Big thanks to Ashley Martens for this delicious recipe!

The month of May marks the start of warmer weather (thank goodness), but it also beckons the beginning of family gatherings, get togethers with friends and community block parties with neighbors.

If you are looking for a dish to share with others at your next event, we have a delicious recipe for you - Chocolate Espresso Mousse with a Cookie Crumble Crust. Yum! Don’t worry about dietary restrictions either. This pie is gluten-free, refined sugar-free and Vegan. We told you it was a good one. Just promise us one thing, save us a slice?

Pie Crust Ingredients:

• 8 individual Chocolate Chocolate Chunk Cookies (or enough cookies to make 1 ½ cups of cookie crumbles)
• 4 tablespoons melted coconut oil

Pie Filling Ingredients:

• 2 large avocados
• ½ cup coconut milk
• ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ¼ cup agave, *honey or maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon instant espresso powder (If you prefer a mintier taste, you can create a chocolate mint mousse by swapping the instant espresso powder out and replacing it with a ½ teaspoon of peppermint extract.)
• Pinch of Pink Himalayan Salt

Pie Garnish Options (Optional):

• Almond Slivers
• Berries like Raspberries or Sliced Strawberries
• Chopped Hazelnuts
• Cocoa Nibs
• Fresh Mint Leaves
• Shredded Coconut Flakes

Directions:

#1 Place cookies in food processor and blend until cookies create 1 ½ cups of cookie crumbles, which is roughly 8 cookies. (If you want a thicker crust, make 3 cups of cookie crumbles or 16 cookies.)

#2 Melt 4 tablespoons of coconut oil and pour over cookie crumbles then blend again until cookie crumbles are well mixed with the melted coconut oil. (*If using 3 cups of cookie crumbles, add 8 tablespoons of melted coconut oil instead of 4.)

#3 Place cookie crumble mixture into a 9-inch pie pan and press out evenly using a spatula. (If using 8 cookies, you should have enough crumbles to fully fill the bottom of the pie pan. However, if you want a thicker cookie crumble crust or cookie crumbles on the side of the pie pan, use 16 cookies instead of 8 cookies.)

#4 Pop the cookie crumble crust into the fridge to chill while you make the filling.

#5 In a food processor, blend together avocados, cocoa powder, natural sweetener of choice, coconut milk, and a pinch of salt.

#6 Pulse until all of the ingredients are well combined and smooth. (There should not be any green chunks of avocado or any white pieces of coconut milk.)

#7 Pop chocolate mousse into the fridge for 30-60 minutes so mousse can thicken. As the chocolate mousse chills, remove the pie crust from the fridge.

It’s important to note coconut oil will either be solid or liquid depending on the room temperature, so leaving the cookie crumble crust in the fridge too long can leave the cookie crumble crust difficult to slice when serving, so it’s best to let the pie crust slightly thaw before adding the chilled chocolate mousse. It will make slicing and serving much easier and less messy!

#8 Once the chocolate mousse has chilled for 30-60 minutes, add it to the cookie crumble pie crust and smooth with a kitchen spatula.

#9 Top pie with additional garnish if desired. If you have extra cookie crumbles, you can add them to the top of the mousse before serving for an added topping of crunchy goodness.

If you have any chocolate mousse leftover, you can also use it as a fruit dip for your favorite bunch of berries like blackberries, blueberries, raspberries or strawberries. You can even snag a stack of your favorite Maxine’s Heavenly and dig in. Yum!

Be sure to tag us @maxinesheavenly so we can see your Chocolate Espresso Mousse Pie!