Guava Mousse Pie with Gingersnap Crust

Guava mousse pie with gingersnap crumb crust

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This no-fuss pie uses an easy press-in crumb crust, whipped cream, and guava paste (pasta de guayaba) to create a flavourful, pillowy, swirly dessert that’s refreshing and fruity at the end of any meal.

Makes 1 nine-inch pie, 30 minutes prep time, 4 minutes bake time, 3 hours gelatin set time. 

A cold, dark winter under lockdown has made me dream of the topaz blue skies of the tropics, sweet fruit and local ginger beer.  At this time of year, guava is difficult to find fresh, but guava paste (pasta de guayaba in Spanish or goiabada in Portuguese) is available in many Latin American and South American stores.  The paste is usually sold in cans or in bricks.  Cooks often pair this ingredient with cheese in delicious pastries.  In this case, we are using this paste as the central flavouring ingredient to our mousse. 

A successful crumb crust 

If you haven’t made a crumb crust from scratch before, this one is an easy and forgiving one that will help your first attempt be a successful one.  Here’s why:  

  • This recipe makes a lot of crumbs, so if you lose a few while you’re trying to create your crust, you won’t be in a situation where you’ve painstakingly pressed a perfect crust, only to find a golf ball-sized hole in the middle of the pan where you’ve run out of crumbs. 
  • A quick bake with sugar and butter helps set the crust so it keeps its integrity, even if the mousse pie sits in the fridge for a day. 
  • The gingersnap (or ginger thin) cookies cut the richness of the mousse, and the finished crust can be easily cut with a fork while eating (even if the pie came straight out of the fridge). 

I made several versions of the crumb crust, and my favourite is made with below ginger thins.  I found these at a nearby convenience store, but I used to buy them at Ikea when my work used to go there for lunch.  They’re dryer and less sweet, and a breeze to break into crumbs. 

Box of Anna's Ginger Thins
Gingersnap cookies and gingerthins will both work in this recipe.

How to make crumbs from cookies 

As mentioned above, some cookies lend themselves more easily to crumbification.  If you have a food processor, you can whir the cookies in a food processor that has been fitted with a metal blade.  If you don’t have a food processor, you can place a few cookies in one layer between two layers of parchment paper and roll over with a rolling pin.  Remove the top layer of parchment paper.  Pick up the lower parchment paper by opposite corners to transfer the crumbs into a bowl.  Continue with additional cookies until you have the desired amount. 

  • Crushing ginger thins with a rolling pin between parchment paper
    Cookies can be sandwiched between sheets of parchment paper and crushed with a rolling pin.
  • Formed crumb crust in pie pan
    Crumbs are mixed with melted butter and sugar, and then pressed into a pie pan.
Guava mousse pie with gingersnap crumb crust
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Guava mousse pie with gingersnap crumb crust

Recipe by Tiny Kitchen CravingsCourse: DessertDifficulty: Easy
Pie

9

inch
Prep time

30

minutes
Baking time

4

minutes

This no-fuss pie uses an easy press-in crumb crust, whipped cream and guava paste (pasta de guayaba) to create a flavourful, pillowy, swirly dessert that’s refreshing and fruity at the end of any meal.   

Ingredients

  • Gingersnap crumb crust

  • 1 3/4 cups crushed gingersnap (or ginger thin) cookies (approx. 225 g/8 oz worth of cookies)

  • 1 tbsp. white sugar

  • 1/3 cup melted butter

  • Guava mousse

  • 1 tsp. gelatin powder

  • 2 tbsp. water

  • 1 tbsp. butter

  • 1/2 cup guava paste, cut into small pieces

  • 1 tbsp. sugar

  • 2 cups whipping cream, cold, divided

  • Zest from 1 orange

Directions

  • Directions for crust
  • Preheat oven to 425°F.
  • Place gingersnap cookie crumbs into a medium-sized bowl.
  • Mix sugar into melted butter until dissolved, and mix into cookie crumbs.
  • Using the back of a spoon, press crumb mixture onto the bottom and sides of a 9″ pie plate at around 1/8″ thick. Use fingers and the back of the spoon to fashion an edge at the top of the pie plate.
  • Place pie crust onto a baking sheet and toast in the oven for 4 minutes.
  • Remove crust from oven and let cool.
  • Directions for mousse
  • Sprinkle gelatin over the water in a small bowl, and let bloom for 5 minutes.
  • In a small saucepan on low heat, melt butter and guava paste, stirring occasionally and breaking up large pieces of paste by pressing pieces with the back of a fork.
  • When guava paste has melted, add 1/4 cup of heavy cream and sugar. When sugar has dissolved completely, remove saucepan from heat and stir in gelatin and orange zest. Stir for 1 minute to completely dissolve the gelatin. Set aside to cool for 20-30 minutes.
  • In a large mixing bowl, whip remaining heavy cream until stiff peaks form.
  • Pour guava sauce into the large mixing bowl and fold whipped cream over the sauce with a spatula to mix gently. Leave a few streaks of colour.
  • Pour whipped cream mousse into the crust, swirling the top of the mouse with the back of a spoon to create a decorative pattern.
  • Refrigerate for 3 hours to cool completely and for the gelatin to set.