Chocolate Pud

From: Lorax <djl2@netcom.com>

Here's my absolute best dessert - it is a real chocolate pudding - taken from the Larousse Gastronomique...

Pouding au Chocolat

• 8 egg yolks
• 125g (1/4 lb) semi-sweet chocolate
• 150g (10 Tbsp) butter
• 75g (1/2 cup) powdered sugar
• 25g (1/4 cup) granulated sugar
• 5ml (1 tsp) vanilla extract
• 40g (5 Tbsp) sifted flour
• 30g (4 Tbsp) potato flour (corn starch can substitute)

Soften butter. Melt chocolate in a double boiler. Beat butter and sugar together, add vanilla to granulated sugar before mixing. Add each egg yolk one at a time, fully mixing after each. Work some of the butter-sugar-egg mixture into the chocolate until the chocolate is a little loose, then mix it all back into the remaining butter-egg-sugar mix. Lick spoon, get new spoon 8-). Sift flour and thickener (potato flour or corn starch) into mixture. Heat oven to ~325F - 160C. Use butter wrappers to butter pan - a fluted cake type pan (non-stick preferred) seems to work best. Lightly flour inside of pan (sift a little flour in, then shake it around, tap out the excess over the sink) Bake for ~45 min.

(you thought I was done - heh)

Creme au Chocolat (essential - do not skip)

Moisten 1/4 lb (125g) semisweet chocolate in 1 cup (250 ml) water, boil for 15 minutes. Add 1/2 cup (125ml) heavy cream and 1 Tbsp (10g) butter to finish.

Serve this hot or cold (if you undercook the pudding, serve it cold, maybe with the sauce hot) - makes 8 portions.

David (who only cooks one dessert <g>)