Easy dark chocolate pots de creme—all the decadence of the traditional French dessert without dairy or refined sugar. Make it in the blender with just 5 minutes of hands-on prep time!
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Is there such a thing as too much chocolate? This dark chocolate pots de creme recipe comes close. It is unbelievably rich, and smooth, and very, very chocolaty. With only five minutes of hands-on time, it's a true chocolate indulgence.
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What is pot de creme?
Pot de crème (or pots de crème if you have more than one) is a French custard dessert. Although there are many versions, it's usually somewhere between a creme brulee and a mousse in texture---not as dense as a creme brulee and not as light and airy as a mousse. With the addition of dark chocolate, it's absolutely decadent.
Pot de crème recipes are traditionally made with milk, cream, sugar, and eggs. They involve making a chocolate cream on the stovetop, tempering and whisking in the eggs so they don't scramble, and then baking in a water bath. I'm tired just thinking about it.
The beauty of this easy version of dark chocolate pots de crème is that it cooks in a high-power blender Between the hot coconut milk and the high speed of the blender, there's enough heat to turn the eggs into a perfect custard that sets up in the refrigerator.
Easy chocolate pot de creme without dairy
Most chocolate pot de creme recipes use a combination of whole milk and heavy cream for the base. But like dairy-free ice cream, it's easy to substitute dairy-free milk (in this case, coconut) for the traditional dairy.
The result is the easiest, most decadent chocolate dessert you can imagine - a gourmet version of chocolate pudding. It looks fancy enough to serve for Valentine's Day or any special occasion dinner, but it takes just minutes to put together.
Here's what you'll need
- Eggs - they provide the structure and thicken the pot de creme
- Honey or maple syrup - for sweetness without refined sugar
- Instant espresso powder - this coffee flavored powder adds to the richness of the chocolate and brings out the chocolate flavor
- Vanilla extract - be sure to use pure vanilla extract
- Unsweetened chocolate - use high-quality unsweetened chopped chocolate with no sugar or additives (the ingredients in the baking chocolate bar should be just unsweetened chocolate)
- Coconut milk - from the can (not the refrigerated beverage) substitutes for the cream in this version
- Fresh berries - fresh raspberries, or your favorite fruit for garnish
- Coconut whipped cream - top with homemade coconut whipped cream to take it over the top
How to make chocolate pots de creme in the blender
What makes this no-cook chocolate pots de creme so quick and easy is that everything goes in the blender. Just heat the coconut milk (I use the beverage setting on the microwave, but you can heat it gently in a pan on the stovetop) and pour it into the blender with the rest of the ingredients.
The hot coconut milk melts the chocolate and thickens the eggs in one step. No bowl, saucepan or straining, no double boiler, no oven, no water bath—it's my kind of chocolate dessert. The hardest part is waiting for the chocolate mixture to chill in the fridge!
This dessert is gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free and refined sugar-free. I use unsweetened chocolate and sweeten it with honey. I like Ghirardelli’s 100% cacao baking bar, but any good quality chocolate would work. I also use light coconut milk from Trader Joe's. The consistency is similar to whole milk and the ingredients are just coconut and water.
Top the dark chocolate pots de creme with something to compliment the chocolate—fresh raspberries, whipped coconut cream, mint leaves, chocolate shavings, or even flaky sea salt. And serve it with an espresso or even a nice Cabernet.
More easy chocolate desserts
- Avocado Chocolate Mousse
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Drinking Chocolate (Dark Hot Chocolate)
- Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Keto Hot Chocolate
- 3-Ingredient Chocolate Haystacks
Easy Dark Chocolate Pots de Creme
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup honey or maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
- 1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract
- 4 ounces chopped unsweetened chocolate
- ¾ cup coconut milk canned
- fresh raspberries for garnish
Instructions
- Add the eggs, honey, espresso powder, vanilla extract, and chocolate to a Vitamix or high-speed blender in the order listed and blend until smooth.
- Heat coconut milk until very hot (do not boil).
- With blender running on low, slowly and carefully pour hot coconut milk into blender. Blend until chocolate is completely melted, and the mixture is smooth and thick.
- Pour into serving cups or ramekins and refrigerate until set, about 2 hours. Garnish with raspberries.
