This No-Bake Banana Dulce De Leche Mousse Cake has layers of dulce de leche mousse, freshly sliced bananas, and banana pudding mousse. It’s the perfect easy and delicious no-bake dessert!
If you love mousse cakes as much as I do, you should also try my Chocolate Mousse Cake or this No-Bake Strawberry Mousse Cake!
Dulce De Leche Mousse Cake with Bananas
I am absolutely swooning over this dessert. This mousse cake is all about the layers. Starting with the vanilla wafer crust, it’s them filled with dulce de leche mousse and freshly sliced bananas, topped with a banana pudding mousse, and finished with whipped cream.
Dessert doesn’t get more decadent than that! This No-Bake Banana Dulce De Leche Mousse Cake is perfectly sweet without being too rich, incredibly silky and has just the right amount of banana flavor. It gives me similar vibes to a Banana Pudding but caramelized.
What is the Difference Between Mousse Cake and Normal Cake?
The difference is that a mousse cake is hardly a cake at all!
Regular cakes are made spongy and dense with a mixture of dry ingredients and wet ingredients. Mousse cake is made with a light and fluffy mousse filling which can be made up of a mixture of whipped cream and cream cheese, pudding, and banana slices.
Key Ingredients
- Gelatin – Unflavored, powdered gelatin is key to giving the filling structure.
- Cream Cheese – Use a full-fat block of cream cheese for the best flavor and texture.
- White Chocolate- I love using melted chocolate in a mousse cake, the flavor is subtle but it really adds to the texture.
- Dulce De Leche – Dulce de leche can be a little bit pricier than some of the other ingredients, but youc an make it yourself or, if you live near a Trader Joe’s, you can find small jars for pretty cheap.
- Instant Banana Pudding – There’s a layer of banana mousse in there, but if you want a little less banana flavor, you can use vanilla pudding.
How to Make Banana Mousse Cake
This banana dessert recipe is made up of a few different components. But don’t worry! They’re all so simple to make!
Crust
- Blend the Nilla wafers: Grind all but 5 of the Nilla wafers in a food processor until processed into a fine crumb. Save those 5 for the crumble topping
- Assemble the crust: In a small bowl, melt butter, then pour over the wafer crumbs. Stir to coat, then press into the bottom and up the sides of a greased springform pan. Here’s my quick tutorial for making crusts in springform pans. Place into the fridge.
Filling
- Prep the gelatin: Combine cold water and gelatin in a small dish, then let sit for 2-3 minutes until it solidified.
- Melt the chocolate: In a bowl, combine the white chocolate and 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream. Microwave in 30-second increments, stirring each time until melted. Once it’s been stirred smooth, melt the gelatin in the microwave for about 5 seconds, remove any pieces that did not melt and stir into the melted chocolate mixture.
- Make the whipped cream: In a chilled bowl, beat 1 cup heavy whipping cream until thickened to soft peaks. Then add the powdered sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
- Combine and assemble: Beat the cream cheese until it’s smooth and free of lumps then add in the melted chocolate and dulce de leche, mixing until combined. Once everything is mixed well, fold in the whipped cream with a spatula. Transfer to the prepared crust, spread evenly, then line with sliced bananas.
- Make the Banana Mousse: You’ll prepare the mousse in a similar way to whipped cream. Chill the bowl first, then beat the heavy cream until it forms soft peaks. Then add the powdered banana pudding and beat until stiff peaks form. Spread that over the sliced bananas.
- Chill: Chill this for 3-4 hours until everything is set.
Topping
- Make the whip: Prepare another batch of whipped cream to decorate with then place 1 1/2 cups of the whipped cream into a piping bag, then spread the rest over the top of the cake.
- Decorate: Use the piping bag to pipe borders of whipped cream around the pie, garnish with crushed Nilla wafers and drizzle with more dulce de leche, then slice and serve.
Recipe Tips for Mousse Cake
Here are a few of my best tips for making this recipe as easy as possible!
- Use a springform pan. This makes it so much easier to remove the cake without damaging the edges.
- Grease the pan. A light layer of cooking spray will do the trick! Just oil lightly, then wipe it out gently with a paper towel so there’s no excess. Or you cake use cake collars for the smoothest edges.
