Vegan Mocha Chocolate Mousse Bars (Gluten Free)

These decadent yet light and fluffy mocha-flavored chocolate mousse bars are made with the simplest pantry ingredients to make them naturally vegan and gluten free! In just 10 minutes and a little setting time in the freezer, you’ll have the fluffiest mousse bars that are the perfect unbelievably vegan dessert!

This recipe post is sponsored by Florida Crystals® Sugar. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting The Banana Diaries!

Quick & Easy Vegan Mocha Chocolate Mousse Bars

Since it’s Veganuary, I thought it might be a wonderfully delicious idea to create one of my favorite desserts. But this time vegan, gluten free, and in bar form!

Enter in these amazing vegan mocha chocolate mousse bars. These bars are SO easy to make and are sweetened with Florida Crystals® Organic Raw Cane Sugar!

Whether you’re new to veganism and are exploring Veganuary (a fun month in January where the vegan lifestyle is promoted!) or you’re a seasoned vegan for years, we could all use a quick and easy go-to dessert recipe that’s both elegant and delicious, yet simple and approachable. 

These chocolate mousse bars are it. Based off of a twist on both my classic vegan chocolate mousse and this deliciously vegan gluten free chocolate cheesecake, I combined a few different elements from both recipes to keep this one quick, easy, approachable, and simple in both ingredients and technique.

What’s more, these mousse bars taste like a dream! A fluffy, cloud-like, and mocha-infused dream! They’re so lush, rich, and decadent. You’ll be hard-pressed to believe that these bars are indeed vegan, dairy free, and gluten free. Let’s make them!

Ingredients you need:

• Cashews: This is a cashew-based mousse instead of an aquafaba-based mousse because aquafaba, while it makes a wonderful vegan chocolate mousse, can be a bit tricky for beginner bakers to tackle. I wanted to keep this recipe super approachable in both technique and ingredients. Cashews are a much easier concept to grasp than aquafaba (which is the brine from chickpeas! Totally edible!). Plus, the cashews will create a super fluffy texture, along with the coconut cream!
• Coconut cream: I personally love coconut cream because it really does mimic heavy cream in baking. When combined with the cashews, you really get a mousse-like texture. The coconut flavor is very subtle, thanks to the chocolate and espresso. But if you prefer, you can swap in a store bought vegan heavy cream as well. 
• Florida Crystals® Organic Raw Cane Sugar: This is my all time FAVORITE sugar to use in all of my baking. You can’t go wrong with any of Florida Crystals®’ products, but for this recipe specifically, we’re using the Florida Crystals® Organic Raw Cane Sugar. More on why I specifically recommend Florida Crystals® in every recipe below! But just also know that the quality of sugar MATTERS, and you can really taste the difference using Florida Crystals®!
• Vegan chocolate: Use your favorite chocolate here!
• Espresso + espresso powder: We can’t have mocha without some espresso in there! I like to combine both espresso with espresso powder for a super mocha punch in flavor. However, if you are unable to make espresso, you can double the quantity of espresso powder!
• Cocoa powder: Using a high quality cocoa powder is key here for a rich chocolatey taste.
• Oat flour: I love using oat flour as my go-to gluten free flour in baking. However, if you’re Celiac and have a sensitivity to oats as well, you can swap in a gluten-free 1:1 baking flour and be sure to heat-treat it before using!
• Vegan butter: This is for the crust so we can create a deliciously chocolatey cookie crust for our mousse bars to sit upon. 

Why I always bake with Florida Crystals® Sugar:

If you’ve been a Banana reader for a while, then you know that I’m always using some form of Florida Crystals® Sugar in my baking, and for a good reason.

When I first went vegan, there was a lot that I quickly learned about what ingredients were truly vegan, and which were not. Unfortunately, many sugars made in the U.S. are not vegan-friendly. However, Florida Crystals® Sugar is not only vegan-friendly, but is both certified vegan and certified organic. 

Florida Crystals® actually offers the only U.S. grown organic raw cane sugars made from sugarcane. They’re also unrefined, mill-made, and minimally processed.

You might have a variety of reasons for going vegan and exploring Veganuary, but part of my reason is not just the animals but the planet as well. With Florida Crystals®, not only is their packaging both eco-friendly and recyclable, but the process in which their organic raw cane sugars are crafted is with immense respect to both the family-owned organic farms and the planet. 

I truly cannot say enough amazing things about Florida Crystals® and its team, but I should also mention that probably the most important part with respect to this recipe is the flavor and taste you achieve!

It’s truly unmatched. The more you bake with Florida Crystals®, the more you’ll see the difference in your baked goods. A much richer and more well-rounded flavor profile, better and more stabilized rising, especially in vegan baking, and a really lush and tender texture, always!

Overview: How to make mocha mousse bars:

Below are several images that help to walk you through how to make these deliciously creamy and rich vegan mocha mousse bars!

Topping ideas:

Once set, you can slice these bars into 8 large mocha mousse bars or 16 smaller squares. After that, I love to top these bars with melted vegan chocolate or my quick and easy vegan chocolate ganache. 

You can also create a quick batch of vegan whipped cream as well.

Then use a vegetable peeler, and create some shaved chocolate to sprinkle on top!

Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite recipe board on Pinterest!

If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!

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