There’s no such thing as an original recipe for crème brûlée and it can be made a couple ways – one with a mixture of cream, milk and whole eggs and another with a generous amount of cream and egg yolks. Being decadent people, we opted for the latter method.
We adapted our recipe from the yellow Gourmet Cookbook and it can be scaled up for 6 or 8 servings. It has four essential steps: (1) simmering the cream, (2) mixing the hot cream and egg yolk/sugar mixture, (3) baking the custard and (4) torching the tops.
To start the recipe, preheat a convenional oven to 325°f / 160c° or to 300°f / 150°c if you’re using a convection / fan oven and then pour the heavy cream into a small saucepan. Split a vanilla bean and scrape out the inside of the pod. Drop both the scraped out center and the pod’s shell into the saucepan.
Cook the heavy cream and vanilla bean over low heat until the cream begins to simmer – you’ll see a light bubbling on the edge.
Pro Tip
If you’re using a digital kitchen thermometer, stop cooking the cream when it reaches 175°f or 80°c.
While the cream mixture is cooking, mix the eggs yolks, sugar and salt in a bowl until incorporated.
Once the cream starts to simmer, take the saucepan off the stove. Remove the vanilla bean and pour the cream into the bowl in a thin steady stream. Stir the egg yolk and cream until combined. Pour the resulting mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a separate bowl.
Once the cream/egg mixture is combined and strained into a new bowl, use a ladle to pour the mixture into ramekins. Transfer the filled ramekins into a baking dish and then place the baking dish onto a rack inside the preheated oven. While the oven is open, make a bain marie by pouring boiling water into the baking dish halfway up the ramekins.
Check the ramekins after 25 minutes. If the mixture is just set, pull the ramekins from the oven. If not, give the ramekins another five minutes in the oven.
Pro Tip
You’ll know that custard is done if it jiggles just slightly.
Remove the jiggly custards from the oven and place the reamekins on a cooling rack. Once cool, refrigerate them until they’re cold which should take three to four hours.
Pro Tip
You can leave the cooked custard in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
When you’re ready to serve the chilled custard cups, it’s time to execute the final and most fun step. First, spread turbinado sugar evenly on top of each custard cup using a small spoon. Next, torch the turbinado sugar until it starts to bubble and brown.
Pro Tip
The desired color should be dark brown, not tan or black.
Optionally top each ramekin with fresh fruit or other garnishes. We like to top our créme brulée with raspberries and blueberries but you can top yours with fruit like pineapple or cherries. You can even top the creamy dessert with nuts and marshmallows if that floats your boat. Fresh mint provides a nice touch too.
If you serve the crème brûlée at a party, instruct your guests to break the tops of the brûlée by counting 3, 2, 1…
Don’t be surprised if the room becomes quiet while your guests eat their custard cups. Instead, consider the silence to be proof of your culinary success.
