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Chocolate Raspberry Crème Brulee

A Tribute to Jacquelyn Williams

My sweet mother-in-law, Jackie Williams, passed away a few days ago, nine weeks to the day after my father-in-law, Gene Williams, died. We miss them both.

Jackie was kind and gentle, which led her to pursue a career in nursing. She loved the Savior, her family, and baseball. (Go D-backs!) And tenors. She loved to listen to tenors, especially George Dyer.

Jackie supported my cooking obsession. Whenever I posted a photo on social media of something I had cooked, Jackie always acknowledged my efforts, usually with a single word: “Yummy.” She regularly told me that if I opened a restaurant, she would be the first person in line. I’m glad that she liked my cooking.

For more than 20 years, I have made Christmas Eve Dinner for my family. When Gene and Jackie retired to Arizona, we invited them to join us for our holiday meal. They always came.

One year, I served crème brulee with our meal. It was her first experience with the smooth, creamy dessert. She was hooked.

After that point, whenever I asked my family for suggestions for the holiday menu, Jackie always responded, “Crème brulee.” If the proposed menu included some other dessert, Jackie would sigh, “No crème brulee?” If I made a different dessert, she would remark, “It was good, but it’s not crème brulee.”

She loved crème brulee.

Over the years, I made a number of different versions of crème brulee for our dinner: chocolate, orange, lemon (Gene loved lemons), lime, and raspberry. She loved them all.

A few weeks ago, as we were settling into our lockdown phase of life, I got an urge to make a tart and creamy blend of two of my favorite flavors, chocolate and raspberry.  Jackie liked it. I hope you do as well.

Chocolate Raspberry Crème Brulee

Adapted from The Pastry Chef’s Little Black Book

  • 8 oz. chocolate (72%)
  • 1 qt. heavy cream
  • 8 oz. whole milk
  • 1/2 vanilla bean (split & scraped)
  • 4 oz. raspberry puree
  • 8 egg yolks
  • 10 oz. sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt

Melt the chocolate over a double boiler and set aside.

In a saucepan, bring the cream, milk, and vanilla bean to a boil.

Stir in the melted chocolate and the raspberry puree, and bring the mixture to a scald.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, and salt. Slowly add the hot chocolate cream into the egg yolk mixture until smooth and homogenous. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer.

Remove excess air bubbles from the top of the creme brulee custard by placing a piece of plastic wrap or paper towel on the surface and then removing.

Bake in a water bath at 275* until the custard trembles slightly when shaken (about one hour). When the custards have cooled, sprinkle them with turbinado sugar or brown sugar. Use a torch to melt the sugar to form the brulee topping.

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Pickled Red Onions

A number of years ago, I was in charge of the food for about 250 young people and their adult leaders at a church-sponsored youth conference. As we got close to the date of the conference, the conference chairman looked over the menu.

“Pickled onions?” he asked in disbelief. “The kids aren’t going to eat that!”

“Just trust me,” I replied.

He did. The pickled onions were a hit.

Pickled onions are sweet, sour, and crunchy. They bring a crispy bite of acid that complements fish tacos and smoky meats, nachos and burgers, salads and beans.  You just can’t go wrong. Serve them in a bowl at the table, and people will gobble them up.

Pickled Red Onions

  • 2 large red onions
  • 1 cup apple cider vinegar
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1 tsp. salt

Slice the onions in half through the root end. Trim the ends of the onions, and slice the onions into 1/8 inch wide half-moon pieces.

Blanch the onion slices in boiling water for 1 minute. Drain the onions in a colander. Dissolve the sugar and salt in the vinegar in a heavy non-reactive pan. Return the onions to the brine, and add enough cold water to just cover the onions.

Bring the brine to a boil over high heat. Simmer the onions for 1 minute.

Transfer the onions and the brine to a large glass jar. Store the jar in the refrigerator. The onions will become crisp and turn bright pink as they cool. They are as beautiful as they are tasty.

