This recipe is a variant of the traditional French floating islands served with ‘crème anglaise’. It’s a great classic in French cooking : here is the chocolate version! It’s not really difficult to make, the most difficult part being getting nice and puffy egg whites. It’s all about training, don’t get discouraged if your first attempt fails! You’ll still have 2 egg whites left in case you need to make some more .

Preparation time: 20 mn

Ingredients (for 4 servings)

2 1/2 oz (70 g) of dark chocolate
24 cups ( 1 l) of whole milk
5 eggs (5 egg yolks and 3 egg whites)
8 1/2 tablespoons of caster sugar (6 + 2 1/2 tbsp)
2 teaspoons of unsweetened chocolate powder
2 1/2 cups of water
1 pinch of salt

Instructions

1/ Cut chocolate into dices. Take 12 cups of milk into a boil.

2/ In a salad bowl beat egg yolks and 6 tablespoons of sugar until white. Add boiling milk stirring well.

3/Pour mixture into pan and heat over low heat for 8 to 10 minutes stirring slowly with a spatula until it gets thicker.

4/ Take it off heat and add chocolate dices and 1 teaspoon of chocolate powder.

5/ Pour in a salad bowl and beat energetically for 3 minutes. Then, let it cool down.

6/ Get 12 cups of milk and 2 1/2 of water to simmer in a sauté pan.

7/ Beat 3 egg whites and a pinch of salt until stiff. Add 2 1/2 tablespoons of sugar and beat again for 1mn.

8/ Take square pieces of the stiffed egg whites with 2 tablespoons. Put them one at a time on simmering milk and poach it for 2 to 3 minutes. Once done, put them on kitchen paper so the extra liquid gets out. Let it cool down.

9/ Pour cream into 4 nice dishes. Add islands on top and sprinkle with chocolate powder.

10/ That’s it! Ready to serve.

Some of you may have noticed I’ve been having some technical problems on my blog lately … I spent a lot of time trying to fix everything (even if we’re far from done…); time I didn’t spent cooking! So, I figured it was a great moment for an extra simple dessert recipe. Citrus and chocolate, ready in 15 minutes!

Preparation time: 15 mn – Cooking time: 10 mn

Ingredients (for 6 servings)

6 mandarins (more if they are really small)
1/3 lbs (150 g) of white chocolate
6 tablespoons of whipped cream
5 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoons of water

Instructions

1/ Carefully cut a line around mandarins and take their tops off without tearing the bottom part. Take off pieces and set aside.

2/ Melt chocolate, sugar and water in a sauce pan over low heat.  Leave for about 10 mn and take off heat. Let it chill.

3/ Mix whipped cream and mandarine pieces with chocolate cream. (You won’t be able to use all mandarin pieces, maybe 3/4th of them).

4/ Pour in empty mandarins and let chill in the fridge for a couple of hours.

I know Tiramisu is not French but it’s so easy to make, it definitely has a place on this blog It’s a perfect last minute making dessert. This recipe is so simple you’ll end up making Tiramisu quite often, believe me.
It’s an amazing Italian dessert; if you’ve never tried it, what are you waiting for?!

Preparation Time: 15 mn   +1 h or 2 in the fridge

Ingredients (for 6 servings)

5/8 lbs (285 gr) of mascapone cheese
1/2 lbs (225 gr/8 oz) of lady fingers
1/8 lbs (55 gr/2 oz) of sugar
2 eggs
1 cup of expresso
1 teaspoon of Marsala or coffee liquor
Cocoa powder

Instructions

1/ Separate yolks (and set aside) from egg whites. (The easiest way to do it is by taking the broken egg in one hand and let white fall in a bowl when keeping yolk over your fingers). Beat the egg whites until stiff.

2/ Add sugar to yolks and beat until they turn white. Add mascarpone cheese and mix thoroughly. Fold stiff eggs into mixture.

3/ Dip ladyfingers in expresso and cover the bottom of a pan (or 6 small glasses as on picture) with it. Add a layer of cream, reapeat with ladyfingers and finish with cream.

4/ Let chill in the fridge and dust with cocoa right before serving.