Chocolate-Espresso Crème Brûlée
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup Espresso Beans
4 cups Heavy Cream
2 ounces Bittersweet Chocolate, Chopped
1/2 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, Sifted
1/2 cup plus 12 tsp. Sugar
5 Egg Yolks
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 250°F.
In a medium saucepan, combine the cream and espresso beans. Bring just to a low simmer over medium-low heat. Do Not Boil. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 20 minutes. Strain.
Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over barely simmering water. Whisk the melted chocolate and cocoa powder into the cream mixture.
In a medium bowl, whisk the 1/2 cup sugar into the egg yolks. Whisk 1/3rd of the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture to temper the eggs. Gradually whisk in the rest. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve.
Divide the custard among six 4-ounce ramekins. Place them in a baking dish and place the dish on the middle rack of the oven. Add hot water to the baking dish to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until the custard moves as one solid mass when shaken, with no ripples and no depression in the center; begin checking after 30 minutes by gently tapping the side of the ramekins. Shallow ramekins will take about 1 hour. When done, remove the ramekins from the baking pan and let cool to room temperature, cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.
Sprinkle the surface of each chilled custard with 2 teaspoons of the sugar. Using a small blowtorch, caramelize the sugar by constantly moving the torch about 6 inches from the surface until the sugar bubbles and browns evenly. Alternatively, preheat the broiler. Place ramekins on a samll baking sheet and set them 6 inches from the heat source. Broil until the sugar bubbles, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the boiler immediately, or the sugar may burn. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.
