and 38°C) when you start folding the cream into the ganache. This is because if the ganache is too hot, it will melt the whipped cream and you will lose all your volume, and if it is too cold, the mousse will start to set immediately when you start adding the cream and you will end up with specks of firm chocolate in your mousse.
TIP: If you don’t have a thermometer, stick your (clean) finger in the ganache and only add the cream once the ganache is at the same temperature as your body (it shouldn’t feel warm or cold).
If you have never folded anything before, it is basically mixing delicately 2 preparations while trying to keep as much air as possible in the new mixture.
Scoop a third of the whipped cream or meringue into the ganache. You start by “diving” a silicone spatula through the middle of the preparation in a “J” motion until you get to the bottom of the bowl and then come back up following the curve of the bowl. Then you fold the mixture slightly on itself as you repeat the motion. Every time you make the “J” motion, rotate your bowl slightly so that all the mixture gets mixed in.
When the first addition of whipped cream is almost all incorporated, add another third of the cream and repeat the process until all the cream is used up. The folding is done when you can't see any streaks of whipped cream in the mixture.
Garnish
We finish this mousse by dividing it into serving glasses. Mini mason jars, glass yogurt containers, and cocktail glasses make the best vessels. This vegan Irish cream mousse is very rich so a small portion will be plenty.
Use some additional vegan whipped cream, fresh fruits, mint tops, or shaved chocolate to decorate these pots of gold.
This mouse is best served at room temperature to stay creamy. If you decided to make this mousse in advance, store it in the refrigerator, and bring it back to room temperature for 1 hour before serving it.
📖 Variations
Here are a couple of ideas to mix up your Bailey's chocolate mousse.
- Add 1 to 2 tablespoons instant coffee to the Irish cream
- Top with a berry compote on top of the mousse
- Layer the mousse with some whipped cream and crumbles chocolate cookies to make a layered parfait.
- Replace the whipped cream with whipped aquafaba for a lighter, but softer, cream
- Serve in a small (chocolate) flowerpot with some crushed oreo “dirt” and edible flowers for a whimsical presentation
- Refrigerate the mousse until firm and make quenelles out of it to create a plated dessert
🔪 Equipment
This Baileys chocolate mousse can all be made by hand. No fancy equipment is required.
- Small saucepan, or microwavable container
- Electric mixer, or wire whisk
- 2 large bowls
- Soft silicone spatula
- Digital thermometer, optional
- 6 small glasses or containers to serve the mousse in
- Knife and cutting board, to chop the chocolate
- Optional, piping bag and large star piping tip (I used an Ateco 845)
🌡️ Storage
Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator. Bring back to room temperature for 1 hour before eating. Do not freeze
Recipe
Easy Vegan Baileys Chocolate Mousse
Ingredients
- 190 g vegan Irish cream , I used almond baileys (¾ cup)
- 150 g high-quality dark chocolate , I used Valhrona Caraïbe 66% (5⅓ oz or approximately 1 cup, finely chopped)
- 375 g Ambiante by Puratos , or vegan heavy whipping cream* (1 ½ cup)
Instructions
- Finely chop the chocolate and place it in a large bowl. If your chocolate is in pastille shape already, you do not need to chop it.
- In a small saucepan, bring the Irish cream to a simmer over low heat while stirring with a spatula. Pour the Irish cream on top of the chopped chocolate. Make sure the chocolate is completely covered by the baileys and set aside to rest for 1 minute, without stirring, to let the chocolate melt.
- Using a silicone spatula, start stirring the chocolate and baileys mixture from the center of the bowl using small circular motions until it starts to emulsify. Then start slowly making bigger circles with your spatula to incorporate and emulsify the rest of the chocolate and baileys mixture. You should get a smooth and glossy ganache.
- Leave the baileys ganache to rest at room temperature while stirring from time to time until it reaches between 97°F and 100°F (36°C and 38°C).
- While you are waiting for the ganache to cool down, whip your vegan heavy whipping cream until you reach medium peaks.
- When the ganache is at the right temperature, slowly fold in a third of the whipped cream into the ganache using a silicone spatula until mostly incorporated. Repeat the process until there is no more cream and the mousse is homogenous. Do not overmix the mousse.
- Spoon or pipe the baileys mousse in 6 small containers and serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat*. Garnish with whipped cream, fresh fruits, mint tops, or shaved chocolate. Enjoy!
Notes
💭 FAQ
Reheat gently the ganache over a double boiler while stirring constantly until the ganache is completely liquid again. Then restart the cooling process.
Do not try to rush the process by putting the ganache in the refrigerator. Let it cool down at room temperature only.
If your whipped cream is stiff or even overwhipped when you try to incorporate it into the ganach, little blobs of cream won’t want to incorporate into the ganache. This means your mousse might have either little lumps of unincorporated cream in your mousse or you will overwork it and end up with mousse that is not fluffy.
If you realize your whipped cream has reached stiff peaks by accident, stir in a couple of tablespoons of additional unwhipped cream or soy milk to the whipped cream until you reach a medium-peak whipped cream before folding it into the ganache.
Did you try this vegan mousse recipe?
Don’t be shy and let me know how it went! Leave me a comment below and share a picture on Instagram!
Sonia
This recipe was so easy to make and my husband went back for seconds. I used some cocowhip instead of the whipping cream since I could not find any where I live.