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The creme brulée is a dessert everyone should make once in their life! And it is a delicious dessert that everyone secretly should like, right? As a true Frenchwoman, I am sold whenever I see the words ‘creme brulée’ on a restaurant menu. And because I often make this french dessert myself, I thought it was time to share it with you all. Remember what Amelie Poulain said: breaking the sugary caramel crust of the creme brulée’s top is the best feeling in the world.
So first off, let’s talk a bit about the creme brulée, what is it exactly? It’s a french dessert, consisting of a rich egg yolks custard and topped with a layer of sugar caramelized with a kitchen burner. This dessert is quite similar as the crema catalana, a Spanish custard dessert.
Because I often make this dessert myself, I forget that others maybe don’t know it, or how easy it is to do once you know the steps, and the creme brulée should really be a dessert to serve to your guests. So are we ready to deep dive into the French Cuisine, my friend?
Ingredients for the creme brulée
- 600 ml whipped cream
- 1 vanilla bean
- 120 grams of white sugar
- 7 egg yolks
for the crust
- 60 grams of brown sugar
- kitchen burner
Prepare the creme brulée
First, separate the egg yolks from the whites. In a bowl, combine the yolks with half of the white sugar. Mix the two with a hand mixer or a stand mixer until it forms an airy yellow mixture that’s a little frothy.
Pour the whipped cream into a saucepan, and cut the vanilla bean in half. Scrape the vanilla from the bean with a butter knife and add to the cream. Then add the rest of the sugar to the cream too, and stir well.
Preheat the oven to 150 degrees and have your ramekins or cazuelas (terracotta trays) ready. Once the cream has reached a boil, mix in the egg mixture on a slow mixer setting. Make sure you add the hot cream very slowly, or it will curdle!
Fill your jars, and ramekins or whatever you use with the creme. Place the jars in an oven dish that you fill with a layer of water. Place the dish in the oven for 20 minutes if your ramekins are low or 30 minutes if they are a bit higher. The cream should not dry out. If you shake a container back and forth, the center of the cream should still move a little.
Let the ramekins rest at room temperature for at least 2 hours when they come out of the oven. You can then serve them immediately or, of course, store them (for up to a few days) in the refrigerator for later. Take them out of the fridge just before you serve them. The idea is to serve them slightly cold, after making the sugary crust, but you can first do the crust and store them some time in the fridge. But myself I like to cool the creme brulées first and then just before serving, make the sugary crust.
How to make the sugary crust? Sprinkle an even layer of brown sugar over the cream and burn the sugar until it has completely set.
Voilà, a homemade creme brulée!
The result after enjoying a creme brulée
Making a creme brulée is not difficult at all if you pay attention! And as you can see, you don’t need much to make this delicious french dessert and show it off to your guests. You will need to buy a burner of course, they cost around 9 euros and you can find them at any hardware store or even big supermarkets like Carrefour, in the kitchen section.
But now, the only question is what to do with your left egg whites. The answer? Meringues, of course! Or another dish that you can try! There are more french recipes on my blog, you will find here a delicious french tartinette with onion and camembert, here a sweet breakfast the french toast and here delicious and traditional Pithiviers!
This creme brulée recipe is one of my favorites and I decided to add in the Ebook I just published, 20 Baked Goods! You can buy it here with paypal Deli.pics and on Convertkit with a creditcard!
Have you tried this creme brulée recipe? I’d love to hear from you if you have any feedback or comments; you can find me on Instagram as Casadelavida.nl and my pinterest!
