Kaffeecrème

This grown-up dessert is perfect for coffee lovers.

It’s heavier than a mousse, but not quite as thick as a pudding, and the addition of six egg yolks make it the rich and creamy dessert of your dreams.

The recipe comes from the Basler Kochschule, a Basel-focused textbook of recipes and cooking techniques that has been published in the canton since 1877. My edition is from 1983 and includes a section on historic Basler recipes (Brunsli, Hypokras, Mehlsuppe) and has some beautiful illustrations from previous versions of the book. That being said, cremes of all sorts (chocolate, caramel) remain popular desserts throughout Switzerland.

As with many coffee-flavoured desserts, it’s the instant coffee flavour that gives it a real punch (see my Kafischnaps Torte here).

6 egg yolks

1 tsp cornstarch

2 tbsp milk

100 g fine sugar

300 ml milk

200 ml cream

2-3 tbsp instant coffee powder (like Nescafé)

In a large bowl, whisk together the yolks, cornstarch and 2 tbsp of milk.

In a medium pot, warm the sugar, 300 ml milk and cream over medium heat. Once it begins to boil, whisk in the coffee powder.

Take the pot off the heat and very slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly.

Pour the whole mixture back into the pot and continue mixing over medium low heat until it has thickened.

Once it has thickened, pour it through a sieve into a clean bowl.

Let this cool until it is no longer hot to the touch, then cover it with plastic (press directly onto the surface of the cream so it doesn’t form a skin) and let cool completely in the fridge for about 3-4 hours.