Notes
Nutrition
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Medeja
It's never too much chocolate! 🙂 Sounds very delicious
Lisa
I think you are right! I hope you like it.
JC
Could you use 2% milk instead of coconut milk? Or regular milk?
Lisa
I haven't tried it since I can't do dairy, but I think regular milk would work in this recipe. If you try it, let me know how it turns out!
norahgaughan
Sounds great! One question – Why light coconut cream? Aren't most paleo folks eating High Fat Low Carb?
Lisa
Great question - I'm not trying to avoid fat, just additives and processed food ingredients. The Trader Joe's light coconut milk is the only one I've found locally with no gums or other added ingredients (just coconut milk and water). And the consistency works well in the pots de creme.
Susan Cullen
Thai Kitchen is another brand of coconut milk and coconut cream and they have no additives or preservatives. Sprouts makes an Organic coconut milk with no chemical additives either. You are right that most coconut milk brands have nasty chemical preservatives and I won't buy buy them or use them either. Trust me, due to my food allergies and choice to eat clean and healthy, I check the ingredients on EVERY label on anything I want to eat. I love the produce department. It makes it easy. Everything is only 1 ingredient. 🙂
Amy
What if you don't own a vitamix? Can you use a regular blender?
Lisa
I haven't tried it, but I think this recipe would work in a regular blender. If you try it let me know how it turns out.
dorothy dobson
I just made this in a food processor and it seemed to work. No 'low' setting but still ok.
dorothy dobson
Don't have a blender, just made it in a food processor. there is no 'low' setting, but it turned out lovely.
Lisa
That's great. I've never tried it in a food processor - thanks for letting me know it worked!
Eveline
Never got thick? Used a vitamin and followed instructions...don't know where it went wrong! Very disappointed!!
Lisa
Eveline, I'm so sorry to hear that. It absolutely should thicken up. What type of coconut milk did you use? It should be canned coconut milk for this recipe. The hot coconut milk "cooks" the eggs and melts the chocolate in the Vitamix to create the thick texture of the pots de creme once it's chilled.
Joni
I don't have a blender, but made in my food processor. The only change I made was to melt the chocolate in the hot coconut milk, then stream it in. It was smooth as silk. When I tried just the hot milk in the processor, it didn't melt the chocolate completely, so there were little tiny pieces. Still good, just not creamy.
Tinka
Hi Amy!
Have you tried the recipe in regular blender (I don't own Vitamix eather), did it work normally?
Kayla
I mixed it in my ninja and it is sooooo addictive!!! I also put reddi whip on top.
Iina
Thanks for a great recipe! Just one question before trying it out: I noticed you use whole eggs not just yolks. Does it make a difference? In many other "paleo pots de creme" recipes there are just yolks used. Any thoughts?
Lisa
I think it's a little less dense with whole eggs, but it's really just personal preference. I've seen recipes using whole eggs, just yolks or both.
Connie Murray
Are you not concerned about the use of raw eggs in the recipe. Other than that, it sounds absolutely delicious.
Thanks,
Connie
Lisa
Hi Connie, I use organic eggs from a good source and I've never had a problem. If you're concerned about using raw eggs, you can use pasteurized eggs or use a traditional custard method to cook the eggs with the coconut milk.
Karen@NourishWithKaren
This looks awesome! Well, all of your recipes look awesome - you keep me busy pinning! Looking forward to more great stuff!
Lisa
Thank you Karen!
Nicole
Just made this and it's amazing! Kind of like chocolate mousse. I used full fat coconut milk and a Magic Bullet blender. Worked wonderfully. Thanks!
Lisa
You’re welcome Nicole! This is one of my favorite recipes. I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Jennifer
Recently my non-paleo brother gave me a hard time for "depriving" my children of pudding - you know, the junky artificial stuff from a box. I'm going to make this and then have my kids call Uncle Mike to brag about their yummy 'pudding' 🙂
Lisa
Jennifer, that's awesome! I love it!
realrawkitchen
This looks delicious! What a great inspiration for me 🙂 I think it's time I play with coconut more in my desserts. I used to rely on it for desserts but got away from it somehow. You've brought me back .. mmmm mmm
The Wanderlust Kitchen
Wow, this looks so heavenly! I'm Anetta from The Wanderlust Kitchen, just stopping by to introduce myself as a member of the new "tribe" and say "howdy!" Very nice to meet you 🙂
Lisa
Hi Anetta, nice to meet you too! Thanks for stopping by.
