Crème Brûlée

makes 6 servings

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 325ºF.
Combine the heavy cream and vanilla extract in a medium pot. Bring to boil over medium-high heat. Remove from the heat immediately, cover and let sit for 15 minutes.
In a bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup sugar and the egg yolks until it becomes a light yellow color. Temper the eggs by adding the cream to the eggs, 1 tbsp at a time, stirring in between.
After half of the cream has been tempered with the egg, you can can add the remainder of the cream all at once to the egg/cream mixture.
Once both the cream and eggs have been incorporated, strain the liquid one more time. This will ensure the custard is extra smooth.
Pour the liquid into 4 ramekins. Place the ramekins into a large cake pan. Add hot water into the pan to about halfway up the sides of the pan. Bake for approximately 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Remove the ramekins from the refrigerator and let sit for 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar top. Coat the surface of each ramekin evenly with 1 tbsp of sugar. Using a torch, gently melt the sugar and form a brown, crispy top. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.
Garnish with fruits and powder sugar.

Ingredients

2 cups heavy cream

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup sugar

3 large egg yolks

Good to know

After baking, the crème brûlée should be set but still a little jiggly in the center.

Rotate the ramekins slowly as you are torching the sugar. This will allow even browning and prevent the sugar from burning. The sugar top should be a light brown color, not dark brown. The sugar will burn faster the longer you torch so eyes on the custards, folks!

Caramelize the sugar tops right before eating. Refrigerate after torching will turn the crispy tops soggy.

Toodles!