I woke up this morning with the sun charring my bare arm. My limb sticking out of the covers like a flower thirsty for light. I turned over, blinded by the sunlight, and let the blond rays tingle myIt got me thinking, why the hell do I not do that?! Why don’t I ever consider replacing some or all of the sugar in a recipe for honey or agave syrup, if it tastes just as damn delicious? Why don’t I try to make healthier choices in my baking? I mean, I try to make healthy lifestyle and food choices day-to-day (lets not include those random binge days where I find myself sitting in a mound of chocolate wrappers), but why on earth do I not transfer that to my sweet bakes?

I’m not vowing that I’m on a health bender and from now on all the recipes on here will be made with buckwheat flour and full of flaxseeds. However, being more conscious about what I’m putting into my baking is definitely something I’m curious about.

Time to leave you with this recipe, get onto amazon and look for some healthy baking books! Ingredients – makes 4 ramekins – Recipe adapted from Green Kitchen Stories

This recipe is a little different to your typical chocolate pot de creme. The texture is slightly grainy and a little thinner than a normal pudding. It’s so packed full of chocolate richness, you’ll never know it’s actually good for you. If you want to go super healthy on me, ignore the cinder toffee, and instead of whipping up some double cream just spoon on a dollop of creme fraiche on top instead.

240ml unsweetened almond milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tsp. orange marmalade
1 orange, zest
115g dark chocolate, chopped
2 egg yolks
2 tbsp. honey
pinch salt

Cinder Toffee (Honeycomb)

100g caster sugar
90g golden syrup
1 1/2 tsp. bicarbonate of soda

To finish

Fresh fruit
100ml double cream
10g caster sugar
dash of vanilla extract

Method

For the Chocolate Pots de Creme:

Preheat your oven to 150C.
Place the almond milk, vanilla, marmalade and orange zest into a saucepan and bring to the boil. In a small bowl, mix together the egg yolks and honey. Take the milk off of the heat and strain it over your dark chocolate. (By straining the milk, you’ll catch the pieces of orange from the marmalade.) Whisk this until the chocolate is melted and you’re left with a smooth mix. Pour the chocolate mix over the eggs a third at a time, whisking until it is all incorporated.
Place 4 ramekins into a deep baking tray. Divide the chocolate pot mixture into the 4 dishes. Fill the baking tray with boiling water until it reaches halfway up the outside of the ramekins.
Bake in the oven for 30 minutes until the chocolate pots wobble slightly in the middle. Take out of the oven, cool, and refrigerate for an hour.

For the Cinder Toffee:

Line a baking tray with baking paper ready for the cinder toffee.
Place the caster sugar and golden syrup in a saucepan. Place over medium heat making sure that you don’t stir the ingredients as this will cause them to clump up. Swirl the pan occasionally to distribute the heat. Once the sugar has melted, the mixture will start to bubble. When the syrup becomes a deep golden colour, quickly whisk in the bicarbonate of soda. The toffee will bubble up. Immediately pour out the toffee onto the lined baking tray. Leave to set for 20 minutes. Break and store in an airtight container.

To Finish:

Whisk together the double cream, sugar and vanilla to soft peaks. Place a spoonful on top of each chocolate pot with some sliced berries and a few shards of cinder toffee.