Peabody has recently moved to a beautiful new house and to celebrate that she’s throwing a Housewarming Party, pot luck style.
She’s such a lovely person, so talented and generous, and one of my all-time favorite cooks/bakers - I had to take part in her event!
I thought of many dishes to “bring” to her party and decided that dessert would be a good choice - we rarely have dessert at home. Also, I had been meaning to make something with the fantastic Green & Black’s bars Valentina gave me when she came to Brazil. So, there you have it: a silky, smooth and delicious dessert (recipe taken from this book). Excellent for when you have people over – it can be made in advance.
I decorated the pots of crème with some whipped cream and lemon rind, but feel free to use your imagination - my first thought was to use raspberries, but couldn’t find any that day. I did find some beautiful and shiny blackberries, but they were so tart I had tears in my eyes after tasting one.
Pea, I hope you like my contribution to your party. May you have wonderful moments and lots of love in your new home!
Chocolate pots de crème
from The Williams-Sonoma Collection: Dessert
1 1/3 cups (11fl oz/340ml) heavy cream
1 1/3 cups (11fl oz/340ml) whole milk
185g (6oz) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped – I used 72% cocoa solids
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder or instant coffee powder – I used the latter
6 large egg yolks
¼ cup (1 ¾ oz/50g) sugar
Preheat the oven to 150ºC/300ºF. Have ready 6 size ¾-cup (6fl oz/180ml) ramekins and a shallow roasting pan.
In a saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the cream, milk, chopped chocolate and espresso powder and cook, whisking frequently, until the chocolate is melted and the liquid is hot – do not allow to boil. Remove from heat.
In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until well blended. While whisking constantly, gradually pour the hot chocolate mixture into the yolk mixture. Pour the custard through a sieve place over a 4-cup (32fl oz/1l) glass measuring pitcher. Using a large spoon, skim off any foam and bubbles from the top*.
Divide the custard evenly among the ramekins. Place the ramekins in the roasting pan and pour very hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the cups. Cover the pan with foil.
Bake the custards until they are set but the centers still jiggle slightly when a cup is gently shaken, 55-60 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and leave the ramekins in the water until cool enough to handle. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 2 hours or up to overnight. Serve chilled.
* I completely forgot the sieving/skimming thing. :S
Makes 6 servings
56 comments:
Pat, chocolate makes you new friends, this is simple and I'd even dip those rose in the dessert!
That's so yummy! Chocolate is a girls best friend ;)
Oh sweetie, your chocolate pots de creme look so smooth even you forgot skimming. About blackberries, you are right they're very pretty, but yooo.... sour :P Your lemon rind is much more elegant.
What is a more beautiful housewarming gift than this? Your pots look absolutely divine!
This looks fantastic, Pat! I would love nothing more than to have a taste of that right now.
I love Chocolate Pot de Creme and those look beautiful! Love the lemon rind touch.
These are so beautiful! And they look ridiculously delicious. I will have to try this recipe as soon as I get a set of ramekins.
look DELICIOUS! I seriously need some good chocolate!!! I haven't had a good "pots de creme" in ages!!! this would be great for a holiday party!!
Just beautiful, Patricia! I'm not even a fan of coffee, but I can tell it would add a nice extra touch of bitterness to the dark chocolate. So much more grown up and sophisticated than standard issue chocolate pudding.
That looks great. I found a simple recipe that works in lieu of the baking, etc., made by simply melting the chocolate into heated creme fraiche. it's rich, but not quite as rich as the custard would be. I added a burnt caramel sauce and fleur de sel salt before serving.
I think the method you used makes it a bit more special, but the creme fraiche makes for an easy dessert that's very well received; I use it when I've done a lot of cooking on other dishes.
Patricia - these chocolate pots de creme are lovely and a beautiful addition to the housewarming party. They look so smooth and silky, and the little knot in the lemon zest is charming!
Mm... you were right, chocolate pots de creme sound absolutely perfect. I love the velvety texture of custard; I imagine it's even more velvety with chocolate added. And isn't Green and Black amazing chocolate? And coffee! I love how well coffee and chocolate go together.
Espresso AND chocolate?? Yes please! Whether you are trying or not, we are seduced.
You know, I moved in my place in June, but I'm still accepting house-warming treats. Like yours. ;)
They look stunning, Patricia.
What a wonderful housewarming treat!! These sound so delicious!
I can imagine the greatness that the coffee brings, Patricia.
Great stuff.
sooo delicious! I am trying to cut down chocolate desserts but looking at this I just can't! ;)
That looks so delicious and decadent! I have been meaning to try making chocolate pots for a while now.
They look so good it's almost sinful! :) :)
:Blush: at the compliments and SWOON over the chocolate pots de cream!
ooohh! chocolate! I can't resist such yummy bakes :)
That is simply irresistible...especially for a chocoholic like me :-D
Peter, I had a laugh with you, my friend. :)
Linda, I agree!
