Recipe 23 ➺ Alex Toretto & Vera Teodori
Italian Butterscotch Chocolate Pudding
Alex and Vera—two chefs with a penchant for sweetness—first crossed paths at a Roman gelateria, working side by side, where they began to weave ideas of their own. Vera grew up surrounded by bees and honey jars in her family’s beekeeping farm, while Alex’s way with whey has to be a God-given gift. A move to Melbourne and ten years later, Nuvoletta took form where they now create the perfect, refreshing treat, as light, dreamy, and delightful as its name suggests—a Nuvoletta, or ‘little cloud’ in Italian. Only the finest local, seasonal produce makes it into the churner, to then be stashed away in pozzetti, traditional Italian gelati freezers. Their recipe is a take on a traditional Italian chocolate pudding, known as Budino al Cioccolato. Do as the Romans do—mangia, mangia!
Ingredients & Method
INGREDIENTS
Chocolate Pudding
610g full cream milk
50g cocoa powder
1 large egg (approx. 70g)
100g castor sugar
15g cornflour
1 g salt
70g dark chocolate
Butterscotch
150g sugar
200g cream
30g unsalted butter
1g salt
Whipped Cream
200g cream
20g castor sugar (optional)
1g vanilla
In a pot, mix the milk and cocoa powder. Place the pot on the stove over low heat.
Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, salt, and cornflour until smooth.
Once the milk-cocoa mixture is warm, slowly pour a small amount into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to temper the eggs. Pour the tempered egg mixture back into the pot with the remaining milk-cocoa mixture. Increase to medium heat, and whisk constantly and vigorously until the custard thickens to a soft, creamy texture.
Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the chocolate until it melts. Allow the custard to cool before using it to assemble your dessert.
BUTTERSCOTCH
Heat the cream and set it aside. In a hot pan, make a dry caramel by gradually adding the sugar, allowing each addition to melt before adding more.
Once all the sugar has melted and reached the desired colour, slowly add the hot cream, stirring to blend. Stir in the salt and butter, then let the mixture cool.
ASSEMBLY
Once everything has cooled, whip the cream and vanilla, adding sugar to taste (if desired). Layer with the chocolate pudding, whipped cream and butterscotch, repeating to create at least two layers of each and dust some cocoa powder on the top. Serve chilled.