A Mouth-Watering Chocolate Crème Brûlée
Countylicious, the annual celebration of Prince Edward County’s wonderful food and wine industry, is back, and NUVO has a fantastic recipe to enjoy. This crème arlequin from Merrill House’s head chef Michael Sullivan takes the traditional crème brûlée up a notch with the addition of a chocolate custard. It’s so delicious that you’ll want to celebrate Countylicious whether you’re in Picton or Prince George.
Serves 10
Ingredients
For the brûlée:
150 grams of sugar
1 litre of 35% cream
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
12 egg yolks
For the crème au chocolat:
3 egg yolks
50 grams of sugar
185 grams of chocolate
250 millilitres of milk
250 millilitres of 35% cream
Method
For the brûlée:
Combine 75 grams of sugar, cream, and split and scraped vanilla bean in a pot.
Bring to simmer, then shut off. Let steep for 10 minutes.
Place yolks and remaining sugar in a bowl and whisk until pale and thick (about 5 minutes).
Bring cream mixture back to a boil.
Let cool for 1 minute.
Slowly whisk hot cream into yolks constantly so as not to “shock” the yolks and cook them.
Cool to fridge temperature. Can be done a day or two ahead of time.
Place shallow brûlée dishes on a flat sheet pan and fill 2/3 full.
Carefully put into oven preheated to 350°F. Pour hot water into the sheet pan until 2/3 up the sides of the dishes. Do not use convection.
Lay a flat piece of foil over the brûlées and bake for 50-60 minutes. Brûlées are ready when centre is set.
Cool fully to fridge temperature.
For the crème au chocolat:
Combine yolks and 25 grams of sugar in a bowl and whisk until pale and thick (about 5 minutes).
Place chocolate in separate bowl.
Place milk, cream, and remaining sugar in a pot and bring to a boil.
Slowly whisk into yolk mixture while hot.
Return mixture to the pot and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly until roughly 86°C.
Strain over chocolate. Whisk mixture until smooth and all the chocolate is melted.
While still hot, ladle over the brûlées to fill the final 1/3rd of the dishes.
Refrigerate, then serve.