Laura
Thank you for sharing this recipe! So many gluten free recipes call for weird stuff like xantham gum and strange flour substitutes. I just wanted something simple, relatively healthy and delicious to make that my cousin can eat.
Now my pots de creme is chilling in the fridge! I used a ladle for easy and even doling out into my custard cups and placed them all on a baking sheet so they can be easily moved around. I also put one raspberry in the middle of each cup and placed three mint leaves around for garnish. They look really pretty, almost like holly! Maybe I'll have to make this again and garnish similarly for Christmas season.
Laura
Oh! One more little thing I did for mine. Back when I was a barista we would pick up our milk foaming pitchers and tap them on the counter to pop all of the little air bubbles that get inside. I did this for my batch as well to pop most of the little bubbles that were formed from blending.
Lisa
Great tip - thanks for sharing! 🙂
Lisa
Awesome! What a great idea for a holiday garnish! And I agree with you about not using weird ingredients - I always stick with simple real food ingredients.
Jessy @ The Life Jolie
These look so delicious and the ingredients make them even more appealing! Pinning!
Amanda
Have made this twice now and love it! I made t tonight and have leftovers for the first time... How long will these last in the fridge?
Lisa
Hi Amanda, I've kept them in the fridge a few days. They usually get eaten pretty quickly. 🙂
Allison Yoder
This looks delicious! I'm doing Whole 30 right now and wondering how this would taste without the honey? Have you ever tried it or any substitutes?
Lisa
Hi Allison, I have not tried this without honey. It might work with dates instead, you'll have to experiment a little to get the right amount.
Trbobitch
You're not supposed to have any sweeteners or "desserts" on Whole30.
Lisa
Yes, you'll have to save this one for after your Whole30. You can see all of my Whole30 compliant recipes here.
Will Campbell
Hi. This is one of my favorite desserts. I have a friend with diabetes and would love to make it for him. Do you there is a way I could use stevia or liquid stevia? Thank you so much.
Will
Lisa
Hi Will, I'm so glad you love it! I haven't tested this recipe with stevia, but here's a similar recipe from a food blogger with diabetes that might work for your friend.
Lisa
Can it be made without the espresso powder? Substitute? Thank you!
KIm
Do you think cacao powder would work instead of the bar? Thanks.
Linda Johnson
Has anybody tried adding an avocado to this recipe? I know that it would add some healthy fat and likely make it very creamy also. A friend had made some chocolate avocado mousse and shared with my son, daughter-in-law, and I. We all thought it tasted delicious.
Lisa
Hi Linda, I have a recipe for chocolate avocado mousse here.
Joefine
I never thought I would find a good recipe that made it so easy! Thank you so much!
Sherry Liptan
So good, creamy, and thick. I made it with half unsweetened chocolate and half semi-sweet chocolate chips that's all I had at the time. Very easy to make, the hardest part was waiting for it to set up.
Lisa
I'm so glad you love it, Sherry!
Carol Gelles
how many servings does this make? What size cups do you use?
Lisa
This recipe makes 4 servings. I use small ramekins that hold about 1/2 cup - it's very rich!
Victoria
I love this dessert soooo much! However, sometimes it comes out rich and smooth and sometimes it comes out grainy and airy (like air pockets). Can't figure out why. I'm torn thinking it's between the espresso powder or the coconut milk. Can you explain why you shouldn't bring your milk to boil? What happens if you do? I don't try to but I may be cutting it too close since the surface will sometimes start to bubble while heating it. It's that or the espresso powder isn't dissolving. Any feedback is appreciated!
Regina
Hi Lisa, I am completely addicted to this non-dairy, sugar-free, chocolatey dessert. My husband and I eat it almost every night while we binge our favorite international crime dramas! I was using 100% cacao chips and they have recently skyrocketed in price. So I am now using cacao powder and carob powder. It is not thickening up like your original recipe. Any ideas? Its still delish, and I even add a bit of banana and almond butter. However, the thickness is part of the enjoyment. Any advice? Thanks.
Lisa
Hi Regina, so glad you love it! I haven't tested it in this recipe, but I would try using coconut oil plus cacao powder to substitute for the unsweetened chocolate. Hope this helps!