If you see a recipe with custard, caramel, bourbon and chocolate in the title and it doesn’t immediately make you want to get the ingredients and start making it, I’m not familiar with your level of willpower. This custard is extra creamy and the kick from the bourbon takes it over the top. Or does the quick chocolate ganache take it over the top? I guess that’s probably personal preference.
Custard is a fantastic dessert recipe to have have on hand because you can make it ahead of time and depending on the serving dish you choose, it can be refined or rustic. It’s like the perfect pair of jeans you can dress up or down. It’s also very rich so a little also goes a long way. Small ramekins are my favorite way to portion out this custard, but for the busy holiday season I found these perfectly sized and very attractive disposable foil containers on Amazon that come with lids. A great way to cut down on dishes during the holidays! The description notes you can also bake in them, how cute would little HIH Cranberry Orange Buttermilk Muffins be as departure snacks for holiday house guests? Find ’em here. I was able to make 14 individual custard cups using this recipe and the cups linked.
Keys to Custard Success
- Prep all custard ingredients before starting to cook. The recipe lists this as the first step for good reason. Once this custard starts to come together, things happen quickly. You won’t want to be running to the fridge to grab an ingredient in the middle of cooking.
- Focus is key when tempering the eggs. Make sure you’re focused completely on this part of the process. The milk and cream mixture is very hot and can burn you and if you add the hot mixture too quickly, you’ll scramble your eggs and you’ll need to start over.
- Keep cooking the custard until it’s very thick. Turning the heat off too soon will result in runny custard. The custard on the stove will only set up slightly more firm when cooled, so make sure the custard is thick and jiggly before taking it off the heat.
- If you custard has lumps, it may be save-able! If you notice little lumps in your custard, you can strain it through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl to catch any lumps and keep all of your hard work from going in the trash.
Caramel Bourbon Custard with Quick Chocolate Ganache
Equipment
- medium dutch oven or large sauce pan
- Whisk
- Measuring cups and spoons
- fine mesh strainer
- Medium bowl
- ladle
Ingredients
Custard
- 1 ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups heavy cream
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 1 large egg
- 3 large egg yolks
- 5 tablespoons cornstarch
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons bourbon OR 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Quick Chocolate Ganache
- 2 cups dark chocolate chips
- 4 tablespoons coconut oil
- Flaky sea salt
Instructions
- Measure out all ingredients for the custard and position within reach of stove. Combine the egg, egg yolks and cornstarch in a minimum 2 cup heat safe measuring cup until smooth.
- Make the caramel. Over medium high heat, heat the brown sugar and water until bubbly, then cook about 5-7 minutes more. Watch closely to ensure the mixture does not burn. You'll smell a very caramelly smell when it's time to move to the next step.
- Slowly and carefully add the milk and cream while whisking constantly until the caramel has dissolved into the milk and cream. Add the salt and bring just to a boil and turn the heat down to medium low.
- Temper the egg and cornstarch mixture by slowly ladling the hot milk and cream mixture into the heat safe measuring cup while stirring constantly until nearly full. Keep the mixture moving while adding the hot milk and cream to ensure the eggs do not scramble.
- Slowly and while constantly whisking, pour the tempered egg and cornstarch mixture into the hot milk and cream. The custard will begin to thicken almost immediately. Continue to whisk until the custard as thickened enough to jiggle when you give the pan a little shake.
- Remove the custard from the heat and stir in the bourbon (or vanilla) and the butter until smooth. Portion into ramekins, small mason jars, martini glasses or similar and chill for around 3 hours.
- Immediately before serving, in a 2 cup heat proof measuring cup, melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until completely melted and pour over the top of the chilled custards. Sprinkle with flakey sea salt and serve.
Notes
- This is a fantastic make ahead recipe. Up to three days prior to serving, the custards can be stored in the fridge, covered tightly with plastic wrap.
- If you custard has lumps, it may be save-able! If you notice little lumps in your custard, you can strain it through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl to catch any lumps and keep all of your hard work from going in the trash.
Not a chocolate person? No problem!
I love chocolate, especially dark chocolate and when paired with anything caramel. My husband on the other hand likes caramel on caramel with more caramel. He also fancies an Old Fashioned cocktail, so I started with the Pioneer Woman’s Easy Caramel Sauce recipe and added a 2 teaspoons of Luxardo Cherry liquid, a splash of bourbon, and about a 1/2 teaspoon or orange zest at the end to incorporate all of the flavors of an Old Fashioned cocktail into the caramel. I can only make this while he’s out of the house. He’ll eat the whole batch of caramel with a spoon before I could top a custard with it.
PS – we all make mistakes.
Food photography has been a pretty good learning curve for me since I’ve joined the world of recipe blogging, photo day for this recipe was one of those days I just couldn’t get anything the way I wanted, so God told me to stop taking myself so seriously and enjoy a delicious custard after my arm wiped out my pretty martini glass of custard. All I could do is laugh and grab a spoon.
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[…] Caramel Bourbon Custard with Quick Chocolate Ganache – the perfect make ahead dessert to serve along side the pumpkin and apple pies. […]