Every kid has at least one food that he or she dreads seeing on the table come dinnertime. Liver. Brussels sprouts. Toad stroganoff (as imagined by the ever hyperbolic, notoriously picky Calvin of Calvin and Hobbes). In retrospect, I can see that I had it pretty good, but nevertheless, for me, that food was tofu. The only time I was ever happy to be served tofu? When it came dressed as dessert, completely masked in flavor by chocolate and sugar in the form of a luscious chocolate mousse.
Even though I knew full well what the mousse’s key ingredient was, I loved its refreshing, luxuriant silkiness. We used to buy it at the store until we realized just how easy it is to make at home – you only need a handful of ingredients, a blender, and a few minutes! This chocolate mousse can easily stand alone as a dessert, but adding a few garnishes to turn it into a parfait provides texture and enhances its presentation. After all, we eat with our eyes first, right?!
This was my first time using coconut cream to make a whipped topping, and to be honest, I was a little dubious at first. While I thought it turned out well in the end, a few words to the wise (and/or coconut cream newbies): yes, you will be able to taste a hint of coconut and no, you will not actually mistake it for regular whipped cream. That said, it’s a nice dairy-free option and it enabled me to keep these parfaits vegan! If you’re not concerned with such dietary restrictions, feel free to use regular whipped cream on top – this may also be a prudent choice if you have to make a last-minute dessert and are pressed for time, since the coconut cream does need to be refrigerated overnight.
What was your least favorite food as a child? Were there any ways you found it actually palatable?
- 1 package (16 ounces) silken tofu
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 12 Oreo cookies (or similar chocolate sandwich cookies), crumbled
- 1/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds
- 1 can (14 ounces) coconut cream
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 3/4 – 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- If you’re going to top the parfaits with whipped coconut cream, place the unopened can of coconut cream in the refrigerator the night before you plan to serve the parfaits. If not, proceed to step 2.
- Place the silken tofu, drained of any excess liquid in the package, into a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Heat the chocolate chips in the microwave in 30-second increments (the total amount of time will depend on the power of your microwave) until completely melted. Add the melted chocolate, maple syrup, and vanilla extract to the tofu and blend until thoroughly mixed, scraping down the sides with a spatula as needed. Refrigerate the mousse for at least an hour before serving.
- To make the whipped coconut cream, scoop out the chilled solid cream from the can, leaving behind the liquid at the bottom (you won’t need this liquid). Place the cream in the bowl of a mixer and mix until smooth (20-30 seconds is sufficient). Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and mix until fully incorporated. Unlike regular whipped cream, whipped coconut cream won’t really separate or deflate, so you don’t need to worry about making this just before serving.
- Assemble the parfaits: portion out half of the chocolate mousse into 4 glasses. Layer half of the crumbled Oreo cookies on top, then the remaining mousse, whipped coconut cream, the remaining Oreos, and the shredded coconut and sliced almonds.
- I highly recommend using silken tofu. I have made this mousse with firm tofu as well; it will certainly work, although you’ll probably need to add a few tablespoons of liquid (soy milk or even just water) to get it to blend it properly. The difference in end results is that with silken tofu, you’ll get a softer, lighter, creamier mousse, while with firm tofu, you’ll get a much denser, more filling (almost solid) mousse. I very much enjoy the denser one on its own, but for parfaits, I prefer the lighter one.
- Whipped coconut cream adapted from Minimalist Baker
Your parfaits look gorgeous! Great photos!
My least favourite food as a child? Canned sauerkraut–I loathed the smell and adamantly refused to taste it. However, after living in China I learned to love Asian-style sauerkraut–and tofu as well!
Thank you! I can certainly understand why you didn’t like canned sauerkraut…pickled foods do seem to be quite an acquired taste!
I didn’t even realize that you could use Tofu like this! My worst food as a child? Boiled potatoes. Don’t even ask. I don’t know why either!
Yup, the tofu (thankfully) just takes on the flavors of the other ingredients! How strange about the boiled potatoes – thanks for sharing 🙂
Love this!
