Italian · Desserts

Bonet

A Piedmont baked custard of eggs, milk, cocoa and crushed amaretti, set over a caramel and chilled for 4 hours before turning out.

1 hr 5 min prep and cooking plus 4 hr Chilling plus time for cooling, which the recipe does not time at least 5 hr 5 min start to finish Serves 8 servings Medium
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Bonet

Photograph credit: Bonet Saizeriya 2026-01 by Hanabishi · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons

How to Cook Bonet

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  1. Heat the oven to 160°C / 320°F. Melt the 150 g sugar in a pan until amber and pour it into a 1.2 litre mould, swirling to coat the base.

  2. Whisk the eggs and 100 g sugar until pale. Warm the milk and whisk it in with the cocoa, amaretti and rum.

  3. Pour into the mould and stand it in a roasting tin. Pour in hot water to come halfway up the sides.

  4. Bake for 45 minutes until set at the edges with a slight wobble in the centre.

  5. Cool, then chill for 4 hours.

  6. Run a knife round, turn out onto a plate and serve in slices with the cream.

Keep an Eye on These

  1. Bake in a water bath so the custard stays smooth.
  2. Chill for at least 4 hours before turning out.
  3. Swirl the caramel quickly, as it sets fast.

A Little Background

Bonet is a pudding named, it is said, after a hat, because the mould it sets in is round and dome shaped. It is the Piedmont answer to crème caramel, with cocoa and crushed amaretti biscuits in the custard.

The custard is made by whisking eggs and sugar, then stirring in warm milk, cocoa and the biscuits. Bake it in a water bath, standing the mould in a roasting tin of hot water, because direct heat curdles eggs and leaves holes. Pour the caramel into the mould first and swirl it to coat the base before the custard goes in.

It is ready when the edges are set and the centre still wobbles like a jelly. Cool it, then chill for at least 4 hours so it firms enough to hold its shape. Run a knife round the edge, put a plate over the mould and turn both over together. The caramel runs down the sides. Serve in slices with a little cream.

To Go With It

Pouring cream · Espresso · Sweet wine

Storing Leftovers

Keeps for 3 days in the fridge, covered.

Quick Answers

How long does Bonet take to make?

20 minutes of preparation and 45 minutes of cooking, plus 4 hours of Chilling, so allow 5 hours 5 minutes from start to finish. The method also needs time for cooling, which it does not time, so treat that as a minimum. The recipe serves 8.

Bonet Nutrition

Per serving, an approximate calculation from the ingredient list. Treat it as a rough guide: where a line offers a choice of foods, only one of them is counted; part of the energy comes from foods, or weights per item, with no recorded source. How the figures are worked out.

303Calories
7gProtein
44gCarbs
11gFat
2gFibre
40gSugar
80mgSodium

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Compiled by Turab

Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked.

First published ; last changed .