Courtesy of Chef Hugh Acheson – Five & Ten Restaurant ~ Atlanta, GA

Plums:

• 4 ripe plums
• 1 cup unsweetened Path of Tea Organic Plum Oolong tea
• 2 tbsp raw granulated sugar

Cut each plum in half from North Pole to South Pole. Remove pit. Slice each half in four and place in a medium sized bowl. Sprinkle the cut plums with sugar and pour the tea over them. Let sit at room temperature for an hour and then refrigerate.

Caramel:

• 1 cup raw granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon Organic Plum Ooolong tea
• 1/2 cup water

Lightly butter for 6 oz. ramekins. In a small saucepan combine water and sugar. Place on medium heat until sugar begins to caramelize. Wipe down the inside of the pot occasionally with a wet pastry brush. The color you’re going for is deep amber, not black. When the deep amber is reached carefully pour equal amounts of the caramel into each ramekin. Set aside.

Custard:

• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 3 large egg yolks
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 tsp. real vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup whole milk

In a medium bowl combine maple syrup, egg yolks, egg, and vanilla extract and whisk to combine. Set aside. In a medium sized sauce pot, combine the cream and the milk. Bring to a boil. Once it boils, turn off the heat and slowly whisk the cream/milk mix into the syrup/egg mix. Divide equally between your four ramekins, already lined with caramel. Place the ramekins in a two-inch deep baking pan and pour warm water into the pan to create a bain marie. Bake for about 50 minutes or so until the custards pass the jiggle test. The jiggle test is when you gentle shake one of the ramekins and they giggle for a second and then stop. If they continue jiggling they are underdone and if the don’t giggle at all the are overdone. Remove from oven and then from bain marie and chill in fridge for four hours. Invert each ramekin by tracing around the custard with a butter knife and then inverting onto a plate. Top each with some of the macerated plum and eat!