Avocado Banana Mousse

It’s a wet weekend here and our two dogs are not happy refusing to venture out into the backyard in the wind and rain. Okay, I didn’t either for this mornings run. I was planning a quick 3-mile run, but ended up on the elliptical instead with the gusty winds outside. I can handle running in a little rain, but not crazy winds! Thankfully the rain took a break in the afternoon giving us a little sunshine and some time to take two very restless dogs for a long walk.

The fall leaves and afternoon sun were gorgeous on the walk.

And these two had to stop to sniff and pee on everything.

They were perfectly happy to settle into warm laps when the winds and rain kicked in later in the evening.

While I used the indoor time to create a chocolatey treat in the kitchen. Raw vegan avocado mousse was one of the first raw recipes I learned many years ago, I remember being amazed that avocados could make such a creamy and decadent dessert. But it’s not a light dessert, avocados can be pretty heavy with the addition of agave nectar or dates for a sweetener. So I decided to try a lighter version of the mousse using part avocado and part banana to lower the calories a bit while still keeping it sweet and creamy. The result was a success, very satisfying as a stand alone mousse treat or a dip for fruit.

For the cacao powder, I used Navitas Naturals Raw Chocolate powder which I’ve been buying in bulk from Amazon over the holidays for raw desserts.

And Trader Joe’s Stevia powder, something I recently discovered and this $10 container lasts weeks for coffee, smoothies, and desserts.

It took a couple of stop-and-stirs in the food processor to mix in all of the cacao powder, but the texture smoothed out nicely.

And made a great treat for dessert dipping apple slices into it.

The flavor was rich and chocolatey with the perfect amount of sweetness for me, not too sweet, and very thick and creamy.

It has a rich dark chocolate flavor that’s warm and intense while still being silky and light.