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Crème Brûlée

Don’t be intimidated, this fancy dessert has easy to follow instructions. First, a vanilla bean is steeped in heavy cream. In a bowl, sugar and egg yolks are whisked together. Then the cream is slowly added in. The mixture is poured into ramekins and then the ramekins are placed in a larger pan. Hot water is poured in the bottom of the larger pan. The ramekins are baked then refrigerated. Before serving, sugar is sprinkled on top of the ramekins and melted with a torch.
Course Dessert
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Cooling Time 2 hours
Servings 6 people

Ingredients

  • 1 quart heavy cream
  • 1 vanilla bean split and scraped
  • 1 cup vanilla sugar divided
  • 6 large egg yolks
  • 2 quarts hot water

Instructions

  1. 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.
  2. Preheat oven to 325 F.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together ½ 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 oz) 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 brûlée is set, but still trembling in the center, approximately 40 to 45 minutes.
  4. Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. Remove the crème bruleé from the refrigerator at least 30 minutes prior to the browning the sugar on top. Divide the remaining ½ 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 brûlée to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving.