These pumpkin mousse parfaits are a delicious fall treat loaded with classic flavor. A gingersnap crust is topped with rich pumpkin mousse and a final layer of homemade whipped cream to create a rich treat that’s far easier than you’d think!
We love making delicious desserts for weeknight meals and parties. As much as I adore the flavors, it’s seeing the looks on everyone’s faces when they dig in that really does it for me. That’s especially true when those treats are easy, no bake desserts!
Of course, this time of year, we lean heavily into the flavors of fall and the holidays. So, you’ll find desserts like pumpkin cheesecake balls and this Christmas toffee featuring prominently in my rotation. Both are no-bake, no muss, and no fuss.
Now, we’re adding these pumpkin mousse parfaits to my rotation. These rich, creamy parfaits are easy enough for weeknight dinners and fancy enough for parties, making them a super-versatile addition to your lineup.
If you’re serving these as dessert, we highly recommend pairing them with hearty fall dinners like sheet pan sausage and potatoes or crock pot beef stew.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Simple Ingredients: These parfaits use basic ingredients found in just a couple of aisles at your local grocery store.
- So Easy: Every single part of this recipe is no-bake, and the homemade whipped cream only takes a few minutes to make. It’s a super-easy recipe that’s ready in just about 15 minutes. After that, all you have to do is pop them in the fridge for a bit!
- Classic Fall Flavor: Everything about this recipe is classic fall. From the gingersnap crust to the pumpkin pie mousse, every bite of these parfaits screams, “It’s fall, y’all!”
- Versatile: These are great for both weeknight desserts and holiday parties.
Ingredients
You’ll find a full list of ingredients and their exact amounts in the recipe card at the end of the post.
Variations
- Sweet Potato Parfaits: Use sweet potato puree for another delicious fall treat.
- Crust: You can use graham crackers or Nilla Wafers in place of gingersnap cookies for different crust flavors that work well with the pumpkin mousse.
- Whipped Cream: You can use Cool Whip in place of homemade whipped cream, if you prefer.
- Cinnamon Whipped Cream: Add even more flavor with a pinch of cinnamon in the homemade whipped cream. Yummy!
How to Make Pumpkin Mousse Parfaits
- Beat the cream cheese until smooth.
- Next, add the pumpkin puree and spices and beat again.
- Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Then, add the Cool Whip and a drop of orange food coloring and beat again.
- Beat the whipped cream ingredients until stiff peaks form.
- Mix the crust ingredients until combined. Then, add some to the bottom of each cup.
- Top with pumpkin filling and whipped cream. Repeat until all the ingredients are used, ending with the whipped cream, and sprinkle the cups with gingersnap crumbs.
Tips
- Soften your cream cheese for the easiest mixing and richest filling texture.
- Always use block cream cheese. Whipped cream cheese won’t give you the correct texture.
- Full-fat cream cheese is highly recommended. Low-fat cream cheese will create a thinner, more anemic-tasting product.
- Stop beating your whipped cream as soon as stiff peaks form. Overbeating will deflate it.
- Use a food processor to quickly and easily crush your gingersnap cookies. You can also place them in a resealable baggie and use a rolling pin to crush them.
- Be careful not to pulverize your cookies. They should be crumbly but not fine.
Pumpkin Mousse Parfaits FAQ
Pumpkin mousse is a light, airy, no-bake filling made with pumpkin puree, whipped cream, and cream cheese.
These parfaits are a great weeknight dessert after any kind of hearty meal, especially fall favorites like pot roast or roasted chicken.
If you use low-fat cream cheese, the mousse mixture will be a little thinner, resulting in a texture that isn’t nearly as rich and creamy. I highly recommend using full-fat cream cheese for this recipe.
More Sweet Pumpkin Treats
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Pumpkin Mousse Parfaits
Ingredients
Pumpkin Mousse Filling
- 12 ounces cream cheese
- ⅓ cup pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 8 ounce container cool whip
- 1 drop pumpkin orange gel food coloring, if desired.
Homemade Whipped Cream
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Gingersnap Crumbs
- 1 ¾ cup crushed gingersnap cookies
- ½ cup melted butter
- ¼ cup sugar
Instructions
Pumpkin Mousse Filling
- In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese for 2-3 minutes until smooth.
- Add the pumpkin puree, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and nutmeg. Beat until combined.
- Add powdered sugar and beat until smooth then add the cool whip and one drop of orange food coloring until incorporated.
Homemade Whipped Cream
- In a mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat heavy whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla until stiff peaks form.
Gingersnap Crumbs
- In a medium bowl, mix gingersnap crumbs, melted butter, and sugar together.
- Place some gingersnap filling in the bottom of each parfait cup.
- Next, add pumpkin mousse filling, and then whipped cream. Repeat layers ending with whipped cream topping.
- Sprinkle with gingersnap crumbs.
Notes
- Tightly cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Soften your cream cheese for the easiest mixing and richest filling texture.
- Always use block cream cheese. Whipped cream cheese won’t give you the correct texture.
- Full-fat cream cheese is highly recommended. Low-fat cream cheese will create a thinner, more anemic-tasting product.
- Stop beating your whipped cream as soon as stiff peaks form. Overbeating will deflate it.
- Use a food processor to quickly and easily crush your gingersnap cookies. You can also place them in a resealable baggie and use a rolling pin to crush them.
- Be careful not to pulverize your cookies. They should be crumbly but not fine.
I made these last night for dessert, and we loved them. The fall flavor is so yummy, and they’re so easy. I REALLY love that.
I LOVE an easy delicoius recipe like this. I made them last night, and they ticked all the boxes.
Such a yummy recipe, and being so easy is a big plus!
This looks so creamy and festive. I’ll be prepping these for our Sunday dinner. Love the gingersnap layer!
Tried this recipe after dinner and it turned out perfect. Not too sweet, just smooth and fluffy. I’ll be making it again for Thanksgiving!