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Unmolded bonet piemontese chocolate custard with caramel sauce pooling on a white plate beside whole amaretti cookies

Bonet Piemontese: Chocolate Amaretti Custard

A Piedmontese baked custard of cocoa, crushed amaretti and rum, set in a water bath and served upside down over its own caramel.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 5 hours 15 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Italian (Piedmont Region)
Calories: 340

Ingredients
  

For the caramel
  • 150 g sugar
  • 50 ml water
For the custard
  • 4 eggs large; room temperature
  • 100 g sugar
  • 40 g unsweetened cocoa powder Dutch-process preferred
  • 100 g amaretti cookies crushed fine
  • 30 ml dark rum or amaretto, or strong espresso
  • 500 ml whole milk

Method
 

Make the caramel
  1. Heat sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat, swirling the pan (not stirring) until it turns deep amber, about 6-8 minutes.
  2. Pour the caramel immediately into a 20cm (8-inch) round mold, tilting to coat the bottom and slightly up the sides. Set aside to harden.
Make the custard
  1. Heat oven to 150C/300F. Crush amaretti cookies into fine crumbs using a food processor or a rolling pin and sealed bag.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk eggs and sugar together until pale, about 2 minutes.
  3. Whisk in cocoa powder, crushed amaretti and rum until smooth and no dry lumps remain.
  4. Warm the milk in a saucepan until steaming but not boiling, then whisk it slowly into the egg mixture.
  5. Strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve into the caramel-lined mold to remove any lumps.
Bake and chill
  1. Set the mold in a roasting pan and pour boiling water into the pan until it reaches halfway up the sides of the mold.
  2. Bake for 50-55 minutes, until the edges are set and the center still jiggles slightly, like a baked cheesecake. Internal temp should read 176F/80C.
  3. Remove from the water bath, cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight.
  4. Run a thin knife around the edge, set a rimmed plate on top and invert quickly to unmold, letting the caramel run down as sauce.

Notes

  • Use a light-colored pan for the caramel so you can see the color change clearly.
  • Do not stir the caramel while it cooks, swirl the pan gently instead.
  • Check the water bath level once during baking and top up with hot water if low.
  • Let the mold cool to room temperature before refrigerating to avoid condensation pooling on top.