Baked Dark Chocolate Pots de Crème
Inspired by techniques from Serious Eats and NYT Cooking.
Silky dark chocolate custards baked gently in a water bath until just set, then chilled.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
- 1
Prepare. heat the oven to 160 °C (140 °C fan) and set the ramekins in the roasting tin. Boil the kettle. A water bath keeps the heat gentle so the custard stays smooth.
- 2
Chocolate base. bring the milk, cream and salt just to the boil, pour over the chocolate, leave 3 min, then whisk until smooth. Hot liquid melts the chocolate evenly.
- 3
Yolks. whisk the yolks, sugar and vanilla together, then whisk them into the warm chocolate mixture and strain into the jug.
- 4
Bake. pour into the ramekins, add hot water to come two-thirds up their sides, cover the tin loosely with foil and bake 35-45 min, until the edges are set, the centres wobble slightly and the centre reads 80 °C. The centre firms further as it cools.
- 5
Cool and chill. lift the ramekins onto the rack for 15 min, then chill at least 4 h. Serve with a little cream if you like. Chilling gives a dense, silky texture.
Storage
Cover and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. Do not freeze.
Equipment
- large heatproof bowl
- small saucepan
- whisk
- fine sieve
- jug
- 5 x 120 ml ramekins
- roasting tin
- kettle
- foil
- wire rack
- instant-read thermometer
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 384 kcal |
| Protein | 7.2 g |
| Carbohydrate | 22.5 g |
| of which sugars | 16.5 g |
| of which free sugars | 12.3 g |
| Fat | 29.7 g |
| of which saturates | 17.1 g |
| Fibre | 2.8 g |
| Salt | 0.27 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
1.9 g High Protein needs ≥ 10 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
