For A Valentine's DAY Dessert to Remember, Follow These Guidelines!
Aunt Annie took a cooking class many years ago for the express purpose of learning how to make spectacular desserts. I’ll never forget the evening we came to dinner in early February so she could show off her latest accomplishment, “A Valentine’s Day dessert to remember, kiddos!”
We could hardly make it through her dinner—we were so anxious to taste this amazing dessert we kept hearing about. “You like chocolate, right? And you’ve heard of Crème Brulee, right? Well, all I can say is, you’re going to taste a dessert to remember!”
And wow, she was not exaggerating. It was divine—all of us were ooohing and aaahhing through the whole thing. What we always got a big kick out of, was how she walked us through every step of the process of making any new recipe she tried. And this chocolate wonder was no exception. I guess that goes with the territory when you’ve been to a cooking class—you just have to pass on the good news.
Anyway, before I share the recipe for Chocolate Crème Brulee, here are a few basic tips on how to turn out a perfect brulee, whatever the flavor. For your own Valentine’s Day dessert to remember, just follow these guidelines:
First of all, don’t let any crème brulee recipe intimidate you. For instance, traditional brulee always calls for vanilla beans. But if you don’t have a vanilla bean, trust that you can use bottled vanilla instead. If you do opt for extract rather than the bean, though, just be sure you use a high quality vanilla—a brand without the cumerin, and one that consists of at least 35% alcohol.
Next, follow your recipe steps exactly. Crème brulee doesn’t do well with shortcuts or alternative methods.
After the custard is baked (in a water bath, of course), spread the granulated sugar evenly on top of each ramekin. This little step ensures a nicely browned and crusty surface. Lots of brulee pros say turbinado sugar works best because it’s finer, spreads well, and burns more evenly. I’ve made brulee with regular sugar, however, and the results were more than good.
Finally, don’t try to substitute your broiler for a kitchen torch. The cream just gets too warm and oozy. If you can’t justify the cost and space for a uni-task item, consider a regular blow torch. This works perfectly and after dessert you can weld and solder with it (hahahah)!
Now for the Valentine's Day dessert to remember:
1 quart heavy cream
1 cup sugar plus more for dusting
1 ounce chocolate liquer (recommended: Godiva Liqueur)
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 ounces cocoa powder
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
11 large egg yolk
Directions:
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We could hardly make it through her dinner—we were so anxious to taste this amazing dessert we kept hearing about. “You like chocolate, right? And you’ve heard of Crème Brulee, right? Well, all I can say is, you’re going to taste a dessert to remember!”
And wow, she was not exaggerating. It was divine—all of us were ooohing and aaahhing through the whole thing. What we always got a big kick out of, was how she walked us through every step of the process of making any new recipe she tried. And this chocolate wonder was no exception. I guess that goes with the territory when you’ve been to a cooking class—you just have to pass on the good news.
Anyway, before I share the recipe for Chocolate Crème Brulee, here are a few basic tips on how to turn out a perfect brulee, whatever the flavor. For your own Valentine’s Day dessert to remember, just follow these guidelines:
First of all, don’t let any crème brulee recipe intimidate you. For instance, traditional brulee always calls for vanilla beans. But if you don’t have a vanilla bean, trust that you can use bottled vanilla instead. If you do opt for extract rather than the bean, though, just be sure you use a high quality vanilla—a brand without the cumerin, and one that consists of at least 35% alcohol.
Next, follow your recipe steps exactly. Crème brulee doesn’t do well with shortcuts or alternative methods.
After the custard is baked (in a water bath, of course), spread the granulated sugar evenly on top of each ramekin. This little step ensures a nicely browned and crusty surface. Lots of brulee pros say turbinado sugar works best because it’s finer, spreads well, and burns more evenly. I’ve made brulee with regular sugar, however, and the results were more than good.
Finally, don’t try to substitute your broiler for a kitchen torch. The cream just gets too warm and oozy. If you can’t justify the cost and space for a uni-task item, consider a regular blow torch. This works perfectly and after dessert you can weld and solder with it (hahahah)!
Now for the Valentine's Day dessert to remember:
CHOCOLATE Creme Brulee
Ingredients:
1 quart heavy cream
1 cup sugar plus more for dusting
1 ounce chocolate liquer (recommended: Godiva Liqueur)
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 ounces cocoa powder
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
11 large egg yolk
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the heavy cream, sugar, liqueur, and vanilla. When the mixture is warm add the cocoa powder and chocolate and whisk until blended.
Place the egg yolks in a large stainless-steel bowl. Slowly add the warm chocolate mixture to the eggs, a little at a time, while whisking. Strain and pour into individual porcelain ramekins.
Place the ramekins in a large baking pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come half way up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until firm in the center, about 30 minutes.
Remove the ramekins from the water bath and let cool completely. Place in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Dust with sugar and caramelize with a propane torch. Serve immediately.
Place the egg yolks in a large stainless-steel bowl. Slowly add the warm chocolate mixture to the eggs, a little at a time, while whisking. Strain and pour into individual porcelain ramekins.
Place the ramekins in a large baking pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come half way up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until firm in the center, about 30 minutes.
Remove the ramekins from the water bath and let cool completely. Place in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Dust with sugar and caramelize with a propane torch. Serve immediately.
Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.
Sources:
- www.pinterest.com
- www.conneticut.news12.com
- www.simplyrecipes.com
- www.confessionsofabakingqueen.com
Alice Osborne
Weekly Newsletter Contributor since 2006
Email the author! alice@dvo.com
