Chocolate Pot de Crème • Easy No Bake Recipe! (2024)

Chocolate pot de crème gets rave reviews

My chocolate pot de crème recipe is seriously easy, and seriously delish. In fact of all the fancy chocolate desserts out there (think chocolate soufflé, chocolate layer cake, or chocolate truffles) this is by far the simplest. It’s a rich chocolate dessert that’s made ahead and waits patiently in the fridge for date night, dinner guests, or just some indulgent ‘me‘ time.

pot de crème (pō də krem) Pot de crème is a French dessert that translates to “pot of cream” and dates back to the 17th century. It’s a velvety and smooth custard, baked and served in small pots or jars.

This recipe is no-bake! Traditional pot de crème is baked in a bain-marie or water bath. But guess what? This recipe is made in a fraction of the time because there’s no baking involved, and it results in the most decadent chocolate custard every time!

Ingredients for chocolate pots de crème

The flavor in this recipe is perfect. I used vanilla along with a bit of instant espresso which helps to deepen the chocolate flavor.

• dark or bittersweet chocolate
  • you want really good chocolate, so go with a reputable brand.
• egg yolks
• heavy cream
• salt
• vanilla extract
• instant espresso powder (optional)
  • it gives the chocolate a richer more complex flavor.

Choosing the right chocolate for pot de crème

Chocolate is undeniably the star of this dessert, so it makes sense to choose wisely, but you have a lot of choices. Any type of chocolate will work in this recipe from white, to milk, to bittersweet. Bar chocolate tends to be the best quality, but you can definitely use good tasting chocolate chips if you like.

I used Ghirardelli 70% extra bittersweet chocolate, which produces an intensely rich but not too sweet pot de crème (I do not add any extra sugar to my custard.) You’ll need two 4-ounce bars for this recipe.

Pot de crème fun facts

National Pot de Crème Day is August 27th.

Pot de crème became so popular that by the 17th century, dedicated porcelain cups—also called pots de crème or petit* pots (petite, or small, pots) were specially made to serve it.

Julia Child popularized pot de crème here in the US through her television shows and cookbooks.

The perfect topping for pot de crème

Whipped cream or chantilly cream, is the traditional topping for pot de crème and it works because, even though whipped cream is rich itself, it lightens and balances the even richer chocolate.

I love to whip cream in a mason jar ~ no need to haul out the electric beaters (see how to do it here.) Just pour about 1/2 cup of heavy cream in a small jar, add powdered sugar if you like, screw on the lid and shake vigorously until you no longer hear it sloshing around. Open it up and you’ll have perfectly whipped cream.

Garnish your whipped cream with chocolate shavings, a few berries, or crushed toasted hazelnuts.

How to serve chocolate pots de crème

Pot de crème is one of the richest desserts around, so it’s always served in very small portions ~ normal bowls are usually too large. A 4 ounce or 1/2 cup capacity is just about right.

Because this recipe is no-bake, you can use any type of jar, glass, or cup you like. I use these mini mold jars from the German company Weck. Here are some other choices:

• Custard cups or ramekins with straight sides
• Small wine glasses
• Espresso or demitasse cups
• Small half-cup mason jars
• Small co*cktail glasses, especially vintage style

Variations on a chocolate pot de crème recipe

• White chocolate
  • use finely chopped white chocolate and amp up the vanilla flavor with a vanilla bean or vanilla paste.
• Milk chocolate
  • substitute milk chocolate for dark chocolate.
• Mexican chocolate
  • use Mexican style chocolate and a hint of powdered chili for heat.
• Chocolate espresso
  • use instant espresso powder and garnish your pots with chocolate covered coffee beans.
• Vegan chocolate
  • use a vegan chocolate and full fat coconut milk or cream in place of dairy cream.
• Chocolate orange
  • add a splash of orange liqueur (such as Grand Marnier) in the custard and/or the whipped cream, plus a garnish of orange zest.
• Spiked pot de crème
  • I think a bit of liqueur would be wonderful in this recipe. Frangelico, Amaretto, Chambord, Cognac. So many to choose from; just add a tablespoon or so to the custard mixture, and/or the whipped cream topping.

Featured comment:

“This is literally one of my favorites to make for dessert. Tried raspberry liquor and orange flavored liquor in different ones. It was so yummy we ate them first, before we grilled our steaks!” ~ Mary