Crème Brulee
This is a beautiful dessert that is naturally gluten-free. They have to chill at least three hours, which means they can be prepared a day ahead of time.
Equipment
- 6 4 oz ramekins
- 1 baking pan
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups heavy cream
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
- pinch salt
- 5 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
- 6 tbsp vanilla sugar
- fresh raspberries optional
- fresh mint leaves optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325° and arrange the ramekins in a large, rimmed baking pan.
- In a medium saucepan over moderately high heat, combine the heavy cream, ½ of the sugar, the vanilla bean seeds and pod, and the salt and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
- While the cream is heating, add remaining sugar to the egg yolks and whisk to combine.
- Gradually add about 1/3 of the hot cream to the yolks, whisking constantly so the eggs don't cook, then add the remaining hot cream and stir to fully combine.
- Strain the custard through a fine mesh sieve into a clean bowl.
- Carefully ladle or pour the custard into the ramekins, filling them to the rim.
- Place the baking pan in the oven and carefully pour enough hot water into the pan to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
- Bake until the edges have set but the center still jiggles when the pan is gently shaken, 20-25 minutes.
- Remove the ramekins from the water bath and let cool on a rack for 30 minutes. Then wrap individually and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
- To serve, sprinkle the top of each custard with a thin even layer of vanilla sugar, using about one tablespoon per ramekin.
- Use a kitchen blowtorch or the broiler to evenly melt and caramelize the sugar. If using the broiler, keep a careful eye as the sugar can go from beautiful brown to burnt in seconds.
- Garnish each ramekin with 3 raspberries and a sprig of mint, if desired.
- Serve immediately.