As far as I'm concerned a Valentine's day dessert has one & only criteria -
"The first bite should give you hope,
the second lust &
by the third you're in love!"
So without much further ado I give you -Chocolate & Orange Croissant Pudding with a Grand Marnier-Orange Cream sauce
...sigh....
Main ingredients for this feature are -
Pudding - 2-3 days old (stale) large butter croissants, orange - rind, eggs, heavy cream, milk, semi-sweet chocolate chips, sugar, pure vanilla extract
Grand Marnier Orange Cream sauce - Grand Marnier liquor, heavy cream, sugar, eggs, pure vanilla extract & orange - rind + juice.
Firstly, please buy the large good bakery quality butter croissants & secondly there is no need to break the bank buying the large bottle of Grand Marnier liquor - you are likely to expire from sticker shock if you look for one of those at the regular grocery store. It is much better to just buy the airline size - 50 ml bottle from a liquor store. That should run you about $4 bucks compared to $32-40 bucks for a large bottle.
You will also find a couple of things unique about this recipe - one we bake the pudding for only 25-30 minutes as opposed to 1 to 1-1/2 hours. This is because we use a few shortcuts & semi-cook the custard before it enters the oven.
Also, I remember when I started fixing the sauce, I was just winging it per se and I could hear in my head , my very loud voice shouting 'curdled milk, curdled milk, curdled milk' over & over again. Between that, there was a lot of praying!
Here's why - most sauces either do a cream, eggs & liquor base & others do butter & orange juice & liquor.
But I just knew that I had to do one with all of them combined because I wanted the scent of oranges & the liquor & the richness of the cream in one sauce! I almost kissed the floor when I finished making the sauce and it turned out perfectly! Here's me doing a little victory dance.....
Now that that's out of the way -
Preheat the oven at 350 deg F.
Slice the croissants horizontally and place cut side up on a baking tray or a baking stone.
Bake in a pre-heated oven for 8 minutes until the edges are a nice golden brown. Using a knife or kitchen shears Cut into 1 " size chunks.
Cook's Note - When I first made this, I left the croissants into large quarter chunks & when I served the pudding realized it was not easy to cut into with just a fork so I'm suggesting to cut into smaller 1" chunks here.

Place the croissants in a baking pan sprayed with some non-stick baking spray.
Add the chocolate chips and mix till the chocolate chips are well distributed through-out. Set aside while you get working on the custard.
For the custard, gather the heavy whipping cream, milk, pure vanilla extract, 8 eggs & sugar.
Take 2 of the eggs & crack in a bowl, separating the egg yolks from the whites. We will only be using the egg yolks for these 2 eggs. You can use the egg whites for an omelet the next morning if you keep in the refrigerator.
In a small sauce pan, add the whipping cream & the milk with the pure vanilla extract. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat. Turn off the heat and set aside to slightly cool.
In the meanwhile, in a large microwave safe mixing bowl, crack the remaining 6 eggs. Add the sugar and with an electric hand mixer blend for a few minutes till it combined well. Whisk the cream & milk combination a little at a time into the eggs until thoroughly combined.
At this point, place the mixture in a clean sauce pan and whisk continuously for about 7-8 minutes on low heat or until the custard has slightly thickened (thick enough to coat the back of a spoon)
Cook's Note - Watch the sauce very carefully, do not walk away - you do not want to end up with scrambled eggs. Remember you only need the custard to be slightly thickened - it will cook the rest of the way in the oven.

Remove & whisk thoroughly now to make sure that any custard solids that have formed have completely broken down & the custard is smooth.
Cook's Note - If the custard is a little thick (like in my case), don't worry - add 2 tbs milk & whisk till it is a smooth pouring consistency again (as long as it doesn't look like scrambled eggs in which case you'll have to start over :-(
Using a fine grater, grate the orange and reserve the rind in a bowl. Keep turning the orange as you grate so you do not end up with the white pith & end up grating the whole orange uniformly.
Mix half of the rind into the custard and whisk.
Juice the orange and reserve the juice for the orange sauce.Reserve the remaining rind & the juice for the sauce.
