creme brulee - chocolate espresso creme brulee

By tinathorn

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup (20 grams) espresso beans, lightly crushed
• 3 cups (720 mL) heavy cream
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
• pinch salt
• 2 ounces (60 grams) dark chocolate, chopped
• 9 large egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6-9 teaspoons turbinado sugar

Details

Servings 6
Preparation time 30mins
Cooking time 450mins
Adapted from siftandwhisk.com

Preparation

Step 1

Set your oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat oven to 300°F.
In a large saucepan, combine espresso beans, 1½ cups cream, sugar, and salt. Heat over medium heat until the mixture begins to boil stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and allow to steep for 15 minutes.
While the cream is steeping, place a towel on the bottom of a large roasting pan or baking dish. Set 6 ramekins into the towel. Boil a kettle of water.
When steeping is completed, stir chopped chocolate into the cream mixture until melted (you can turn the heat back on to low, if necessary, to melt the chocolate), then add remaining 1½ cups heavy cream.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk egg yolks and vanilla extract together until combined. Whisk the cream mixture into the egg yolks, 1 cup at a time, until the mixture is uniform. Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a large measuring cup or a bowl with a spout. Discard espresso beans.
Divide custard evenly between the ramekins in the roasting pan. Place the roasting pan on the oven rack, then carefully pour boiling water into the roasting pan until it comes a little more than halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Be careful not to splash water into the custard!
Bake for 25-35 minutes, until custard is just barely set and the internal temperature of the custard is about 175°F.
Carefully remove roasting pan from the oven (again, don't slosh water into the custard!) and transfer the ramekins to a wire rack to cool for about 2 hours. (It is easiest to use kitchen tongs, preferably silicone-tipped tongs, to move the ramekins to the rack.) Cover with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours.
When ready to serve, uncover the ramekins, dab off any condensation with a paper towel, and sprinkle the top of each custard with a thin layer of turbinado sugar (granulated sugar will also work), about 1-1½ teaspoons each. Shake the ramekin to distribute the sugar evenly across the surface, discarding any excess. With a kitchen torch, caramelize the sugar. Return the ramekins to the refrigerator for 30 minutes, uncovered, then serve immediately.