Colorado Crème
Colorado crème is classy, creamy, smooth and rich. This simplified pot de crème is amazing. It is easy to make, but tastes gourmet.
Classy, creamy, smooth and rich, this simplified pot de crème (a fancy French custard that is baked and chilled) is amazing. Simply amazing.
Not only is it easy to make but it tastes like you are eating something so ethereally creamy and luscious, you’ll swear some gourmet live-in chef who works 7 days a week for free and who’s been to culinary school and back made this for you.
I was intrigued by the name of this dessert when Hollie, a reader, sent it to me and was thrilled when the taste and texture lived up to such a gourmet and lovely name. I mean, “crème” (come on, say it with a thick, French accent!) sounds so much dreamier than plain old “cream” or “pudding.”
This recipe rivals one of my old favorites winning the contest due to its ease of preparation and would also be delicious garnished with chocolate shavings or curls.
Make this. The sweet and tart berries combined with the decadent lightness of the simple custard will wow you. And your friends. And your family. And your dog. And your whomever. Rest assured you’ll wow them all or your money back guaranteed. Er, or something like that.
One Year Ago: Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps
Two Years Ago: Sweet Heat Louisiana Chili
Colorado Crème
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin
- ½ cup (106 g) sugar
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 ½ cups (340 g) light or regular sour cream
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Assortment of fresh berries, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, stir together the gelatin, sugar and heavy cream until well combined. Set the saucepan on the stovetop burner and set the heat to low, stirring until the sugar and gelatin are dissolved and the mixture is barely warm to the touch. Be careful not to overheat the mixture – the purpose is simply to heat slightly to dissolve the sugar and gelatin.
- Remove the pot from the heat and fold in the sour cream and vanilla extract until the mixture is well combined. Pour the mixture into ramekins, dessert cups, small glass bowls or pots de crème. Chill for 2-3 hours or up to overnight. Just before serving, spoon fresh berries on top.
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Recipe Source: from Hollie
Made this for Christmas dessert 🙂 still a favorite.
I have trouble getting the gelatin to dissolve and not be lumpy. Any hints?
Hi Lisa, do you feel like you heated it for long enough?
I wonder if instead of heavy cream, coconut milk could be used?
Worth a try although I haven’t tried it myself so I don’t know if it would thicken up in the same way.
Just made this for tomorrow night’s Valentine’s Day dinner! Should I cover them with plastic wrap since they’ll be chilling overnight? Or will they be ok?
Colleen – yes, go ahead and cover them with plastic wrap to refrigerate!
Mel- so I made them both to test them out and you are right, they are both yummy! I ended up serving the berries and cream because I’m not a huge sour cream fan and since berries and cream is sweeter I couldn’t really taste the sour cream in there. I could definitely eat more of the berries and cream verses the Colorado cream, which probably isn’t a good thing for the diet! Also, I heard audible mmmm’s so my quests enjoyed it too. 🙂 thanks so much for the recipes! I told many people about your blog this weekend because they liked the food so much.
P.s. My husband loves your garlic and herb biscuits. He calls them the award winning biscuits. 🙂
in your opinion, which recipe do you love more, The Colorado Creme or Berries and Cream? And what is the difference between the two? I plan on making one of the recipes for a Murder Mystery Dinner we are hosting this weekend and I want to impress. It sounds like either one would. I am also going to try your Crispy Oven Baked Chicken for it as well. I have attempted a few Pinterst recipes this week to figure out what to serve and they failed the test. I’m hoping your blog will help. I have loved everything I have made from here so far. 🙂 I will do a test run on them tomorrow probably.
Hi Janette – I love both of those recipes but admittedly, I haven’t made the Berries and Cream in years. I make the Colorado Creme more frequently. Both are really delicious – the berries and cream is just slightly sweeter (I think an elegant presentation would be with the chocolate curls and berry syrup, no matter which one you choose). Sounds fun – good luck!
I never did leave a comment for this one when I made it several times, but I found it very EASY to make! Such an elegant dessert that can be served and only needs a small amount of time to put together and so tasty too!
Eating this right now…could literally eat the whole thing. It’s so good! Super easy to make and really creamy. Love it!
I got this recipe from my neighbor who makes it for all our block parties. We often have it for dessert at Christmas. It is delicious with sweetened berries on top. We especially like the triple berry frozen blend from Costco. I think it has marionberries, raspberries and blueberries. Thaw and mix a bit of sugar in and spoon on top. Delish!
