Chocolate Cremeux (Crémeux au Chocolat)

This Chocolate Cremeux - or Crémeux au Chocolat - is a classic French cream that has an incredibly silky texture and intense chocolate flavour. It is great to use as a filling or topping for your favourite cakes and pastries - or on its own as a dessert!

Why we love this recipe

No chocolate cream or frosting is as decadent than this Chocolate Crémeux. It is deliciously soft and creamy and has the most incredible Chocolate taste. Made from 5 simple ingredients, it requires no butter, can be made dairy-free and does not require a lot of sugar.

Just like a Chocolate Pastry Cream and Whipped Ganache Frosting, it has a multitude of uses. From cake (or entremet) and pastry filling (think inside a tart or to fill some choux pastry) to a topping for your favourite cakes, this chocolate cream is super versatile. And you can even serve it own its own as a dessert!

What is a Crémeux

A "Crémeux" is a classic French Pastry recipe that combines a traditional Crème Anglaise (pouring custard) and Chocolate. "Crémeux" means "creamy" in French, and that is simply a great way to define this frosting. It is stable enough to pipe but soft enough to be use as a filling or a dessert.

Ingredients

You will only need 5 ingredients to make this recipe. The ingredients a Cremeux made of (scroll down to recipe card below for all quantities):

• Cream + Milk: used as a 50/50 ratio. Use a full cream milk (whole milk) and thickened / heavy cream (at least 30% fat content) for the best flavours and texture.

• Eggs: you will only need the egg yolks here. Keep the egg whites for another recipe like these Financiers Cakes.

• Chocolate: a good quality Dark Chocolate is highly recommended here. Go for a 70% chocolate or more if you can. Make sure to use a proper Cooking Chocolate or Couverture Chocolate or you risk getting a grainy, lumpy texture.

Substitution & Optional Addition

• Cream and Milk: you can use a plant-based alternative to make this recipe dairy-free. Make sur to use substitutes that are high in fat (no light or reduced fat milk and cream)

• You can flavour the cream with a few other ingredients to play with its flavours: add a little bit of Vanilla to the cream, some instant Coffee Powder, a pinch of Sea Salt, some Orange Zest or even a touch of liquor!

How to make Crémeux au Chocolat

Making the Crème Anglaise

• Photo 1: Place the Cream and Milk in a small saucepan. Heat it up on low heat to medium heat until it starts to simmer, then remove from the stove.

If adding Vanilla, add it at this step as well. For a fresh Vanilla Bean, scrap the seeds into the liquid and let it infuse for 10 to 15 minutes (stove off after it starts to simmer and covered with a lid).

• Photo 2: In the meantime, whisk together the Egg Yolks and Caster Sugar in a heat-proof bowl.

• Photo 3: Slowly pour the hot liquid mixture over the egg/sugar while continuously whisking.

This step allows to temper the eggs (slowly bring up their temperature), which will help avoid cooking them too fast.

• Photo 4: Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and turn on low heat to medium low heat. Make sure it is not too hot; it should not boil.

Cooking the Cream

• Continuously stir with a spatula or whisk for 5 to 10 minutes or until the custard mixture has slightly thickened.

There are two ways to check if the Creme Anglaise is cooked:

• Photo 5: with a thermometer. The cream has to reach 82 to 84 degree celsius (180 to 184 degree Fahrenheit) to be properly cooked. If it goes higher than that, the eggs will over-cook and you will get a grainy or lumpy cream.

• Photo 6: coat the back of a spoon with the custard. Carefully draw an horizontal line (it will be hot) and tip the spoon down. If the line stays clear, the custard is thick enough and ready to be used. If the cream is too liquid (not cooke enough), it will drip over the line.

Optionally if you find small lumps, pour the custard through a thin mesh sieve.

Melting the Chocolate with the Cream

• Photo 7: Place the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl. If using Callet or Pistols (small chunks of couverture chocolate; different than chocolate chips), use them as is. If using a cooking chocolate bar, finely chop it first.

• Pour the hot cream mixture over the Chocolate and let it sit for 2 to 3 minutes.

• Photo 8: Using a spatula, gently stir in circular movements to mix the chocolate and the cream.

• Photo 9: Continue to stir until you get a thick, smooth cream.

Alternatively, pour the hot cream on the chocolate, let it sit for 2 to 3 minutes then use an immersion blender to mix them together.

If you find that you still have chunks of unmelted chocolates, you can continue to melt it over a double-boiler ("bain-marie") but on very low temperature to avoid overcooking the custard.

• Photo 10: Transfer the chocolate cremeux in a shallow pan and cover with plastic wrap touching its surface.

• Place in the fridge to set for at least 2 hours, or preferably overnight.

Depending on how you plan on using the cremeux, use it straight from the fridge or let it come back to room temperature.

Recipe FAQs

Tips & Troubleshooting

• How long does it take to set: this cremeux recipe takes at least 2 hours to set, but I recommend leaving it in the fridge overnight. You will get the perfect texture and even more delicious flavour as it chills!

• The custard base is too liquid: it is simply not cooked enough. It needs to reach 82'c / 180'f to be properly cooked! But note that this mixture will be much thiner than a pastry cream or custard. You could also have used a low fat or light cream and milk, which is not recommended here.

• The cremeux is grainy or lumpy: usually happens when the egg yolks were cooked too quickly or too much, or the chocolate was melted at a temperature too high. You can try to pour it through a thin mesh sieve to remove lumps, or very slowly blend the cream with an immersion blender.

• The cream has split: this is usually the sign of a bad emulsion, meaning that the fat and liquid are not well combined. Try to whisk it vigorously and if it still has the same consistency, you can try to slowly blend it with an immersion blender.

• The cream won't set: it needs more time to chill. Because of the cocoa butter contained inside the chocolate as well as the egg yolks, there is no reason the cremeux should not set - unless you did not use the right quantities (or the wrong chocolate).

• The chocolate cremeux is too runny: either the custard was not cooked enough or the cremeux wasn't chilled for long enough. Also note that this recipe was developed for Dark Chocolate; Milk or White Chocolate contain a different amount of cocoa butter which will give you a different consistency.

How to use this chocolate cream

• As a filling for a tart, inside a Pâte Sablée, Chocolate Pie Crust or to fill Mini Tart Shells.

• Inside a Layer Cake or Entremet.

• Used to decorate cakes and pastries - or any other ways you would use a buttercream or frosting.

• This chocolate cremeux recipe will also make a delicious dessert on its own, served in a cup with some whipped cream or some poached fruits like Stewed Pears.

Storing & Freezing

This crémeux recipe is best used within 3 days. It should be kept in the fridge in an air-tight container or a bowl covered with plastic wrap touching its surface.

I don't recommend freezing this chocolate cream as it will affect its texture and you won't get such a nice silky smooth consistency. This is except if you are freezing a cake or entremet in order to set it.

More Cream Recipes

• Chocolate Pastry Cream
• Vanilla Crème Pâtissière
• Tangy Lemon Curd
• Whipped Ganache Frosting
• Passion Fruit Curd
• Almond Cream Filling
• Diplomat Cream
• Orange Curd