Posted on Friday, 16th April 2010 by Grace Massa Langlois
White Chocolate Pots de Crème with Blueberry Sauce and Hazelnut Florentines is the perfect dinner party dessert. I love to entertain family and friends and I am always on the hunt for a dessert recipe that is not too difficult to make and one that I can make ahead of time.
I always try to keep the day of my dinner party all about the appetizer and the main dish, especially so when I am having my family, there are 40+ of us. The extra nice thing about this dessert is that you can make it in stages. The Hazelnut Florentines can be made a few weeks in advance if you want, they freeze beautifully. The Blueberry Sauce can be made a few days in advance and the White Chocolate Pots de Crème can be made the day before.
I am a big lover of chocolate but always tend to lean towards dark chocolate. I rarely use the white chocolate and I seem to only buy it at Easter when the store’s shelves are stock full of them. Even then it is always just to eat. I thought I would change that this week and I remembered a dessert that I’d found a while back by Emeril.
I made a slight change in the Florentine recipe, I used hazelnuts instead of pecans because I love hazelnuts and chocolate together and I chose to make a blueberry sauce rather than the pomegranate Emeril used. I thought I would use some of the blueberries in my freezer from last year’s summer bounty plus blueberries happen to be one of my favourite berries of all time, so versatile too.
Liana and I tried it this morning, (I know way to early for dessert but we couldn’t help ourselves) absolutely delicious! I will definitely turn to this dessert time and time again.
Another perfect make ahead dessert is Crème Brûlée. You could make the custard the day before and brûlée just before serving. Two of my favourites are the Classic Crème Brûlée and the Maple Crème Brûlée. If you prefer to stay in the chocolate family, Baileys Chocolate Pots de Crème has always been a huge hit.
White Chocolate Pots De Crème, Blueberry Sauce & Hazelnut Florentines
- Hazelnut Florentines
- Blueberry Sauce
- White Chocolate Pots de Crème
Hazelnut Florentines
(recipe adapted from Emeril Lagasse)
- 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter (at room temperature)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- Pinch of salt
- 1 cup quick-cooking oats
- 1 cup hazelnuts
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
- Cream the butter and sugar together using stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer on medium speed until smooth.
- Add the egg and beat until incorporated.
- Add the vanilla, baking soda and salt and beat until smooth.
- In a food processor combine the quick cooking oats and hazelnuts and pulse a few times to grind.
- Add this to the dough and beat until incorporated.
- The dough will be stiff and sticky.
- Drop the dough by the teaspoonful, 3 inches apart, onto the prepared sheet pan.
- Flatten the dough slightly with your fingertips (I moistened my fingers with a little water to make it easier).
- Bake for 6 minutes, until lightly golden brown.
- Remove from the oven, carefully remove from the cookie sheet, and let cool completely on a wire rack.
- Repeat the process until all of the dough is used, relining the sheet each time with a new piece of parchment or wiping clean the silicone mat.
Blueberry Sauce
- 2 cups blueberries
- 2 tablespoons extra fine sugar
- 1 tablespoon Crème de Cassis
- 2 tablespoons of water
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- splash of lemon juice
- Place blueberries in a small saucepan with the sugar and Crème de Cassis and bring to a boil over moderate heat.
- Stir cornstarch and water until smooth.
- Add to saucepan and stir to incorporate.
- Cook for a few minutes until thickened.
- Remove from heat.
- Add a splash of lemon juice and stir to incorporate.
White Chocolate Pots De Crème
(recipe adapted from Emeril Lagasse)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3/4 cup whole milk
- 12 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped
- 6 egg yolks
- Combine the heavy cream and whole milk in a heavy, 2 quart saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil.
- Bring the water in a double boiler to a simmer.
- Place the chocolate in the top half and stir with a rubber spatula until melted.
- Whisk the egg yolks into the melted chocolate.
- Slowly pour the boiling cream mixture into the chocolate, whisking constantly.
- Bring the mixture to a temperature of 160°.
- Remove from the heat and transfer mixture to a stainless steel bowl.
- Cool in an ice bath, stirring constantly with a wire whisk until the temperature reaches 90°.
- Evenly divide the mixture into 8 small pots de crème forms or glass custard cups.
- Cover each with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours to set before serving.
- Spoon the sauce over the top of each pots de crème and serve with florentines.
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Tags: afternoon tea, blueberries, blueberry sauce, blueberry topping, chocolate, chocolate dessert, dessert, desserts, florentines, food, food photography, food photos, individual dessert, individual desserts, Italian dessert, Italian desserts, pudding, quick desserts, white chocolate
Posted in Baking & Pastry, Baking Mise en Place, Basics, Biscotti, Cookies, Custards, Creams & Mousses, Dolci al Cucchiaio, Dolci alla Frutta, Fillings, Frostings & Dessert Sauces, Fruit Desserts, Mini Desserts, Pastry Doughs & Batter, Piccola Pasticceria, Recipes, Ricette di Base, Spoon Desserts
Comments (9)
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April 20th, 2010 at 3:55 pm
you went all out on this dessert, while I do also prefer dark chocolate, evey now and then i do enjoy white chocolate, I think the pots de creme, with the fresh blueberry and florentine….it must be heaven.
yikes now I’m hungry
April 20th, 2010 at 7:59 pm
Thank you Dennis, I have to say I ate more than one, couldn’t help myself, they were so good.
April 22nd, 2010 at 4:34 pm
Great Blog
I will be checking this one regularly.
April 22nd, 2010 at 9:56 pm
Thank you Linda, new post up tomorrow.
April 23rd, 2010 at 9:14 am
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May 21st, 2010 at 2:20 pm
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December 4th, 2010 at 2:21 pm
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December 17th, 2010 at 4:55 pm
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March 4th, 2011 at 9:27 am
[...] And me? Well not so much! My Amaretti end up twice the size, flat and looking more like a Florentine.And what’s the main reason for making Strawberry Shortcake in March? We are big [...]