Tap tap tap! Is there anything more satisfying than cracking a creamy and delicious Crème brûlée?!
The name is fancy but I promise it is super easy to make and the most delicious dessert ever!
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Vanilla Creme Brulee
With a crispy caramelized topping and a creamy, vanilla infused custard, creme brulee is one of the easiest and most delicious desserts!
Ingredients
- 3 egg yolks - at room temperature
- 3 tbsps granulated sugar - + more for the topping
- ½ vanilla bean - or 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1¾ cup heavy cream
- ¼ tsp salt
- Boiling water - for the water bath
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 F and bring about 5 cups of water to boil for the water bath.
- Pour cream and salt into a saucepan. Split and scrape the vanilla bean. Add the seeds and the bean. Bring to a boil, then set aside for 15 minutes so that all the vanilla flavors get into the cream. If you are using vanilla extract, bring cream and salt to boil, then turn off the heat and add the extract.
- Beat the egg yolks and sugar together until it's light and creamy.
- After 15 minutes that the cream has cooled down, take the vanilla bean out. Gradually add the cream to the egg mixture while you are whisking it. Do not add more than a little at a time or you'll cook the eggs and it'll get chunky.
- Strain the mixture. This step is optional but this way you'll end up with a very smooth custard. Pour it into a pitcher or a liquid measuring cup or any sprouted container so it's easier to pour into the ramekins.
- Divide it between the ramekins.
- Place the ramekins on a baking pan and pour the boiling water in the pan until it comes halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
- Carefully, place the pan in the preheated oven and bake for about 35-40 minutes, until the sides are set but the center is slightly jiggly!
- Let the ramekins cool down on a wire rack for 30 minutes, then refrigerate them for 3 hours or overnight.
- Right before you serve them, sprinkle one tablespoon of fine sugar evenly on top. Tap out the excess sugar if you want a thin layer of caramel.
- Keep the torch about 3 inches away from the ramekin and just move it back and forth until the sugar on top is caramelized and lightly browned. Let it cool down for 5 minutes and serve. See the notes below for how to caramelize the top without a torch.
Video
Notes
How to caramelize creme brulee without a torch?
For these methods, use superfine sugar because it caramelizes faster. You can pulse granulated sugar in the food processor to get super fine sugar.
1. The Broiler method:
- Change the oven rack position, so that the tops of the ramekins are about 5 inches away from the heat. I've tried the highest position and it burns the tops in some spots while the other parts are not caramelized yet. So I switched to the one lower than that (So not the middle, and not the highest! The one between them.), but you may need to experiment with your oven too.
- Place the ramekins in the cold oven and turn on the broiler on high. It will take about 5 minutes to caramelize the tops.
- This method is a little tricky because you should keep an eye on them constantly and rotate the ramekins so that they caramelize evenly.
- The end result will be a little rustic and it's hard to caramelize the top evenly but, it gets the job done. Just make sure that you don't leave them in there for too long or your custard will melt.
- When you're happy with the tops, carefully take them out and let them cool down for 5 minutes and then serve.
2. Using a heated spoon:
- Heat a spoon (not your favorite spoon because it will get a little rustic and dark!) on the stove burner (or flame) for 5 minutes. It will be super hot so use a kitchen towel to handle it.
- Now gently press it on the sugar. You will hear a sizzle and boom! The sugar is caramelized!
- When your spoon cools off, you should wash it and clean it before reusing. Because the caramelized bits of sugar will stick to spoon and burn if you reheat the spoon and it won't work!
- Once you are happy with the top, you can either add more sugar and repeat to get a thicker layer of caramel goodness or let it cool down for 5 minutes and serve.
Absolutely! You can make it up to 3 days ahead of time. Just don't caramelize the top until you are ready to serve it.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
