Pots de Creme is a French dessert custard which means pots of cream or pots of custard. The term also refers to the cups that are traditionally used to hold the dessert. Pots de Creme cups certainly aren't necessary demi tasse cups, ramekins or even tea cups would work fine here. This dessert is very rich, so serving in small portions makes sense. Their a great way to end a meal!
Makes about 6 small servings
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
6 egg yolks
6 oz Mexican Chocolate,* finely chopped
6 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
Pinch of salt
2 tsp Pure Bourbon Vanilla Extract
Canela (Ceylon Cinnamon) for Garnish
Directions:
In a bowl, beat the egg yolks until they are lightened in color. In a saucepan, scald the milk and heavy cream--when you see bubbles forming around the edge and the liquid getting ready to simmer, you're there. Beat spoonfuls of the hot milk/cream mixture into the egg yolks very slowly in order to temper the eggs. This is bringing the eggs up to temperature slowly so that they don't scramble. After you've beaten in about half of the milk/cream mixture into the eggs, you can then slowly pour this mixture into the remaining milk/cream mixture in the pan--be sure to beat continuously.
Cook the egg, milk/cream mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens--about two minutes. Add the chocolate, turn off the heat and stir until the chocolate is melted. Stir in the salt and Vanilla Extract.
Pour into Pots de Creme cups or individual serving dishes. Refrigerate for six hours or overnight. Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream and dust with Ceylon Cinnamon.
*Mexican Chocolate is used to make a hot beverage. It's a combination of chocolate, coarse sugar, cinnamon, spices and sometimes nuts. It comes in scored 3 or 6 oz disks or bars that can be broken into "tablets" for making Mexican Hot Chocolate. It's readily available at large grocery stores with a Latin section or at Mexican markets (Tienditas). Some brand names are Ibarra and Abuelita.