- Press the crust in well. We want the cookie crumbs to be pretty compact so the crust doesn’t fall apart. Use a measuring cup to press the crumbs down.
- Chill the whip bowl and whisk. The colder tools make the fluffiest whipped cream! I recommend chilling them in the freezer for 5-10 minutes before making the whipped cream.
How to Store
An assembled banana mousse cake will last covered in the fridge for up to 3 days! It cannot be left out at room temperature because the texture will be much too soft. I do not recommend freezing this dessert.
Print
No-Bake Banana Dulce De Leche Mousse Cake
- Prep Time: 60 minutes
- Chill Time: 4 hours
- Total Time: 5 hours
- Yield: 10-12 servings
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Refrigerator
- Cuisine: American
Description
This No-Bake Banana Dulce De Leche Mousse Cake has layers of dulce de leche mousse, freshly sliced bananas, and banana pudding mousse. It’s the perfect easy and delicious no-bake dessert!
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 1 box (14oz) Nilla Wafers
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
For the mousse:
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon gelatin
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream, divided
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 6 ounces white chocolate
- 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- ¼ cup dulce de leche
- 2 medium bananas
For the pudding layer:
- 1 ¼ cups heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon instant banana pudding
For the topping:
- 1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- Dulce de leche for garnish
Instructions
For the crust:
- Prepare a 9-inch springform pan by lightly greasing the edges of the pan with cooking spray, and then wiping gently with a paper towel.
- Remove 5 Nilla Wafers from the package (set them aside). Grind the remaining cookies into a fine crumb using a food processor blender. Pour the melted butter over the cookie crumbs and stir until the crumbs are well coated.
- Pour the crumbs into your springform pan and press firmly into the bottom and up on the sides to create a thick crust. Refrigerate the crust while you are preparing the filling.
For the mousse layer:
- Place 1 tablespoon of cold water in a small dish. Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water, trying to spread the powder evenly. Allow the gelatin to turn to a solid (about 2-3 minutes).
- In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the white chocolate chips and 2 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream. Microwave at 50% power in 30-second increments, stirring each time until the chocolate is melted and melt.
- Next, melt the gelatin in the microwave for 5-8 seconds until it turns back to a liquid. Watch it closely and remove any pieces that did not dissolve. Stir the liquid gelatin into the melted chocolate and set it aside to cool.
- Prepare the whipped cream. Place the mixing bowl and whisk attachment in the freezer for 5 to 10 minutes to chill. Using an electric mixer, beat 1 cup of heavy cream on medium-high speed until soft peaks start to form. Slowly add the powdered sugar and continue beating on high speed until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
- Next, beat the cream cheese until it’s completely smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed, and then add the melted chocolate and dulce de leche beating until it’s completely mixed into the cream cheese.
- Lastly, fold in the prepared whipped cream and mix until all ingredients are combined. Pour the filling into the prepared crust, spreading evenly.
- Slice the bananas and place in a circle working your way from the outside edge into the middle of the cake.
For the pudding layer:
- Chill the mixing bowl and whisk attachment in the freezer for 5 to 10 minutes. Beat 1 1/4 cups of heavy cream on medium-high speed until it reaches soft peaks. Add the dry instant pudding mix and beat until it’s thick. Spread the mousse over the sliced bananas.
- Cover and chill the entire cake for 3-4 hours until it’s set.
For the topping:
- Prepare another batch of whipped cream. Separate out about 1 ¼ cups of the prepared whipped cream to pipe the decorative border. Spread the remaining whipped cream over top of the cake.
- Pipe the borders of the pie with whipped cream using a large open star tip. Garnish with the remaining 5 Nilla wafers (crushed) and drizzle with dulce de leche.
Notes
- I prefer using cake collars with my springform pan which helps achieve those nice smooth edges. Parchment paper works but can be hard to keep in place. Saran wrap will also work.
- Storing: An assembled banana mousse cake will last covered in the fridge for up to 3 days! It cannot be left out at room temperature because the texture will be much too soft. I do not recommend freezing this dessert.
Can I use a graham cracker crust instead of the nilla wafers?
Hi Linda! You sure can!