Pour the custard over the croissants & chocolate. Using a fork, spread the custard evenly & press down very gently so all the croissants are soaked and covered.
Cook's Note - Use a light hand because the chocolate would have melted with the heat from the croissant and the custard and you will end up with excessive marbling if you push down hard & bring the chocolate to the surface.
Bake in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until the center has just set. Do not over bake or you will end up with a dry pudding.
In the meanwhile prepare the Grand Marnier Orange Cream sauce -
In a small sauce pan, heat the orange juice and sugar on medium heat. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until it has been reduced by 1/3 its original quantity. Turn off heat & set aside.
In a separate large sauce pan, combine the cream & pure vanilla extract. Bring to boil and immediately turn off the heat. Strain before using to get rid of the skim layer.
Crack 3 eggs, separating the egg yolks from the whites. Set aside the whites & place only the egg yolks in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add the sugar. Using an electric beater, beat the egg yolks & the sugar till is is pale & frothy.
Add 1/4 of the heated cream into the eggs to temper the eggs & beat with a whisk. Return this mixture to the remaining milk in the large saucepan. On very low flame ('0' setting if you have it) begin whisking the sauce. Keep whisking constantly until the sauce has thickened. Do not allow to boil.
Add the orange juice reduction & the rind to the thickened sauce. Keep whisking on very low heat till the desired consistency is reached. Once again, do not boil. Turn off heat and add the Grand Marnier liquor.
The sauce has reached desired consistency once it coats the back of the spoon and leaves a mark when you draw a finger through the sauce. You are not looking for a very thick Mornay sauce type consistency.
Remove to a serving bowl or boat & once it has cooled, refrigerate till chilled. If you are serving this for dinner, make the sauce earlier in the day or the previous evening.
To reheat the pudding, bake for 10 minutes in an oven preheated at 400 deg F or plate each serving with a square slice and microwave for about a minute or so till warm.
Pool the sauce around the pudding. Using a sieve, dust some powdered sugar over the pudding & around the plate. Serve with a couple of fresh berries & a sprig of mint.
Cook's Note - Once the sauce is chilled it will thicken considerably. If needed Add 1-2 tbs of milk & blend with a fork till it has once again reached pouring consistency. Also when the sauce is hot it will taste quite sweet but once you chill it the sugar content will reduce. If at this point you want to add more sugar, use powdered sugar only - 1 tsp at a time. Feel free to add more liquor as well if you choose.
The chocolate and orange in the pudding is wonderful together with the buttery softness of the croissants. The cream sauce incensed with the flavor of oranges and the Grand Marnier liquor with its hint of bitter oranges, vanilla & exotic spices adds just the right touch of complexity to this delicious , creamy, rich sauce.
Recipe for
VALENTINE'S DAY - CHOCOLATE & ORANGE CROISSANT PUDDING WITH A GRAND MARNIER ORANGE CREAM SAUCE
Preparation time - 30 minutes
Cooking time - 30-40 minutes
Serves 4-6
Shopping list:
Pudding -
4 qty, 2-3 days old (stale) large butter croissants
1 tsp grated orange rind
6 eggs + 2 egg yolks
1-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup milk
8 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla
extract
couple of tbs milk if needed to thin custard
Grand Marnier Orange Cream sauce
1-1/2 tbs Grand Marnier liquor
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar (for the cream)
1/3 cup sugar (for the orange juice)
Juice of 1 orange
3 egg yolks
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp rind of orange
couple of tbs milk if needed to thin sauce
For Garnish -
Blackberries or raspberries
1 tbs powdered sugar for dusting
sprigs of mint
Preparation -
Preheat the oven at 350 deg F.
Pudding -
Croissants - Slice the croissants horizontally and place cut side up on a baking pan or a baking stone. Bake
in a pre-heated oven for 8 minutes until the edges are a nice golden
brown. Using a knife or kitchen shears Cut into 1 " size chunks.Place the croissants in a baking pan sprayed with some non-stick baking spray. Add
the chocolate chips and mix till the chocolate chips are well
distributed through-out. Set aside.
