Cafe au Lait Pots de Creme

Doesn't this sound intimidating?  Well, it isn't.  Pots de Creme is just a really fancy way of saying, PUDDING!  Yet, with the volume turned up.

Isaac loves Pot de Creme.  I make mine in little 2 ounce custard dishes ( actually, they are Chinese tea cups ) and on a good day I can get 8 custards out of one recipe.  All 8 disappear within 2-3 days and most likely it is Isaac whom has eaten them all!

I licked the spoon.  These are creamy, flavorful from the espresso, and bowl lickin good!  I believe the secret ingredient in this recipe is the brown sugar.  I altered the original recipe just a tad, regardless the results were delicious!  This is the perfect week night dessert as it takes minutes to make and can be ready in a flash.

Cafe au Lait Pots de Creme
adapted from Melissa d'Arabian

ingredients:
3/4 cups milk
1/2 cup cream
2 Tbls. sugar
2 Tbls sucanat
1 Tbls. espresso powder
1/2 vanilla bean ( beans scraped from the pod)
pinch of salt
1 egg plus 2 egg yolks

instructions:
• preheat oven to 325*
• warm some water in a tea kettle
• in a small saucepan, combine the milk, cream, sugars, espresso, vanilla bean ( scrape the beans from the pod and put both the pod and the beans into the saucepan ), and salt.  Heat over low heat just until starting to boil.
• in a measuring cup whisk the egg yolks and the one egg.
• once milk mixture reaches the almost boiling point, pour about a 1/4 cup of the mixture into the egg mixture.  do this slowly, you don't want to "cook" the eggs.  keep adding the milk mixture a little at a time until all is incorporated.
• pour the custard into 8-2 oz. ramekins or 4-4oz ramekins and place in a baking dish.
• fill the baking dish to the halfway point of the ramekins with the heated water ( I like to put my ramekins into the baking dish and put it in the oven.  once steady, i pour the hot water into the pan.  push the oven tray back, gently and close the oven door).
• bake until the edges are set, but still a little wobbly, about 20-25 minutes.
• remove ramekins from the water and place on a small sheet pan filled with ice water.  let cool.
• refrigerate until serving

I dusted each custard dish with a little cocoa powder

Holiday Shortbread Bark

I found this recipe on Epicurious and had to make it. I have always wanted to make Peppermint Bark (recipe here), but never have. What I liked about this one was that it was more of a cookie. The shortbread crust is perfectly easy and you don't have to melt the chocolate in a separate bowl. After the shortbread comes out of the oven, you sprinkle the chopped chocolate all over the crust, wait a few minutes and spread the hot, melted chocolate with an off set spatula. One less step makes me super happy.

For about 4 seconds I entertained tempering my chocolate in my tempering machine. Let that thought go real fast! Couldn't go the extra mile on this one. Had it not been the morning of December 13th (marathon baking day) I probably would have stretched myself. Had to put things into perspective. Glad I did.

Isaac was ecstatic with his job of crushing the candy canes. He did a good job and I enjoyed sharing the kitchen with him. Actually, he is starting to become curious in the kitchen. He is asking to mix, stir, pour, grate, measure and whisk. Makes me super happy when he, or any of my boys, show interest in the kitchen. Maybe I am doing something right.

These were delicious!