Mocha Pot de Crème
Chocolate Pudding – But Not
I tend to eat like a child, so it is not surprising that one of my absolutely favorite foods is chocolate pudding. Not just any chocolate pudding, mind you, but this very specific brand, My-T Fine. It is the pudding I ate as a child and the only one that interests me today. But sometimes you need to feed other people and while my husband likes chocolate pudding as well, I thought I would make him a more sophisticated version: a pot de crème.
The Super Easy Process
There was a whole lot of heavy whipping cream in my fridge that needed to be eaten, so I developed this recipe for a chocolate pot de crème – except, hey, why not make it better? I was making my husband an espresso while I gathered my ingredients and realized that this dish would be even better with a splash of strong coffee.
I simmered milk and whipping cream together and then dumped in about ½ cup of chopped semi-sweet chocolate, stirring until the chocolate melted. I followed up with 1 ½ tablespoons of freshly brewed espresso. That made this pretty coffee forward, so if you prefer your mochas more on the chocolate side, you can reduce the amount a bit.
How to Avoid Cooking Your Eggs
The trickiest part of the process comes next: mixing the hot mixture into a bowl with two egg yolks and a bit of sugar. It’s tricky because if you aren’t careful, you can cook your eggs. The way to add hot liquids to eggs is to add them very, very slowly, in little amounts, while whisking constantly.
Happily, it all worked out. No cooked eggs! I poured the mixture into a large measuring cup and evenly distributed the liquid among three ramekins. Those go into a baking pan filled halfway with hot water and bake until set on the edges and still a bit jiggly in the middle.
A Delicious New Dessert is Born!
I think the hardest part of the whole thing was waiting for the pot de crème to cool off. Obviously, we split one of them while it was still pretty warm, but honestly, the two that were refrigerated overnight were amazing with a dash of homemade whipped cream. Warm or cold, this mocha pot de crème is a rich, creamy treat with a great depth of flavor.
These days my supermarket has stopped selling my beloved chocolate pudding mix, but this may just be the perfect substitution.
Mocha Pot de Crème
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup chopped semi-sweet chocolate
- 1 1/2 tbsp freshly brewed espresso
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 tbsp sugar
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Place three ramekins in a baking pan.
- Heat the cream and milk in a saucepan over medium high heat until it is just simmering.
- Remove the cream and milk from the heat and add in the chocolate.
- Mix the chocolate into the milk and cream until it is completely melted and incorporated. I used a whisk, but you can use a heat resistant spatula or a wooden spoon.
- Add two egg yolks to a medium bowl.
- Whisk the sugar into the eggs.
- This is the tricky part! Are you paying attention?
- If you pour the hot chocolate mixture into the eggs too quickly, you will cook the eggs. To avoid this, pour your chocolate into a large measuring cup.
- Slowly pour tiny little bits of the liquid into the eggs while whisking constantly.
- You did it!
- I returned the mixture to the measuring cup and distributed it evenly among the three ramekins. The number of ramekins you will make depends on the size of what you are using.
- Fill the baking pan with hot water until it is midway up the sides of the ramekins.
- Bake until the edges are set, but the middle is still a little jiggly.
- Let cool a bit and then move to the fridge to cool completely.
- These are delicious with a topping of fresh whipped cream – or by themselves.
