Why do chocolate and romance go together? While chocolate has never been proven to have aphrodisiacal properties, its consumption certainly soars on Valentine’s Day. Here’s a dessert to share the love.
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| Chocolate = romance. A luscious chocolate custard for Valentine's Day. |
Unlike airy chocolate mousse, this custardy chocolate dessert is dense, intensely chocolatey. While not overly sweet, it is sublimely rich. A little goes a long way. I’ve noted a yield of six half-cup servings, but the custard could easily be divided into much smaller servings.
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| Chocolate with no sugar added. |
You need to start with good quality dark chocolate, at least 70 percent cacao. I’ve used chocolate with no added sugar. The sweetening is a combination of malitol and stevia. A touch of raisiny dessert wine, either Málaga Muscatel or Pedro Ximénez, complements the chocolate’s natural fruitiness.
The hot, eggy custard mixture melts the chopped chocolate. Blending turns it smooth and glossy.
The dessert is best served at room temperature. It can be prepared in advance and refrigerated, but bring it to room temperature before serving.
How to serve the custards? With a luscious strawberry imbedded in the chocolate. With a sprinkling of Muscatel raisins that have been plumped in Muscatel or PX wine. With a dollop of crême fraiche or Greek yogurt (sweetened to taste). Sprinkled with chopped nuts. Spread on a crumb crust. The custards could probably be put into heart-shaped molds and unmolded after firming in the fridge.
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| Share the love! Rich chocolate custards are an easy, make-ahead dessert for a dinner party. |
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| Chocolate marries well with berries, with raisins and figs, with oranges. |
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| Serving options: a dollop of Greek yogurt or crême fraiche. |
Dark Chocolate Cream Custards
Crema de Chocolate Intensivo
Crema de Chocolate Intensivo
Makes 6 (½ -cup) servings.
12 ounces dark (70%) chocolate
4 large egg yolks
Pinch of salt
¾ cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
¼ cup + 1 tablespoon sweet Muscatel or Pedro Ximénez wine
4 large egg yolks
Pinch of salt
¾ cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
¼ cup + 1 tablespoon sweet Muscatel or Pedro Ximénez wine
Chop the chocolate finely. (This is easy to do in batches in a mini food processor.) Place the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl.
Whisk the egg yolks in a heat-proof bowl with a pinch of salt.
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| Whisk hot cream into yolks. |
Place the cream, milk and ¼ cup of sweet wine in a saucepan. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Whisk half of the hot cream into the egg yolks. Return the egg yolks to the saucepan. Cook on moderate heat, stirring constantly, until custard is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, 3 to 4 minutes.
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| Hot custard melts chocolate. |
Pour the hot custard over the chopped chocolate and allow to stand a few minutes to soften the chocolate. Stir to mix the chocolate and custard completely.
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| Blended custard is smooth and glossy. |
Transfer to a blender. Add 1 tablespoon sweet wine and blend the mixture until smooth and satiny. Divide between custard cups or dessert glasses.
More about Spain and the history of chocolate:
More chocolate dessert recipes:
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