These raspberry mousse bars are the perfect balance of tart, sweet, creamy, and rich. The filling has a chocolate cookie base which is then topped with a simple cream cheese raspberry mousse – all dunked in dark chocolate. It’s a sweet no bake treat that can easily be made gluten free. It’s the perfect Valentine’s Day gift!
This post is sponsored by Dolci Delicious but all thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that make Butternut Bakery possible!
How to make a quick and easy raspberry mousse
Mousse is an underrated dessert that just doesn’t get enough attention. It’s fluffy, creamy, rich, and pairs well with just about anything. But it’s often just served in a cup with a spoon, which is why I wanted to create this dessert as a new way to enjoy raspberry mousse.
Most mousse recipes require a process of heating heavy cream then gradually pouring it over an egg yolk mixture, being carful not to cook and scramble the eggs. This is then chilled and later mixed with fluffy whipped cream to lighten the texture.
For these bars, I needed a mousse that was still light and airy but just a bit more dense and firm. So for this recipe, the base is a mixture of cream cheese and sugar. It creates a much creamier mousse that pairs perfectly with the crisp crust and firm chocolate shell.
Since the base is cream cheese and sugar, this mousse comes together so fast. The cream cheese, sugar, and raspberry puree are combined into a smooth cheesecake-like batter. Then whipped cream is folded into the cream cheese to give it that light and airy mousse texture.
The best dipping chocolate
Since the mousse is soft and airy, it’s important that the bars are frozen solid before dipping. Otherwise, the bars will lose their shape and begin to melt in to the bowl of melted chocolate.
On top of that, the chocolate dipping process can get a bit tricky. That’s why I highly recommend using Dolci Frutta Chocolate Melting Wafers. Not only does it make for easy clean up, as the chocolate is melted right in its own container, but it also provides the most perfect chocolate shell. The chocolate is melted in the microwave and comes out as the perfect dipping consistency. It’s not too thick, not too thin, and is always smooth and lump-free.
It also hardens very fast, especially on these frozen bars, so the bars are easy to handle and pick up within minutes. Dolci Frutta Chocolate just adds the perfect rich chocolate flavor to these bars that isn’t too sweet or too bitter and makes the entire dipping process so quick and easy.
Where to buy Dolci Frutta Chocolate
I find my Dolci Frutta Chocolate Melting Wafers in the produce section at my local grocery store. They’re typically found near the berries or other fresh fruit. Otherwise, you can have Dolci Delicious products shipped straight to your door through Amazon.
The best way to cover bars in chocolate
This part takes a bit of patience, but after dipping your first couple bars the rest come easy.
By slicing them into 15 bars, they are the perfect size for the Dolci Frutta chocolate container. But I recommend only working with half the batch at a time, so keeping the other have in the freezer so they remain solid. They thaw very quickly so just make sure you constantly keeping them as cold as possible.
Working with a completely frozen bar, dip it into the chocolate crust side down and use a fork to flip it over to coat the mousse side. Then carefully flip it over once again and lift it out, now with the crust on the bottom.
Tap the fork against the edge of the container to smooth out the chocolate and drip off any excess. Then scrape the bottom of the bar against the container and transfer to a plate lined with parchment paper. Use another clean fork to scoot it off the chocolate covered fork and on to the paper.
You’ll notice the chocolate will start to set pretty quickly on the frozen bars. Once set, drizzle the tops with a bit of extra chocolate and top with freeze dried raspberries.
Now, if your bowl of Dolci Frutta chocolate starts to thicken and cool as you work, you can just pop it back in the microwave for 30 seconds to loosen it up again. And if you have more chocolate in the container but not enough room to drop in another bar, you can place the bar on a wire rack and pour the chocolate on top of the bar.
Once the bars are covered in chocolate, they can now be stored in the refrigerator. The chocolate will hold the mousse in place, so it will begin to soften into a creamy consistency as it thaws under the chocolate.
Can these bars be made gluten free?
Yes, the only ingredient that isn’t gluten free is the chocolate sandwich cookies. But you can easily swap them out with gluten free chocolate sandwich cookies to make this a completely gluten free dessert.
Can I use frozen raspberries?
I haven’t tested it, but it may be OK to use frozen raspberries. For the filling, work with thawed frozen raspberries. But for the layer of raspberries on the bottom, keep them frozen.
For more Valentine’s Day desserts, check out my:
- Brownie Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sandwiches
- Homemade Chocolate Bars
- Valentine’s Chocolate Sheet Cake
- Chocolate Strawberry Hi-Hat Cupcakes
- Chocolate Cheesecake
Make sure to tag me @butternutbakery on Instagram if you make these raspberry mousse bars. I love seeing my recipes come to life in YOUR kitchen! To pin this recipe and save it for later, you can use the button on the recipe card, the buttons above or below this post, or on any of the photos above. Happy baking!
Print
Chocolate Covered Raspberry Mousse Bars
- Total Time: 40 minutes + 2 hours chilling
- Yield: 15 bars 1x
Description
These no bake chocolate dipped raspberry mousse bars are a delicious decadent treat that’s so easy to make!
Ingredients
Chocolate Crust
- 18 chocolate sandwich cookies, finely ground (regular or gluten free)
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup (55g) unsalted butter, melted
Raspberry Mousse
- 2 cups (140g) fresh raspberries, divided
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 8 oz cream cheese, room temp
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (120ml) heavy whipping cream
Coating
- 16oz Dolci Frutta Chocolate Melting Wafers (use code 20BUTTERNUT for 20% off)
- Freeze dried raspberries (optional)
Instructions
Crust
- Combine all of the ingredients and tightly press into the bottom of an 8×8 square baking dish lined with parchment paper. Let the paper hang over the edges for easy release.
