on Dec 15, 2016, Updated Jun 05, 2023 10 Comments If you’ve read Add a Pinch for anytime, you know how much I love to have friends and family over throughout the year. But the thing that I always try to do is plan the menu with recipes that can easily be made ahead to make things even easier! This Chocolate Pots de Creme with Salted Caramel Sauce recipe is the perfect example! I actually hadn’t made this in a while, but I was reminded of it recently when Bart and I visited New Orleans for Morton Salt’s Next Door Chef event. In New Orleans, we were served an amazing meal which included a coconut caramel budino with salted caramel sauce and grilled mangoes. It was absolutely fabulous and had me excited to come home and make my Chocolate Pots de Creme with Salted Caramel Sauce for dessert this week when we had family over for supper. You may have noticed my preference for using Kosher and sea salt in my recipes. That isn’t by accident. I’ve found that it is much easier to control the amount of salt in a dish when using Kosher salt over standard table salt, making perfectly seasoned dishes! I also love to use coarse sea salt in many of my recipes, like my Chocolate Chip Cookies and this Salted Caramel Sauce. It adds just the right texture as a finishing touch. To make my Chocolate Pots de Creme, I heat the milk and heavy cream in a saucepan until it just comes to a boil and then slowly pour the heated milk over the egg, sugar, salt and chocolate chips in my blender. Then, I blend until it is smooth and silky, about 1 minute. Once it is ready, I pour it into serving dishes or glasses and refrigerate. Here’s the best part, you can make them up to two days in advance and just let them chill in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve. Even better, you can make them and, using freezer-safe serving dishes, store them in the freezer up to a week! Then, just allow them to thaw in the refrigerator before adding your salted caramel sauce and serving. To make the Salted Caramel Sauce, add the sugar and the water to a 3-quart saucepan set over medium heat. Stir until the sugar and water are well combined and then do not stir again, simply swirl the pan as needed. Using a candy or instant read thermometer, cook the caramel to 350º F or until it reaches a light amber color. Then, add all of your butter and whisk together until all of the butter has melted. Remove from the heat and slowly pour in the cream, being sure to whisk constantly, until smooth. Then, whisk in the sea salt and set aside to cool for about 15 minutes before transferring or serving. The caramel will continue to thicken as it cools. Now, as with the Chocolate Pots de Creme, you can easily make the Salted Caramel Sauce ahead of time and store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Then, just spoon it on top of the Chocolate Pots de Creme and add a pinch of sea salt for serving. Voila! A make ahead masterpiece makes for even easier entertaining! Here’s my Chocolate Pots de Creme with Salted Caramel Sauce recipe. I hope you love it! Enjoy!Robyn xo