Mel,
I have been making your original recipe of Berries and Cream into a pie for quite a while now. It is delicious. I just bake a pie crust and let it cool (Marie Callendar’s in the frozen section of the grocery store is the best if you don’t want to do homemade). Pour the cream mixture into the cooked pie shell after it has thickened awhile in the fridge. Then I mix sugar, cornstarch, and water and thicken it on the stove. Then add whatever mixture of berries you want and heat through in the cornstarch mixture. I don’t cook them long since I want them to taste as fresh as possible. Then top the pie with the cooled berries/cornstarch mixture and freshly whipped sweetened cream. It is so wonderful! Also, this week I tested the Colorado Creme and the Berries and Cream side by side. I prefer the original Berries and Cream – it has a better flavor and texture. The Colorado Creme is just a little less sweet and a little bit thicker. The Berries and Cream isn’t actually that much harder to make, especially since I mix the gelatin mixture into the cream mixture when they are both slightly warm and then stick it in ice water and then mix the sour cream/vanilla mixture into it. Sorry for all the info – just thought you might want to try a pie with this delicious recipe! Thanks so much for sharing – you have helped us create one of our favorite pies!!
Kaitlyn – I loved your comment! Thanks for doing a side by side comparison and including your review. I never in a million years would have thought to make the Berries and Cream into a pie but honestly, it’s brilliant! I can’t wait to try it. Thank you!
That totally makes sense Mel. I haven’t ever really worked with gelatin before, so I will definitely add those steps in next time (and there will definitely be a next time–I don’t have near enough heavy whipping cream and sour cream in my diet already). And P.S….I’m just really glad you like my reviews and don’t yet consider me your stalker.
I made this for company today and they were so impressed–they really did think I was a fancy-schmancy chef. I couldn’t bring myself to tell them how ridiculously easy this was. The flavor was soooo good. I just had one question though–did yours get completely smooth, or were there still some granules of gelatin in there? Mine definitely didn’t get totally smooth so maybe I didn’t heat it quite enough–I was kind of worried about overheating it, so the second it was slightly warm to the touch I pulled it off. But even with the texture being not as smooth as I hoped, this was a decadent, fancy, special treat! You just keep bringing on the winners!
Reyna – so, when I posted this, I was thinking “I really hope Reyna makes this and lets me know how she liked it.” I’ve come to trust your reviews (especially because I know you are honest about them!). Anyhow, I’m this worked out well for company. And thanks for emphasizing how “ridiculously easy” it is with phenomenal results. As for the gelatin granules, I didn’t have that issue, but now that you bring it up, it might be wise to add a step in the recipe to pour the warmed mixture through a fine mesh strainer before spooning into serving dishes. The other tip that might work is to sprinkle the gelatin over the cream and let it sit for 5-6 minutes before whisking in the sugar and warming it. I know when I’ve used gelatin in other applications (like frostings, etc.) the recipe usually calls to soften the gelatin before warming.
You hooked me at creme and reeled me in when I saw sour cream as one of the ingredients and that it didn’t require any oven time.
~ingrid
I have never made anything like this and am excited to give it a try!
I was thinking about substituting plain yogurt for the sour cream, do you think it will work the same way?
Carol – yes, I think the plain yogurt would work for this. The flavor might be a bit different but I don’t think it would compromise the end result.
i haven’t heard of this treat! stars above, it’s gorgeous–pure and creamy and smooth. wowza.
This looks extremely delicious!
I’ve made this before and we call it Russian Creme and served it in homemade chocolate bowls (made with water balloons dipped in chocolate) and berries and those cute long, tube pirouette cookies! So elegant!
Wow–this has a short ingredient list, yet looks scrumptious!! All of your breads look amazing too by the way!
Yout photos are incredible! They make me want to try everything all at once! Your site looks so clean and crisp. I haven’t found a better one, and really I have stopped looking! I try your meals and then send them out to all my friends and family for them to try, reffering them back to here of course!
It sounds decadent, perhaps a little too decadent with cream and sour cream too boot.
Hello Mel,
I just wanted to let you know how very much I enjoy your recipes. I look forward every day to your post. I have never had a failure trying one of the recipes. You tend to use ingredients that I have on hand and not some long too complicated procedures.
I live in “the wilds of Wisconsin,” Madison to be precise and I love it here excepting for the long cold winters that seem to last for 6 months!
I love custards! This looks divine. Checking out your breads now 🙂
Looks yummy! Checked out the bread pics, but a couple of the pics didn’t link to the right recipe. Thought you might want to know. 😉
Hi Amy – actually, I did that on purpose. Two of the recipes I put pictures up for haven’t been posted yet. One will be posted on Thursday and the other next Monday. But I wanted to get the pictures up in my Favorite’s section. Sorry to be a tease!
Hi Amy, How long are these good for stored in the refrigerator? I want them for a Sunday bridal luncheon but have to make them Friday night and then travel with them for 3 hours in the car in a cooler. Obviously I will put the berries on Sunday morning. Do you think my plan will work?
I think that would work just fine.
You are killing me! I’m trying to do weight watchers! Lol
Oh yummy! I have actually been on the hunt for a good “berries and cream” type recipe! So, I’ll make mine with berries, but Kevin will want hot fudge poured all over the top of his!! (teeheehee!)
Yum! This looks so good, and somehow light despite the heavy cream and sour cream! 😉 Your photos are gorgeous, Melanie!
I have never had pot de creme let alone make it – but it looks incredible!