- Place in the refrigerator while you make the mousse.
Raspberry Mousse
- Add 1 cup of raspberries to a food processor and puree until smooth.
- Place a fine mesh strainer over a small saucepan and press the raspberry puree through. Discard the seeds.
- Add the cornstarch and lemon juice and continue to stir over medium heat until it starts to bubble. By this point, it should be very thick. Remove from heat.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the cream cheese and sugar. Mix using a hand or stand mixer (paddle attachment) until smooth.
- In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream on high speed until you reach stiff peaks.
- Back to the cream cheese, mix in the raspberry puree until smooth.
- Add half of the whipped cream and gently fold to combine, then fold in the other half.
- Take the crust out of the refrigerator and scatter the remaining 1 cup of raspberries on the surface.
- Pour the mousse on top and spread it even.
- Cover with plastic wrap, gently pressing it onto the surface of the mousse, and chill in the freezer for at least 2 hours or until completely firm.
Coating
- Once chilled, pull the bars out of the pan and place on a cutting board. Make four even slices on one side and then turn and make 2 slices to give you 15 bars. Place the bars back in the freezer while you melt the chocolate. It’s important they remain frozen solid while coating in chocolate.
- Take 1 8oz Dolci Frutta container and melt according to the directions on the package. It shouldn’t take more than 60-90 seconds total in the microwave.
- Take only half of the bars out of the freezer to coat in chocolate while the other half remains frozen. Again, it’s very important that the bars are frozen solid when you coat them in chocolate so if you notice they start to soften, just place them back in the freezer before continuing.
- Dunk a single bar into the chocolate and use a fork to nudge the bar and cover both sides. Pull it out using the fork and slide on to a plate lined with parchment paper.
- Continue to cover as many bars as you can with this one container, then transfer all covered bars to the refrigerator. Once you run out of chocolate, melt the second container of Dolci Frutta chocolate and cover the remaining bars that are still in the freezer.
- Once all of the bars are covered, drizzle with any excess chocolate and sprinkle with freeze dried raspberries. Place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to set, then enjoy!
- Store in a container in the refrigerator where they will keep for up to 5 days.
Notes
HALF RECIPE – You can also cut this recipe in half and shape in a 9×5 loaf pan. You should get about 7 bars that are slightly larger than the ones shown here.
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
Keywords: raspberry mousse, mousse, mousse bars
Omgggg what?! Making this ASAP!
Haha yaaaasss!
Hi there, these look amazing! I am wondering do you think the mousse would be sturdy enough to use to fill a layer cake? I’m imagining it in a chocolate layer cake!
That sounds delicious! But it might be too soft. If you really want to use it, I recommend piping a wall of buttercream around each cake layer and spreading the mousse in the middle. The sturdy buttercream will prevent the cake layers from squishing the mousse 🙂
Planning on making these for Valentine’s Day! What kind of sandwich cookies do you use? Would Oreos without the filling work?
Yep oreos are chocolate sandwich cookies, cream filling and all
I just made these today and it was a mess from start to finish! I think there’s a step of the directions missing between pressing the raspberries through the sieve and adding the cornstarch and lemon juice. The corn starch left lumps, as much as I tried to press them out. The bars took over 6 hours to firm up in the freezer and honestly should have taken longer, but I was impatient to get these done. When I sliced the bars, a lot of the crust broke off around the edges of the bars, leaving mousse hanging without anything beneath it. Maybe it’s because I used the GF cookies or the way I sliced the bars, but either way they broke off on a good amount of them. While dipping, I ended up using almost 12 oz of chocolate to cover the bars, and I had to give up on the last two and drizzle because I was running out of chocolate! So the bars turned out, albeit ugly, and I ended up dirtying a ton of dishes in the process. I can only hope the people I’m giving them to enjoy them
★★
I’ve had other people have success with this recipe so something must have gone wrong! Because the raspberries were lumpy like you said, it’s likely there wasn’t enough cornstarch in the mix after pressed through the sieve, so the mousse wouldn’t set. Next time try adding in the cornstarch bit by bit until you’re able to mix it smooth. As far as the crust, it could be due to the gluten free cookies. Adding a couple extra tablespoons of butter should help.
With better managed expectations, I tried the recipe again for the same friend who received these the first time. I ended up having to make a few modifications in order to have them turn out. First, I used my 9×9 pan as opposed to the 8×8 because the 9″ one had square corners and the 8″ had rounded. This did make it harder to get the mousse even in the pan, but I think this helped the crust not fall apart. Additionally I used 6 tbsp of butter for the crust, as opposed to 4, as recommend by Jenna. This probably also helped as the bars didn’t break when I cut them! Lastly, I froze the bars overnight so that way they wouldn’t be soft when I tried to dip them. I had to continue to add coconut oil to my chocolate as it seized twice, but my apartment humidity is high so the bars were sweating when I was trying to dip them.
It still dirties a ton of dishes (two stand mixers, both food processors, saucepan, etc) so it’s a lot of work for the bars! But all that to say, I wanted to come back and update the review since I had a better experience this time around
★★★★
Do you use just the cookie part of the oreo or blend it all up, including the white filling?
White filling included!