Butterscotch Pots de Crème

Adapted from M.J. Adams and Gourmet, October 2003
and Epicurious

My name is Wendy Roddy. I live in the bay area of California. Besides being a wife, mother of two, and an excellent waitress, some of my interests are reading, walking, starry nights and good food. Particularly desserts. I have the good fortune of working in a great restaurant for about 12 years now. Our pastry chef was kind enough to share his recipe for butterscotch pots de crème with me. And let me tell you, one bite of this creamy delicious treat will not only please your taste buds, but also bring you back to your childhood. It makes me feel like a kid again. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Ingredients:

• 1-½ cups heavy cream
• 6 Tbsp. dark muscovado sugar
• ¼ tsp salt
• 6 Tbsp. water
• 2 Tbsp. demerara sugar
• 4 large egg yolks
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract

Set an oven rack in the middle position, and preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

In a small heavy saucepan, combine cream, muscovado sugar, and salt. Place over medium heat and bring just to a simmer, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat.

Meanwhile, combine water and demerara sugar in a medium (2-quart) heavy saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and bubbly, about 5 minutes. (To gauge the color of the mixture, it may help to tilt the pan a little, so that the liquid pools on one side.) Remove from the heat and carefully add the cream mixture, whisking until combined.

In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and vanilla. Add hot cream mixture in a thin stream, whisking constantly. Set a fine-mesh sieve over a 1-quart glass measuring cup, and pour the custard through the sieve. Skim off any foam with a spoon.

Divide the custard among four (4-ounce) ramekins or other oven-safe vessels. (I used teacups, just because they're pretty. Stoneware and porcelain are safe in the oven at this temp.) Select a baking dish, one large enough to hold the ramekins without any of them touching. (I used 9” × 13.”) Fold a dish towel to line the bottom of the baking dish; this will protect the delicate custards from touching the hot bottom of the pan. Arrange the ramekins in the pan. Seal the top of each ramekin with a piece of aluminum foil to prevent a skin from forming as they bake.

Slide the pan into the oven, and immediately pour hot tap water into the pan to reach ½ way up the side of the ramekins. Bake until the custards are set around the edges but still jiggle lightly in the centers when shaken, like firm gelatin, about 40 minutes. (You'll have to move the foil to see this.) Using tongs, transfer the ramekins to a rack. Discard foil tops and cool to room temp. The custards will continue to set as they cool. Refrigerate for a couple of hours, or until you're ready to serve them.

Serve plain or topped with unsweetened whipped cream.

Note: These are best on the 1^st day, but they'll keep, covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated, for up to two days.

Yield: 4 servings.