Chocolate Pots de Crème

Pots de crème (pronounced “Po de Krehm”) (sometimes called “petit pots”) are a light, yet rich French chocolate dessert. (Not quite as light as chocolate mousse.)

This lightly set, baked custard was originally used as a filling for a crust. But, as time went on, the crust was taken out and just the custard was served in special cups. 

These little desserts are so special that they have their own day! August 27th is National Pots de Crème day in the States. 

An elegant dish for an elegant dessert

Traditionally, these desserts come in little porcelain containers with a dainty handle and lid. These 3 inch high cups bear the same name as the dessert they contain. 

The dessert in their classic cups were commonly found on high class European and American tables in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Now, you may stumble across some intricately decorated cups in vintage/thrift shops, or you can find less intricate ones online. 

Even if you don’t have the fancy cups, simple ramekins works just fine to bake these in. So don’t let not having the proper vessel get in the way of you making these yourself!

Chocolate Custard: Much More Than Chocolate Pudding

“Now, this is NOT chocolate pudding.”

That was Tim’s response as he dove into his pot de crème, and he was quite right. While these little custards have a similar texture and flavor to pudding, they aren’t the same.

A pudding is a heated mixture of sweetened milk that is thickened with a starch (typically cornstarch).

Pots de crème are a custard, meaning they are a mixture of sweetened milk and eggs. Custards are typically baked, and it is the eggs that cause them to set, giving them their spoon-able quality.

Now, the French don’t have a word for ‘custard’ (which to those in Wisconsin might be considered a linguistic foul with as much as we love the frozen version of custard up here), so they call these little desserts ‘crème’ or ‘cream’ instead.

Pots of cream.

It sounds so dainty. And rich. And delicious.

Making Easy Pots De Crème Lighter

You will find Pots de Crème ranging in sweetness and richness depending on the baker.

Since their ingredients include cream and egg yolks, you can easily find yourself in for quite a decadent little treat, which is why they come in such small servings.

We’ve lightened up our Pot de Crème just enough by using fewer egg yolks and a mixture of skim milk and cream. The result is a smooth custard that is not overly heavy and brings a lot of rich chocolate flavor.

Pairing Chocolate with Port Wine

This lightened up version is perfect if you’re pairing your Pot de Crème with a Port Wine.

Today we are featuring the American Port Wine from Wollersheim Winery in Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin, near Madison.

Port Wine is typically a sweet red wine that is often served as a dessert in itself. Its sweetness lends it to a natural pairing with dessert items like chocolate and berries.

We found Wollersheim Winery’s Port to be incredibly smooth with a lot of juicy, berry flavor.

We really enjoyed that much of the sweetness and richness felt very fruit forward, unlike some Ports we have tried which are simply sweet. The berry notes and heavier feel of the wine on our tongue made it a perfect complement for the smooth chocolate custard.

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Yield: 6 (4 oz) jars of custard

Chocolate Pots de Crème

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Our creamy, lightened up chocolate pots de crème are the perfect dessert for a decadent, yet light, treat to share with someone special.

Make these Chocolate Pots de Crème ahead of time to give them time to set up in the refrigerator.

Prep Time 25 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 oz semi sweet chocolate chips
• 2 tsp cocoa powder
• 1 ½ c skim milk
• ½ c heavy cream
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• ¼ c sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 325F.
2. In a double boiler (or the microwave on VERY low heat), melt your chocolate chips. Stir often until just melted. Add cocoa powder and stir until smooth. Remove from the heat.
3. In a medium saucepan, heat milk and cream over medium heat until the mixture beings to steam and small bubbles form along the sides of the pan, 5-7 min.
4. Slowly pour the warm milk into the melted chocolate, mixing constantly to dissolve the chocolate and create a smooth mixture.
5. In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs, yolks, and sugar by hand with a wire whisk until smooth. (Do not use an electric hand mixer to beat your eggs; it will bring too much foam into your custard, giving your pots the wrong texture.)
6. Pour the hot chocolate milk mixture into the beaten eggs, whisking constantly as you pour.
7. Using a fine mesh sieve, strain the mixture into a 4 cup glass measuring cup with a spout. Pour the custard into 6 (4 oz) ramekins or glass jars.
8. Place the filled jars into an 8x8 baking dish and fill the baking dish with 1 inch of water. (Baking the pots in a water bath helps the custard to cook more evenly.)
9. Place the baking dish with the jars of custard into the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes. When the custard is done, it should jiggle only slightly in the middle, and feel mostly set up.
10. Carefully, using tongs, remover the jars from the water bath to cool on a wire rack.
11. After 10-20 minutes, cover the jars and place them in the refrigerator for 4 hours or up to 2 days.
12. Serve chilled.

Recommended Products

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• 
  Pots de Crème Custard Cups with Lids, 4-Ounce
• 
  Artisan Kettle Organic Semisweet Chocolate Chips, 10 Oz
• 
  4 oz Ramekins 

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1 (4 oz cup)
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 256

Celebrate Valentine’s Day with romantic food and wine pairings!

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• Hungarian Romance for #WinePW 9: Chicken Paprikas and Hungarian Furmint by Pull That Cork
• Italian Valentine sweets: Sprisolana & Recioto della Valpolicella by Vino Travels
• Risotto all’Amarone + Masi Campofiorin 2009 by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

We have updated pictures since we first shared this recipe on Curious Cuisiniere, but we’ve left some originals here, in case you’ve found us in the past and are looking for that old, familiar image.

Sarah - Curious Cuisiniere

Sarah founded Curious in 2010 as a way to save her recipe creations and share culinary experiences. Her love for cultural cuisines was instilled early by her French Canadian Grandmother. Her experience in the kitchen and in recipe development comes from over 10 years working in professional kitchens. She has traveled extensively and enjoys bringing the flavors of her travels back to create easy-to-make recipes.

www.curiouscuisiniere.com/about/