Ingredients

• 75g/2½oz caster sugar
• 5 free-range egg yolks
• 250ml/10½fl oz milk
• 250ml/10½fl oz double cream
• 40g/1½oz dark chocolate
• finely chopped
• ½ lemon
• zest and juice only
• 1 small bunch mint leaves
• picked and roughly chopped
• ¼ tsp peppermint essence
• plus a few drops extra
• 4 tbsp demerara sugar
• 250g/10½oz ready-made puff pastry
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• ½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 4 sprigs fresh mint
• 4 twists lemon peel
• 4 shards dark chocolate

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 140C/285F/Gas 1
• For the crème brûlées
• lightly butter 12 very small ramekins.
• Place the sugar and egg yolks into a bowl and whisk together.
• Place the milk and cream into a pan over a low heat and bring to the boil.
• Gradually pour the hot milk and cream mixture onto the eggs
• whisking constantly to combine.
• Place the chocolate into a clean bowl. Pour a third of the custard onto the chocolate and whisk well until all the chocolate has melted.
• Strain the chocolate custard into four of the ramekins.
• Pour half of the remaining custard into a clean bowl. Add the lemon zest and juice
• stir to combine
• then pour into four of the clean ramekins.
• Add the mint and peppermint essence to the remaining custard and leave to infuse for five minutes. Place a stick blender into the mint-infused custard and blend to combine.
• Pass through a sieve and pour into the remaining four clean ramekins.
• Place the ramekins into a roasting tray. Pour water into the roasting tray to half-fill with water
• then transfer to the oven to bake for 30 minutes
• or until the custards are just set.
• Remove the crème brûlées from the oven and the roasting tin. Leave to cool
• then place into the fridge to chill.
• For the palmiers
• preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
• On a clean flat surface
• roll the puff pastry out to ½cm/¼in thick.
• Sprinkle with three-quarters of the caster sugar and three-quarters of the grated nutmeg.
• Starting at one end of the pastry
• roll the pastry up towards the middle of the pastry.
• Turn the pastry around and roll the other side up towards the middle to leave two even rolls of pastry meeting in the middle.
• Cut the rolled up pastry into 1cm/½ thick slices. Place each slice flat onto a work surface and flatten out slightly with a rolling pin.
• Place the pastry pieces onto a baking sheet and dust with the remaining sugar and nutmeg.
• Transfer to the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes
• until golden and crisp. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
• To serve
• when the crème brûlées are cold and fully set
• slide a knife gently around the edge of each of the custards and turn each onto a large serving plate.
• Place one third of the demerara sugar into a clean bowl with a little drop of the peppermint essence. Sprinkle on top of the mint crème brûlées.
• Top the lemon and chocolate brûlées with the remaining demerara sugar.
• Using a mini-blowtorch
• heat the sugar topping of each crème brûlée
• until the sugar melts and caramelises.
• When the caramel has cooled
• garnish each mint crème brûlée with a sprig of mint; garnish the lemon crème brûlées with a twist of lemon peel; and garnish the chocolate crème brûlées with some shards of chocolate.
• Add several palmiers to the plate and serve.