If you asked anyone who knows me, they would tell you I’m a bit of a chocoholic. So I have shown great restraint in only have having written one or two chocolate based recipes since beginning this column.
I was really pleased with my first attempt at making a chocolate trifle. It had to be very chocolatey but not too sweet. I also experimented with different types of meringue, even poaching some in vanilla milk similar to a dish called floating island. In the end I decided to keep it simple.
6 large egg yolks
250 grams amaretti biscuits
225 grams Plain Chocolate (70%)
Juice of one large orange
75 grams hazelnuts ground
60 grams castor sugar
250 ml Double cream
550 ml milk
2 Tablespoon corn flour
2 Tablespoons Brandy
1 Tablespoon Amaretto (Almond Liquor)
4 small meringue or shells or stars
1. Reserve 4 amarretti biscuits for the top of the trifle then soak the remaining biscuits in the Brandy, Amarretto and orange juice.
2. Make a few chocolate curls to decorate with then melt the remaining chocolate.
3. Whisk the egg yolks with 50 g of caster sugar for 3-4 minutes.
4. In a medium size bowl mix the corn flour with 50 ml of milk into a smooth paste.
5. In a non-stick saucepan bring to the boil the remaining milk, then pour onto the corn flour paste whisking briskly.
6. Whisk in the egg yolk mix then return to the heat in a non-stick saucepan and cook on a medium heat until thickened stirring constantly.
7. Place saucepan in a sink filled with 1-2 inches of cold water and continue to stir for 1-2 minutes and leave to cool.
8. In a cool bowl whisk up the double cream to a soft peak stage.
9. Stir in the melted chocolate into the now luke warm custard.
Assembly
in a decorative glass bowl spoon half of the cream then top with half of the soaked biscuits. Pour 1/2 of the chocolate custard. Sprinkle half the hazelnuts then repeat the layers, finishing with the custard. Decorate the top with the four reserved amarreti biscuits and four small meringue stars. Dust with cocoa powder and sprinkle the centre with the chocolate curls.
