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Make the Bavarian Cream:
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Pulse the coffee beans in a grinder four or five times very quickly to break or bruise them. Put them in a heavy saucepan with the milk and scald it. Let it sit for at least an hour and a half. Then strain it and scald the milk again.
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n the top of a double boiler, but off the heat, whisk together the sugar, egg yolks and salt. Pour a tiny stream of the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly as you do. Add the rest of the milk, very slowly, whisking continuously. Cook in the top part of a double boiler over simmering water just until it starts to thicken. Strain through a fine sieve, return to a medium sized bowl, and add the gelatin. Stir well to combine.
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Simmer the whiskey for a few minutes to cook off the alcohol. You can either do this in a small heavy pan on the stove or (as I do) in the microwave.
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Dissolve the gelatin in the cold water, stirring gently for about a minute. Add the hot whiskey to the gelatin, then pour the combination into the custard, and stir well.
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Refrigerate just long enough to cool. (Do not let the gelatin set. if it does, however, don't panic. Just beat it well with an electric mixer until it's very smooth.)
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Chill a bowl and your beaters or whisk. (I put them in the freezer for about five minutes.) Once the custard is cool, beat the whipping cream and fold it very gently into the custard. I generally don't incorporate it fully, as I like the flavor and texture contrasts of a few streaks of whipped cream in this dessert. But that's up to you.
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Put the Bavarian cream in the fridge while you make the chocolate sauce:
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In a small bowl, stir 1 tablespoons of boiling water into the sugar along with the whiskey, then stir well, until the sugar is dissolved.
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Sift the cocoa into the syrup and stir well.
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Add the whipping cream and stir to combine.
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Divide the sauce among the bowls in which you plan to serve the dessert. Top with the Bavarian Cream, then cover each dish with plastic wrap pressed onto the surface of the dessert, if you don't care for the skin that may form. Refrigerate for at least four hours before serving.
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Garnish with toasted almonds, shaved chocolate or Chantilly cream.
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This recipe was contributed by Food52 user AntoniaJames.
