It's such a shame that Creme Brulee is so easy to make...because if you ate it on a regular basis you would probably cut decades off your life. It is sooo good...and sooo bad. Let's talk about the good. It only has 4 ingredients...or 5 (depending on what sugar you use). Silky custard inside, crunchy sugar outside. Did I mention easy? Not only easy, but fun too - how many times do you get to use a blow torch in the kitchen? I shall be looking for more ways. While it might take hours from start to eating, the actual prep time is not that long. I based my recipe on Alton Brown's Creme Brulee (yes, he of the Cheese Souffle Disappointment). This time I wasn't disappointed:Betty Debbie's Creme Brulee
1 pint whipping cream
1 teaspoon real vanilla
1/4 cup sugar
3 large egg yolks
1/4 cup turbinado sugar (use granulated if you don't have this)
Preheat oven to 325'.
Scald the cream, then add the vanilla. Let sit for about 10 minutes. Whisk the 1/4 cup sugar with the egg yolks. Slowly temper the egg yolk mixture by adding the hot cream a little at a time, while stirring constantly. Pour the mixture into 4 (6 ounce) ramekins. Place the ramekins in a larger baking pan, then place in oven. As soon as you get it in the oven, pour very hot water into the larger pan, until the water comes at least half way up the sides of the ramekin. Bake until the creme brulee is just set - about 40 to 45 minutes. Carefully remove from the baking tray (I used a spatula to lift each one individually). Refrigerate for at least 2 hours (up to 3 days is fine, but it would never last that long at my house).
Remove from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before browning the sugar on top. Divide the turbinado sugar equally and sprinkle evenly on the tops, then melt the sugar using a torch (FUN!). This forms a crispy top. You can repeat this last step if you would like a thicker topping. Allow to cool for a few minutes, then serve.
If you read the recipe, you can tell right off what is soooo bad about this. Yeah, each ramekin has 1/2 a cup of heavy cream. It's soooo good. And soooo bad.
Alex van der Stevejinck's opinion of Creme Brulee? "Caramelicious."
It looks carmelicious. Nice torch.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to step it up add Vanilla Bean. (slit open and scrape just the flesh into milk before you scald it. Oh, so very yummy!
ReplyDeleteThe original recipe called for vanilla bean...but that would have meant a trip to the store.
ReplyDeleteJust found you guys -- Luckily I think I'm not to late to read all the archived posts!
ReplyDeleteBut you are going to suck me back into reading BN's books in order, and I just know that will be the signal for my TBR to take over the house.
(I've been reading Betty Neels since she was very first published. Yes, I am that old.)
Hey, look -- that's my first (roughly) comment.
ReplyDeleteI was going to ask Betty Debbie (it's so helpful to know who everyone is!) what she does with the egg whites, but then I remembered that in a previous post someone mentioned a peach Pavlova. Oh, my heavens -- so divine. My ex-mother-in-law made it for me & Brit Hub 1.0 on a visit, and I nearly swooned. Pavlovas normally have strawberries, but the fresh, super-ripe peaches were even better.
(Basically meringue disks piled with lashings of whipped cream and fruit.)
Sounds wonderful - Pavlova is on my cooking queue. I think I will wait until spring or summer so that I can have some fresh fruit on it.
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