Thanks! I’m glad it caught your eye.
Those sound delicious! I’m a big fan of tofu mousse, always comes out great–love the toppings you used here!
Thanks! I had no idea until I visited your blog earlier today that you can use silken tofu in baking as well – so cool!
Seems delicious! I could have never imagined using tofu as a dessert!
Thanks! I probably wouldn’t have either, if I hadn’t first seen it in stores.
I think I’ve only had tofu as dessert once or twice..and I am totally regretting that after seeing this mousse! Wouldn’t even know it has tofu in it!
Nope – I certainly wouldn’t have touched it as a kid if the tofu was at all still discernible!
Wow, I didn’t know you could use tofu like this! It was also my ‘most dreaded’ as a kid. My mother bought it one time (ONE TIME) and we never let her live it down! You’ve created an amazing transformation for sure. Looks delicious!
Thanks! Tofu made regular appearances in our house, but there was one time my mom tried putting it in spaghetti sauce, and we never forgot that incident (If you’re reading, Mom, sorry! Your willingness to try something new is commendable, though.)!
I really want to try this! My chocolate mousse loving husband turns his nose up every time I mention making it with tofu but I bet he’d eat it if I didn’t tell him what was in it!
I get that – It can be a little weird to wrap your head around at first. You should definitely try it – even if your husband doesn’t want to try it or doesn’t like it, that just means more for you! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Those parfaits look SO delicious! And I love that they’re vegan!! 🙂
Thanks, Christina! Me too – I love a good vegan dessert!
The vegan community is going to go nuts over this. Keeping it short so I can schedule pins out!! 🙂
Whoever first thought to use tofu in mousse was a genius! I’m glad the parfaits caught your eye!
My mouth started watering the moment I saw that first picture. WOW…this looks so very good!!! I’m not vegan but I don’t handle dairy very well, so I’m thrilled to find a pudding like dessert that doesn’t have dairy. Thanks!
Thanks so much! I don’t eat vegan most of the time, but I do try to eliminate dairy when I can, since I’m lactose intolerant. I hope you get a chance to try this!
This looks amazing!
My least favorite food as a kid: Pickle Loaf (aka Pimento Loaf). My stomach churns just thinking about it. Ewww…
Thanks!! Ugh, I just googled “pimento loaf” since I wasn’t sure what it was…I’m fairly sure there’s no way to transform that thing to make it appealing. Yikes!
I keep hearing about tofu in dessert, and I’ll admit it’s made me do a little raised eyebrow action, but this has convinced me. This mousse looks so lovely!
It’s one of those things you kind of have to try before you’ll really believe it – I understand! Let me know what you think if you try it 🙂
Oh man, Toad stroganoff totally takes me back to childhood days. I used to wake up early and read Calvin & Hobbes books all the time! There’s something about that wild sense of adventure. 🙂 I’m not a big tofu fan either, but a friend was just telling me about a mousse-type dessert that she makes…and now I am intrigued (especially after seeing how delicious these parfaits look)!
I’m not going to lie – I kind of want to go read some Calvin and Hobbes right now! Tofu lends itself surprisingly well to desserts (especially when combined with stronger flavors like chocolate). I daresay even Calvin himself might enjoy this mousse, if he could be convinced to give it a try!
I guess this must be the most wonderful thing you can turn tofu into! Love it :-)!!
Thanks 🙂 It’s definitely my favorite way to eat tofu!
How did I miss this?? Looks sooooo delicious. I keep meaning to try a chocolate dessert with tofu. Does it make you feel like you can eat a lottttt more?? 😛
Haha yes, it kinda does! This mousse is pretty rich so I don’t feel the urge to eat a ton anyway, but it totally makes me feel better to think about how I’m actually getting a bunch of protein and iron and stuff 😛
I definitely want to try this! Would never have thought of adding tofu to mousse but this looks delicious!
Thanks! I’m glad it caught your eye 🙂