Crème Brûlée
A good crème brûlée is one of those magical combinations of both flavors and tactile sensations. Warm crunchy candied sugar, smooth cool custard, light vanilla flavor, and a tinge of smokiness come together to form a truly perfect dessert. Cracking the glassy translucent melted sugar of a crème brûlée will forever be one of my favorite things to do.
Yield: 6 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients
16 oz heavy cream
1 tbsp vanilla
½ tsp salt
4 large egg yolks
1 cup sugar, divided
Kitchen Notes: I prefer using a kitchen torch to melt the sugar, rather than sticking the ramekins under your oven's broiler, since it works quickly and leaves the crème part cold.
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Pour cream into a saucepan set over medium-high heat and heat to just under a boil. Remove from heat and allow to sit for a few minutes before stirring in vanilla extract and salt.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together ½ cup sugar and egg yolks until light in color. Add the cream a little at a time, stirring continuously.
4. Pour the cream mixture though a fine mesh sieve to remove any bubbles.
5. Pour into six 4-ounce ramekins. Place the ramekins in a large roasting pan and pour hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the dishes.
6. Bake until the cream is just set, approximately 20 to 25 minutes.
7. Remove the ramekins from the pan, allow to cool to room temperature, and then refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
8. Remove ramekins from the refrigerator, pour approximately a table spoon of sugar on each, and use a kitchen torch to melt the sugar, being careful not to burn too much in any one place.
9. Allow the crème brûlée to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving.
Consider this a base a recipe. You can make any number of flavors of crème brûlée by adding one or more ingredients, my favorite of which is coffee, so keep an eye out for that recipe coming up.
When applying heat using your kitchen torch, keep the flame moving around the ramekin so that you don't end up melting and burning only a small section of the sugar. First the granules will melt into small liquid beads, but as you keep moving the flame, they'll pool together and eventually form a thin sheet.
Sometimes I'll torch a small circle of sugar into a candy disk to use as a garnish.
You can also add a few fresh berries or a touch of whipped cream to finish off, but even a plain crème brûlée is more than sufficient on its own.