White Chocolate Pots de Crème

posted on December 14, 2012 by Cate

To those of you who don’t like white chocolate, come back tomorrow… I’ll have a true chocolate recipe waiting for you that I think you’ll like.

But those of you who fall into the white chocolate loving camp (even though it’s not technically chocolate), well, you’re in for a treat. Because these pots de crème taste like a bar of rich, creamy white chocolate in a luscious, spoonable form.

White chocolate is melted with heavy cream and then combined with Mascarpone cheese. A touch of liqueur is added at the end for a little flavor undertone. I used Grand Marnier here, but I imagine coffee, hazelnut, ginger, or other fruit liqueurs would all work well.

The key is to find real white chocolate, not the imitation stuff, which is much more prevalent. Because they don’t stock it at the normal grocery stores around here, I had to make a trip out to Whole Foods.

Although I kept things really simple this time around, I bet this would be great topped with sliced strawberries. The same flavors as those fancy-pants white chocolate covered strawberries, but in a pudding-esque form. I’d take this any day over those strawberries that always seem to crack upon first bite, sending small pieces of chocolate into my lap.

White Chocolate Pots de Crème

Be careful when stirring in the liqueur at the end of the recipe. If you whisk it too vigorously it can curdle. If that happens, gently melt the mixture over hot water, and whisk until smooth.

Yield: 8 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

* 1/2 pound white chocolate, roughly chopped
* 1 cup heavy cream
* 8 ounce container Mascarpone cheese
* 1 Tablespoon Grand Marnier, Cointreau, or another type of dessert liqueur (optional)
* whipped cream (optional)
* chocolate syrup (optional)
* orange peel curls (optional)

Directions:

Gently melt the chocolate in the heavy cream in a double boiler or a bowl set over hot, but not boiling water. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Fold in the Mascarpone cheese and then very gently stir in the liqueur, if using.

Transfer to small cups or molds, cover, and refrigerate for at least an hour. Serve with whipped cream, a little drizzle of chocolate syrup, and and orange peel curl, if desired.

Adapted from French Food at Home