Bronwen Wyatt’s Chicory Diplomat Cream + Prune Butter Parfait
Ingredients for Chicory Diplomat Cream Parfait (and some substitutions too):
How to assemble your Chicory Diplomat Cream parfaits:
More of Bronwen’s Amazing Dessert Recipes to Try
Chocolate Walnut Chiffon Cake
GET THE CAKE RECIPE
Spiced Prune Caramel Sauce
GET THE CARAMEL RECIPE
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Chicory Diplomat Cream + Prune Butter Parfait
Prunes and coffee are a classic match, and this elegant layered dessert pairs the flavors with an unexpected twist. Chicory powder, the star of the New Orleans-style cafe au lait, is a dissolvable instant coffee substitute available online. I love it for its earthy, powerful flavor that stands up beautifully to milk and cream. It is naturally caffeine-free to boot. Here I infuse the chicory powder into a creme diplomat, which sounds fancy but is basically pudding lightened with whipped cream. The diplomat cream has a lighter, airier mouthfeel than straight pastry cream, with just a touch of gelatin to stabilize it. You may remember I used a similar filling in my walnut chiffon cake recipe- this version is new + improved (and easier to make!). Layered in a glass with a brightly flavored prune butter and brown sugar whipped cream, this parfait is a glamorous chilled dessert that altogether tastes, somehow, just like butterscotch pudding. You could enjoy it as is, or top with crumbled chocolate wafer cookies for a bit of crunch.
Equipment
- medium non-reactive pot
- small non-reactive pot
- stand or hand mixer
Ingredients
Chicory Creme Diplomat
- 1 cup milk
- 2 egg yolks
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 TBSP cornstarch
- Pinch salt
- 1 TBSP chicory powder or espresso powder, see note
- ½ tsp powdered gelatin optional, see note
- 2 oz butter 4 TBS chilled and cubed
- ¾ cup + 2 tsp cream
Prune Butter
- 1 packed cup prunes
- 1 cup water
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- Pinch salt
- 2 tsp vincotto optional, see note
Brown Sugar Whipped Cream
- 1 cup cream
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- Pinch salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the Diplomat Cream
- Prepare a shallow bowl with a strainer set over it and set aside.
- Combine the egg yolks and the milk in a liquid measuring cup and set aside. Combine the sugar, cornstarch, salt, chicory powder, and gelatin in the bottom of a medium non-reactive pot and whisk thoroughly to combine. Slowly pour in the milk/yolk mixture, whisking all the while so there are no visible lumps of cornstarch.
- A quick aside – typically with powdered gelatin, you’d bloom it in water separately and add it in later. I tweak this method by allowing it to bloom with the milk in the initial step – by suspending the gelatin with the sugar and cornstarch, you shouldn’t see any lumps. Another reason one might bloom gelatin separately is that it loses its strength when boiled for a considerable length of time, but this pastry cream will only be at a rolling simmer for about a minute. I originally developed this method because I hate fussing about with blooming powdered gelatin and I’m a bit lazy about it. I’ve never noticed any ill effects when doing it this way and so I’ve never looked back. If you’re not using gelatin just ignore all this and proceed with the next step.
- Place the pot over low-to-medium heat and cook, whisking all the while, until the chicory pudding has thickened, and you begin to see fat, rolling bubbles simmering across the surface. Continue to cook and whisk vigorously for an additional one minute. Remove from the heat and taste your pudding – you shouldn’t be able to taste the powdery finish of cornstarch – if you do, you may need to cook for an additional 20 seconds or so. Take care not to overcook at this stage – we cook the pastry cream for a minute because any longer can weaken the bonds of cornstarch that we’ve developed, and result in a looser (or curdled) pudding.
- Whisk in the butter until totally incorporated, and strain the pudding into the prepared dish. Press plastic wrap directly to the surface of the pudding and refrigerate until totally chilled.
- When the pudding has cooled completely, put the heavy cream into a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whip until it achieves loose peaks. Add the chilled pastry cream to the mixer and whisk at high speed until it’s fully incorporated into the whipped cream, about 15 to 20 seconds or so. The result will be a beautiful coffee-colored, voluptuous cream with a velvety finish. Chill until ready to assemble your parfaits.
Make the Prune Butter
- Place all of the ingredients in a small non-reactive pot and simmer over medium heat until the prunes are very soft and the liquid has reduced and taken on a slightly syrupy consistency, about three to four minutes. You should be able to easily halve the prunes with a wooden spoon, but you don’t want to simmer away all of the liquid. Before blending your butter, you can pull six syrupy prunes from the liquid and set them aside for garnish, if you like. Tip the remaining prune mixture into a blender and blend until very smooth (I use a magic bullet). Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Make the Brown Sugar Whipped Cream
- Hold off on whipping the brown sugar cream until you’re ready to build your parfait. Assemble all of the ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or use a handheld mixer). Whip the cream on medium speed until it has thickened and achieved soft peaks.
- Chocolate wafer cookie crumbs, optional
To assemble the parfaits:
- Spoon or pipe the chicory diplomat cream and the prune butter into sundae glasses or mason jars, alternating the two to create a striated effect. This recipe will make about six servings, depending on the size glass you’re using. Top with the brown sugar whipped cream. The parfaits can be assembled up to a day ahead sans the brown sugar whip, or up to two hours ahead once garnished with the cream. If you’re folding in chocolate wafer crumbs, sprinkle them in between the layers or on top.
Notes
This recipe makes about six parfaits, depending on the size of the individual serving dishes you’re using, or you can make one big one like a trifle and spoon it out family-style.
This recipe was developed with instant chicory powder in mind – I use Anthony’s brand. Sometimes chicory is sold in granules instead. In that case, you can use roughly the same amount, but you may notice the granules don’t entirely dissolve – that’s no issue, as we’ll be straining our pudding anyway. In a pinch, you can easily substitute two teaspoons of instant espresso powder for the chicory powder.
You may also leave the gelatin out – your diplomat will have a softer set, and you may want to assemble the parfaits immediately upon folding the whipped cream into the chicory pastry cream. If made as written, you can make the chicory diplomat up to two days ahead, and the prune butter up to three or four days ahead.
The vincotto in the prune butter is entirely optional, but delicious if you happen to have it laying around! Vincotto is a thick, bright syrup made from reduced grape must – I love adding a little to jam recipes to deepen the fruity flavor. It’s especially lovely in roasted strawberries or with simmered prunes, as I do here. You could also substitute bourbon or rum for a more adult dessert (rum would really bring out the butterscotch notes).
Nutrition
Serving: 1portionCalories: 509kcalCarbohydrates: 41gProtein: 5gFat: 37gSaturated Fat: 23gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 174mgSodium: 108mgPotassium: 197mgFiber: 0.02gSugar: 39gVitamin A: 1.48IUVitamin C: 0.4mgCalcium: 127mgIron: 0.4mg
