Crème Brulée

See the beauty up above? (the custard, not the flower)

It takes fifteen minutes to put together – I know, I timed it myself.

And then you have to wait 4 hours to eat it – I know, we looked at the clock a total of (and I’m not kidding) a hundred times.

…or if you wait a day, you will be rewarded a thousand times more.

You get to play with fire to serve it.

You get lots and lots of praises and high fives from your guest.

You can close your eyes when you are eating it and swear that you found heaven.

So go now and find heaven.

Crème Brulée
serves 6

• 1 quart heavy cream
• 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 1 cup sugar, divided (1/2 a cup each)
• 6 large egg yolks
• 2 quarts hot water

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Place the cream, vanilla bean and its pulp into a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Remove the vanilla bean and reserve for another use.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup sugar and the egg yolks until well blended and it just starts to lighten in color. Add the cream a little at a time, stirring continually. Pour the liquid into 6 (7 to 8-ounce) ramekins. Place the ramekins into a large cake pan or roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake just until the crème brulée is set, but still trembling in the center, approximately 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan and refrigerate for at least 4 hours and up to 3 days.
4. Remove the crème brulée from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top. Divide the remaining 1/2 cup vanilla sugar equally among the 6 dishes and spread evenly on top. Using a torch, melt the sugar and form a crispy top. Allow the crème brulée to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving.

The end.

Comments

[Jenn]

Ooooo pretty! flower... I meant, the brulee.. and the flower.. and the blue background. And the sunray.. and.. and.. can you tell I'm hungry.. I'm salivating at work and it's really unbecoming (people are staring...)

[Hanaa]

I love Creme Brulee but I'm too health-conscious (aka "chicken") to make with 100% cream. I also use milk + cream which turns out really good too.

[Monica]

@ Jenn - I know the feeling, since I'm salivating too. I guess that can be the excuse to make another batch?

@ Hanna - When it comes to dessert my "health conscious" side takes a back seat! But, I have done this with 1/2 of milk and 1/2 of cream and it has worked just as well.