Gluten-free Chocolate Budino with Candied Walnuts
Serves 6
Ingredients
- Candied Walnuts
- ½ Cup sugar
- 1 Cup coarsely chopped walnuts
- Kosher salt
- Budino
- 1 Cup bittersweet chocolate disks, preferably 70%–74% cacao or 5 oz. chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 Cup heavy cream
- 1 Cup whole milk
- 6 Large egg yolks
- ¼ Cup sugar
- ¾ Teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
- Flaky sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Salted caramel gelato or ice cream (for serving; optional)
Shopping List
- Chopped walnuts
- Bittersweet chocolate disks
- Heavy cream
- Whole milk
- Eggs
- Flaky sea salt
- Salted caramel gelato
Instructions
- For Candied Walnuts:
- Bring sugar and ½ cup water to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, swirling occasionally to dissolve sugar. As soon as the sugar is dissolved, add walnuts and bring syrup back up to a simmer. Cook, swirling saucepan occasionally for even cooking, until walnuts look slightly translucent and are softened, 30–35 minutes.
- Drain walnuts in a mesh sieve and arrange in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Sprinkle walnuts with salt.
- Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 300°. Bake walnuts in the oven, stirring once or twice, until well browned, 15–18 minutes. Let cool, then break up into small pieces.
- For Budino:
- Place chocolate in a medium bowl; set aside. Bring cream and milk to a bare simmer in a large saucepan and remove from heat.
- Vigorously whisk egg yolks and sugar in another medium bowl until pale yellow and sugar is dissolved (rub between fingers to check), about 2 minutes.
- Gradually pour cream mixture into egg yolk mixture, whisking vigorously. Immediately pour egg yolk mixture into saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof rubber spatula and making sure to get into the corners of the pan, until an instant-read thermometer registers 175° (custard should be thick enough to coat a spoon; do not let it simmer or allow thermometer to go above 180°).
- Pour custard over reserved chocolate and let sit until chocolate is melted, about 5 minutes. Using an immersion blender or a whisk, blend until emulsified (if using a whisk, you may want to strain budino through a fine-mesh sieve after to ensure a silky texture). Add kosher salt and 1 Tbsp. oil to chocolate mixture and blend to incorporate.
- Divide budino evenly among six 8–12-oz. glasses. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until firm, at least 1 hour.
- Top each budino with candied walnuts, sprinkle with sea salt and pepper, and drizzle with a little oil. Serve with scoops of gelato if desired.