Mango-Macadamia Nut and White Chocolate Crème Brûlée
Crème brûlée, with its shattery sugar top and silky custard, is a favorite dessert everywhere. This unusual version includes ground macadamia nuts and white chocolate bits beneath the mango-flavored custard, and tiny bits of pepper and mango right under the sugar crust.
Ingredients
- Custard
- Vanilla Beans - 1/2, split
- Heavy (whipping) cream - 2 cups
- Egg Yolks - 4
- Sugar - 1/2 cup
- Mango puree - 1/3 cup
- Orange Zest - Zest of 1 orange
- Brûlée
- Macadamia nuts - 1-1/2 oz, ground
- White Chocolate - 4 oz, chopped fine
- Mango - 1, peeled
- Strawberries - 6 large, hulls on
- Red Pepper - 1 tablespoon (alt. green pepper or angelica), minced
- Sugar - 6 teaspoons
- Cinnamon - 1/4 teaspoon
- Cardamom - 1/8 teaspoon
- Mixed Berries - 1-1/2 cups (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries)
- Macadamia nuts - 18 whole, roasted
Instructions
To make the custard: Scrape the vanilla bean seeds from the pod with the point of a small knife and drop into
the cream. Add the pod. Bring the cream and vanilla to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. In
a separate bowl, whisk together the yolks, sugar, and mango puree. As soon as the cream boils, slowly pour it in a thin stream into the egg mixture, whisking the egg mixture constantly to keep it from cooking and curdling.
Return the mixture to the pan and place back on the stove over medium heat. Stir slowly ntil the mixture
thickens to the consistency of honey, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and place the pan in a large bowl of ice for 1 hour. Stir occasionally as it cools. When it is cool, stir in the zest.
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Wet six 4-ounce ovenproof flan dishes and shake out any water. Do not dry. Coat the
inside with ground macadamia nuts. Divide the white chocolate among the dishes. Fill the dishes with the flan
mixture. Place in a large sided baking pan and pour 1/2 inch of boiling water into the pan. Bake 35 to 50
minutes, until the flans are firm to the touch, like Jello; time will vary depending on the accuracy of the oven and the shape of the dishes. Remove from the oven and take out of the hot water; let cool to room temperature before chilling. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator.
To serve: Preheat the broiler to high. Cut one half of the mango into very small dice; cut the other half into thin slices. Cut the strawberries in thin vertical slices almost to the green tops, leaving the slices attached at the tops.
Mix the diced mango and pepper and divide among the flans. Mix the sugar, cinnamon, and cardamom. Cover the flan tops with the sugar mixture and broil until the sugar melts, 15 to 30 seconds.
Place the crème brûlées in their dishes on serving plates. Place fresh berries on each plate and decorate with mango slices. Fan a strawberry on each plate. Garnish with macadamia nuts.