Custard - In a
small sauce pan, add the whipping cream & the milk with the pure
vanilla extract. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat. Turn off the
heat and set aside to slightly cool
Eggs - Take
2 of the eggs & crack in a bowl, separating the egg yolks from the
whites. We will only be using the egg yolks for these 2 eggs.
In
the meanwhile, in a large microwave safe mixing bowl, crack the
remaining 6 eggs. Add the sugar and with an electric hand mixer blend
for a few minutes till it combined well. Whisk the cream & milk
combination a little at a time into the eggs until thoroughly combined.
At this point, place the mixture in a clean sauce pan and whisk continuously for about 7-8 minutes on low heat or until the custard has slightly thickened (thick enough to coat the back of a spoon)
Remove
& whisk thoroughly now to make sure that any custard solids that
have formed have completely broken down & the custard is smooth.
Cook's Note
- If the custard is a little thick (like in my case), don't worry - add
2 tbs milk & whisk till it is a smooth pouring consistency again
(as long as it doesn't not look like scrambled eggs in which case
you'll have to start over.
Orange - Using
a fine grater, grate the orange and reserve the rind in a bowl. Keep
turning the orange as you grate so you do not end up with the white
pith & end up grating the whole orange uniformly.
Mix half of the rind into the custard and whisk.
Grand Marnier Orange Cream sauce - Eggs - Crack
3 eggs, separating the egg yolks from the whites. Set aside the whites
& place only the egg yolks in a medium sized mixing bowl.
Orange- Juice the orange. Reserve the remaining rind & the juice for the sauce.
Cooking method-
Preheat the oven at 350 deg F.
Pudding -
Pour
the custard over the croissants & chocolate. Using a fork, spread
the custard evenly & press down very gently so all the croissants
are soaked and covered.
Cook's Note
- Use a light hand because the chocolate would have melted with the
heat from the croissant and the custard and you will end up with
excessive marbling if you push down hard & bring the chocolate to
the surface.
Bake
in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until the center has just set.
Do not over bake or you will end up with a dry pudding.
Grand Marnier Orange sauce -
In a small sauce pan, heat the orange juice and 1/3 cup sugar on medium heat.
Simmer for about 10 minutes or until it has been reduced by 1/3 its
original quantity.
In
a separate large sauce pan, combine the cream & pure vanilla
extract. Bring to boil and immediately turn off the heat. Strain before
using to get rid of the skim layer.
Add the 1/4 cup
sugar. Using an electric beater, beat the egg yolks & the sugar
till is is pale & frothy.
Add
1/4 of the heated cream into the eggs to temper the eggs & beat
with a whisk. Return this mixture to the remaining milk in the large
saucepan. On very low flame ('0' setting if you have it) begin whisking
the sauce. Keep whisking constantly until the sauce has thickened. Do
not allow to boil.
Add
the orange juice reduction & the rind to the thickened sauce. Keep
whisking on very low heat till the desired consistency is reached. Once
again, do not boil. The
sauce has reached desired consistency once it coats the back of the
spoon and leaves a mark when you draw a finger through the sauce. You
are not looking for a very thick Mornay sauce type consistency.
Turn off heat and add the Grand Marnier liquor. Stir to mix.
Remove
to a serving bowl or boat & once it has cooled, refrigerate till
chilled. If you are serving this for dinner, make the sauce earlier in
the day or the previous evening.
To
Serve -
Reheat the pudding,
- Bake the entire dish for 10 minutes in an oven preheated at 400 deg
F
or
- plate each serving with a square slice and microwave for about a minute or so till
warm.
Pool
the sauce around the pudding. Using a sieve, dust some powdered sugar
over the pudding & around the plate. Serve with a couple of fresh
berries & a sprig of mint.
Cook's Note - Once
the
sauce is chilled it will thicken considerably. If needed Add 1-2
tbs of milk & blend with a fork till it has once again reached
pouring consistency.
Also when the sauce is hot it will taste quite
sweet but once you chill it the sweetness will reduce. If at this
point you want to add more sugar, use powdered sugar only - 1 tsp at a
time.Feel free to add more liquor if you choose as well.
Enjoy!