Crème Brûlée (French Vanilla Custard)

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This Crème Brûlée is rich & creamy, with a crispy caramelized sugar crust that adds a sweet and crunchy texture to the dessert. It’s the perfect way to end a fancy dinner, or to just indulge yourself on a long weekend.

Crème Brûlée is a French dessert that literally translates to burnt cream. The name is fitting, because it’s a delicious cream custard that is topped with a torched layer of sugar – which provides a warm, roasted and sweet essence to the dessert.

It’s one of those dishes that makes you feel elegant and luxurious but is incredibly cheap and easy to make. Follow this recipe to craft this amazing French delicacy and you’ll never regret it.

Secret Ingredient: Real Vanilla Bean Pod

Crème Brûlée richness is determined by the quality of the vanilla flavoring and the cream. In this recipe, we’ll be utilizing real vanilla beans and scraping out the valuable raw paste that’s in these pods.

Sure, you can go with vanilla extract, but trust me, when you use real vanilla beans, you’ll certainly taste and feel the difference.

The Ingredients for Crème Brûlée

• 3 cups Heavy Cream
• 6 Egg Yolks
• 1 cup Sugar (granulated)
  • 1/2 cup for custard mix
  • 1/2 cup for caramelized topping
• 1 dash Salt
• 2 Vanilla Beans

The Equipment Needed

• Cooking Torch
• Large Baking Tray
• Ceramic Ramekins

Craft The Vanilla Cream Mixture

Start by slicing open the vanilla bean pods and scraping out the natural vanilla paste.

Then, in a sauce pan, simmer heavy cream, the vanilla bean paste and pods.

Once it’s simmered and the cream and vanilla flavoring are fully incorporated, remove from heat and let it cool so that the liquid is just slightly warm.

Prepare Egg Mixture

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks, and sugar.

Then strain the vanilla cream liquid into a measuring cup.

Slowly pour in the vanilla cream liquid into the whisked eggs while stirring constantly to ensure all ingredients are fully integrated.

Once the mixture is done, fill your ceramic ramekins until they are about 3/4 filled with the mixture.

Bake Your Crème Brûlée Ramekins

Place your ramekins on a baking pan, and fill the pan with water until the water reaches about 1/2 half way up ramekins. (Be careful not to let any of the water splash into the ramekins themselves.)

Then bake the ramekins at 300 degrees °F for 35 mins or until done. (You’ll know they are done when the surface of the mixture looks slightly leathery.)

Remove from oven and cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for 2 hours at least.

Torch Your Caramelized Sugar Layer

When ready to serve, layer on a thin level of granulated sugar on top and torch until the sugar has melted into a nice golden brown crust.

Serve and enjoy!

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