Chocolate blancmange with sticky prunes
A blast from many a person's past and just as simple and delicious now as it was then, especially when topped with cream and sticky, juicy prunes.
Ingredients
600ml milk
2 tbsp cornflour, sifted
100g castor sugar
1 bay leaf
1 strip lemon rind
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp cocoa powder, sifted
250g large dried prunes, pitted
300ml medium-strength black tea
50g soft brown sugar
Cream for serving
Method
Add 100 millilitres of milk to cornflour, stirring until smooth. Heat remaining milk with castor sugar, bay leaf and lemon rind to just under the boil, stirring well. Slowly add hot milk to cornflour mixture, whisking until smooth. Whisk in vanilla and cocoa powder. Strain mixture back into the pan and cook over gentle heat, stirring, for five minutes or until the cornflour taste is cooked out and the mixture is gloopy and thick. Rinse a glass bowl or pudding dish with cold water.
Pour blancmange into the bowl and leave to cool. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Combine prunes, tea and brown sugar in a heavy pot and bring to the boil, stirring. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is reduced to a sticky, fragrant syrup. To serve, place a large spoonful of blancmange in each bowl, pour over the cream and top with a spoonful of prunes and their juices.
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Jill Dupleix is a Good Food contributor and reviewer who writes the Know-How column.
