Vegan chocolate "pots de crème"

Chocolate. We go way back.

When I was a kid in the 1970s, my mother would give me a quarter. My sisters, Jill and Karen, and I would walk up to Dick's Cornor Store--Yes, that's how it was spelled--with the other neighborhood kids. I sometimes bought a soda from the vending machine by the door and still had a dime left over, but much of the time, I went straight to the candy rack to buy a chocolate bar.

Dick's burned in 1983, but my love of chocolate lives on, even as my tastes have changed. Milk chocolate bars no longer hold the appeal they once did. Now, I demand a deeper, richer chocolate experience. One such experience comes in small dishes, in pots de crème, simple chocolate custards.

The recipe I usually follow comes from the Food Network. It's simple, easy, and indulgent, and whenever I make it, there's plenty to share with friends, whom I love and want to be happy.

But what's a genial host to do when he wants his friends who don't eat eggs, milk, and cream to be happy? Create a vegan version! Sure, it's not a true custard, hence the quotation marks around "pots de crème," but it's just as indulgent.

Vegan chocolate "pots de crème."

Here's the recipe.

9 ounces of dark chocolate, chips or chopped

2 cups unsweetened almond milk (reserve 1/4 cup)

2 tea bags (spice tea)

2 tbls. cornstarch

1/2 ripe banana, mashed (optional)

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla

Put the chocolate in the bottom of a blender.

Heat the almond milk with the tea bags in a small saucepan over low heat. Almond milk can scorch if it gets too hot.

As the almond milk heats, put the cornstarch and reserved almond milk in a small bowl and stir till dissolved.

As soon as the tea bags have steeped long enough to lend color to the almond milk, add the mashed banana, sugar, and salt. Stir till the sugar has dissolved.

Add the almond milk with the cornstarch and turn the heat up to low-medium or medium. Stir continuously to avoid scorching. After a few minutes, the mixture should thicken up noticeably, indicating that the liquid has warmed up enough for the starch to do its thing. When I made it last, this thickening occurred when the liquid got to about 170 degrees F.

Remove the pan from the heat. Quickly stir in the vanilla, then pour the mixture into the blender. Hold the lid on the blender with a kitchen towel. It's hot, and building pressure could force the lid off. Blend till the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth. This might take a minute or two. Pour into small dishes. It should make six to eight half-cup servings. Refrigerate for at least an hour. 

Choosing your chocolate: While the recipe calls for dark chocolate, how dark depends on your taste. To me, milk chocolate would be too sweet, but anything from semi-sweet to 90% cacao should work well. Flavored bars, like those with sea salt caramel or chili pepper, can add interesting flavor to the dish, but stay away from bars with chunks of nuts or dried fruits, which may settle in the blender and not mix well.

Choosing your tea: Pick tea with a flavor that goes well with chocolate. I have used both Celestial Seasonings Coconut Thai Chai and Gingerbread Spice tea in the past. Earl Grey tea is popular in chocolate now, and raspberry tea seems like a natural fit.