Gattina, thank you, dear!
Lydia, I thought it was a pretty simple recipe with a great result!
Hi, darling! Grab a spoon and come on over! :)
Carla, thank you, sweetie!
Sara, try them with regular mugs!
Carrie, tks for visiting! Good to know you like the recipe.
Terry, I don't like coffee either. I don't even drink it, but I'm totally addicted to its smell. It sort of enhanced the chocolate flavor, amazing!
Curt, I have that recipe of yours on my to try list. :)
T.W., I saw that zest know somewhere, just don't remember where it was. I kept that in mind for further use. ;)
Hanne, they really go wonderfully together, you are so right!
And that chocolate is just amazing.
Aimée, glad to hear that, sweetie!
Susan, I'll think about something wonderful for you - it HAS to be wonderful, because it is for YOU. ;)
Deb, tks, darling!
Graeme, it does - I don't like coffee, but it works perfectly here.
Thank you, my dear friend.
Anh, I try that too, but it only works sometimes. :)
Kevin, you definitely should. :)
Sher, thank you, dear!
Pea, I'm so, so glad you like my dessert!
Anne, and I can't resist your baked goods!
Sunita, thank you, my dear!
What a lovely dessert. Chocolate is always good but the way you serve it is irresistible! Nice one!
Mmm those look delicious.
Pat,
I love your blog as well. I think there are some really fantastic recipes on here! This dessert looks totally decadent.
very nice looking desserts! Indulgence!
Just beautiful, Patricia! I love the lemon zest knot on the top and the roses. This sounds like a seriously good dessert.
This is one hellava house warming :) I'll have to wear very loose clothes. Looks great, Pat.
how lovely & it even goes with your blog background ;) i love pots de crème, it's the ultimate comfort dessert!
looks sinfully delicious!
Oooooh I want one! :)
these look like exactly what i *shouldn't* be craving after last week's thanksgiving indulging! they look wonderful.
These chocolate gems would be perfect to take to the party Patricia!!!Yammas!
oh yes yes please. My favorites! Petis pots de crème! Miam.
I think it's a waste of your talent that you don't eat more dessert at home, Patricia! These are so good!
Ooooh, with this lovely decadent dessert, trust me, when I have a housewarming party, you'll definitely be on the list! :)
Mmmm... you've got my mouth watering with these. I love the roses in the background of the picture, your photography is so lovely.
Yummy! One of my all time favorite.
:-)
Wow. That is beautiful! And is making me drool :)
Now that would be a wonderful housewarming gift indeed! And it's so beautifully presented, too.
I know what you mean about the smell of coffee, Patricia. Intoxicating! Too bad it doesn't deliver in the flavor.
Lovely for the house warming. And who doesn't like chocolate!
Hi Patricia,
That's a terrific contribution to the housewarming. I like how you added lemon rind.
p/s: interestingly, I just posted a recipe about puddings, and I also used a rose in my photo :-) It is from my garden.
this looks divine.very tempting.
thanks for visiting my site. you have delicious and interesting recipes, i'll definitely be back for more.
Mmmmm! Delicious!
D :)
Beautiful photos patricia.
Meeta, thank you, sweetie!
Hi, darling, thank you! :)
Erin, I'm so glad you stopped by, thank you!
Alita, tks!
Lynn, I really like photographing with flowers.
Cynthia, I had a laugh with you, dear. :)
Mango Girl, thank you - very comforting indeed!
Cakebrain, thank you for visiting!
Hillary, have some, dear! :)
Katy, I know how hard it is to try to eat less after the holidays. ;)
Bellini, thank you!!
Bea, I'm glad you like them!
Manggy, hahaha, I'll tell Joao that, my friend. :)
Hi, sweetie! Glad to know I'll be invited - my pleasure!
Olivia, thank you, darling!
Zen, it became a favorite of mine, too. :)
Nemmie, thank you!
Hannah, I'm glad you feel this way.
Terry, Joao can't live without coffee, so everytime I make some for him I go crazy about the smell. :)
Tanna, everybody does! :)
Nora, I want to see that rose of yours - from your own garden, how wonderful!!
Maybahay, and I thank you for visiting me, too!
Dianne, tks for stopping by!
Barbara, thank you, my friend.
I love chocolate pots! What an indulgence! and I love the touch of rose in the photo :)
These look lovely!
yum!
That's so strange - I just blogged about pots de creme too! Great minds think alike. Isn't it the best dessert?
Would love to dive in there. LOVE. Yum!
Oh how luscious! This looks delicious.
You know my love for pots de creme...so I am loving these. Wonderful!
These look just delicious! I love chocolate and recently bought ramekins!
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