The Golden Goddess Recipe

Prepare chocolate

Chop the Caramelia chocolate into small even pieces and place in a heatproof bowl. Set aside.

Scald dairy

In a medium saucepan, combine whole milk and heavy cream. Heat over medium until small bubbles form at the edge (do not boil). Remove from heat.

Temper yolks

Whisk together egg yolks, granulated sugar and cornstarch in a bowl until slightly pale and smooth.

Make custard

Slowly pour one-third of the hot milk mixture into the yolk mixture while whisking constantly to temper. Return the tempered yolk mixture to the saucepan with the remaining milk. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom until the custard thickens enough to coat the back of the spatula (about 5–8 minutes). Do not boil.

Finish crèmeux

Immediately pour the hot custard through a fine-mesh sieve over the chopped Caramelia. Let rest for 1 minute to melt the chocolate, then gently whisk until smooth and glossy. Add cold cubed butter and salt, whisking to incorporate and emulsify. Pass again if necessary for ultimate smoothness. Cover surface with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled (2–3 hours) or chill faster in an ice bath, stirring occasionally until about 40°F (4–5°C).

Chop and toast pepitas

Roughly chop the roasted pepitas so some pieces remain whole for texture. In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the chopped pepitas briefly (1–2 minutes) until fragrant. Remove to a small bowl to cool.

Caramelize sugar and combine

In the same skillet, add granulated sugar and melt over medium heat without stirring until it liquefies and turns a light amber (you may swirl the pan). Add the butter and corn syrup, stir to form a smooth syrup. Immediately add torn or grated marzipan pieces and stir continuously so the marzipan warms and breaks into the syrup, binding the mixture.

Add pepitas and set

Stir toasted pepitas and salt into the warm marzipan-sugar mixture until evenly coated. Spread the mixture thinly on parchment paper and allow to cool completely. Once cool, roughly chop or pulse in a food processor for a coarse crunch (do not over-process; leave pea to rice-size pieces). Store in an airtight container until assembly.

Soften dulce

If the dulce de leche is very thick, warm it gently in a microwave-safe bowl for 10–15 seconds or place the jar in a warm water bath to loosen. Transfer to a small bowl.

Whisk in butter and salt

Whisk the softened dulce de leche with the softened butter and a pinch of sea salt until smooth and slightly glossy. Chill briefly (10–15 minutes) to firm slightly so it will hold shape when portioned.

Portioning

Decide final service format: 6 individual glasses or 6 small tins (recommended). For 6 servings, spoon about 1 tablespoon of the dulce de leche core into the center of each serving vessel, creating a small well with the back of the spoon.

Add crèmeux

Stir the chilled Caramelia crèmeux to loosen. Spoon or pipe approximately 1/2 cup (about 4 tablespoons) of crèmeux into each vessel, filling around and over the dulce core so the dulce is encapsulated but not completely covered if you want a visual dot. Smooth the top with an offset spatula.

Top with crunch

Sprinkle 1 to 1.5 tablespoons of the mazapan pepita crunch onto each portion, pressing lightly so some crunch adheres to the crèmeux surface.

Chill to set

Refrigerate assembled portions for at least 2 hours (preferably 4 hours) to allow crèmeux to fully set and flavors to meld.

Optional finish

Before serving, brush a light sheen of melted neutral oil or cocoa butter over the crunch for shine and to slightly seal it. Dust with a very small pinch of edible gold dust or apply a tiny piece of gold leaf as a garnish. Finish with a few micro flakes of sea salt on each portion to accentuate caramel notes.