Variations:

  • Different types of vinegar bring different flavors to the table, so feel free to experiment.
  • Add 2 tablespoons Mexican oregano and 2 bay leaves to the brine to vary the flavor.
  • Add 6 to 8 cloves of peeled garlic to the onions in the brine to bring a richness to the brine. (Garlic makes just about everything better.)
  • If you want to bring some heat to the onions, add jalapeno slices or red pepper flakes to the brine.
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License to Cook

Early in the pandemic while I was working at home, I went out to check the mail and found an oversized envelope from the Department of Motor Vehicles. Curious, I opened the envelope and found vanity plates highlighting two of my biggest interests: Legal Chow and Arizona State University.

I inadvertently ruined my wife’s birthday surprise for me. Oops!

Thanks, Sweetie. I’m now officially licensed to cook.

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Dr. Pepper Barbecue Sauce

Dr. Pepper Barbecue Sauce

My culinary journey has taken me down the pathway of barbecuing and grilling. My pellet smoker has become a critical part of my cooking equipment We’ve smoked our Thanksgiving turkey, ribs, pork shoulder, and more. And the brisket . . . mmmm, brisket . . . is out of this world.

But smoking meat is only part of the process. Great barbecue requires great sauce. So I’ve gathered recipes from the masters, made some adjustments of my own, and developed a repertoire of “go to” sauces that can put burgers, ribs, and brisket over the top with flavor.

Steven Raichlen is a master of barbecue. His book Barbecue Sauces, Rubs and Marinades outlines the critical components of a good barbecue sauce.

Base: While most barbecue sauces use some sort of a tomato base, you can make a great sauce with mustard, vinegar, beef or chicken stock, or even mayonnaise as the base.

Sweetener: Sugar, honey, molasses, jams, jellies, syrups, and soda provide a sweetness that helps counter the acidity of the vinegar or other souring agent.

Souring agent: Vinegar or sour juices give barbecue sauce its distinctive punch.

Seasonings: Every sauce needs a salty component to help meld the sweet and sour ingredients.  Soy sauce, Worchestershire, fish sauce, miso, olives, and others bring the needed saltiness.

Heat: Many sauces include a heat factor. Chile peppers, ginger, black and white pepper, cayenne, red pepper flakes, wasabi, mustard, horseradish, and more. Choose a heat index that resonates with your taste buds.

Aromatics: As Raichlen notes, “Aromatics give barbecue sauce its personality.” Onions, garlic, fresh peppers, herbs, spices, liquid smoke, and more. For my money, few things whet my palate as well as the smell of garlic and onion sauteeing in butter.

Enrichers: Butter, olive oil, lard, bacon, beef stock, and others help round out the flavor of your sauce.

I smoked some pork ribs this weekend and needed to make some sauce to go with the ribs.  This sauce is one of my favorites.

It uses ketchup as a base and Dr. Pepper as a wild card sweetener. I like to up the flavor a bit by using Cherry Dr. Pepper. It’s flavorful and surprisingly easy to make.

Sautee your aromatics in butter, then add the remaining ingredients and bring everything to a boil.  Stir the sauce occasionally to keep it from burning. But otherwise, it requires little attention. Once you try it, you’ll never buy your barbecue sauce again.

Dr. Pepper Barbecue Sauce

From Soaked, Slathered, and Seasoned

  • 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
  • 1 large yellow onion, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cup ketchup
  • 3 Tbsp. tomato paste
  • 12 oz. Cherry Dr. Pepper
  • ½ cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
  • ½ cup packed dark brown sugar
  • 2 tsp. Ancho chili powder
  • 1 tsp. fine ground white pepper
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Melt the butter in a heavy pan. Saute the onion and the garlic in the butter until translucent, about 10 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients and simmer until the flavors are well blended, which will take about 15 minutes. Continue cooking until the sauce begins to thicken, about 20 to 30 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper if desired.

When it has cooled, blend the sauce in a blender until it is smooth. Store in the refrigerator.

Make about 5 cups.