Basic Creme Brulee
If you wondered how to use the leftover egg yolks after making the Cashew Macaroons, look no further than this dessert recipe. Albeit a bit technical, this is one of the easiest desserts to make. Creme Brulee in French means Burnt Cream. It is similar to the Caramel Custard, yet very different. It is a dessert consisting of a rich custard base topped with a thin layer of crispy hardened caramelised sugar.
The Origins of the Creme Brulee
Although, generally known by the common man as a French dessert, the Origins of this much loved, classic dish is kind of a mystery with the Brits, French and Spaniards staking claim to be the inventors of this dish. With custards being popular through Europe in the Middle Ages, it is in-fact near impossible to determine the origins of this dish. 15th century English recipes of a rich seasonal custard made during the calving season is found to be quite similar to creme brulee.
The layer of burnt sugar didn’t make its appearance until the 17th century, when a student of Trinity College in cambridge came up with the idea of branding the college crest into a sugar topping. Better known as cambridge Cream or Trinity Cream, this dessert has been a staple on the institute’s menu ever since and is supposedly unsweetened and thicker compared to the other variants.
Creme Brulee made its appearance in French cookbooks towards the end of the 17th century and had a minor technical difference. Instead of burning the sugar directly on the custard, a disk of pre-prepared caramelised sugar was placed on the top.
While these two version scame into existence and gained popularity between the 15th -17th century, the Spanish “Crema Catalana”, dates back to the medieval ages. But since custard was popular in Europe through the medieval times, it is not possible to pin point the origins.
How to make Creme Brulee
As fancy as it may sound, this dessert is basically a custard with a coating of crispy caramelised sugar on top. We start off with the cream and vanilla in a saucepan and bring it to a boil on medium heat. Meanwhile in a mixing bowl, whisk the yolks and sugar until creamy. Add a few tablespoons of the cooked cream to the creamed yolks and whisk. Do not add too much of the cooked cream as then it will end up cooking the eggs and result in scrambled eggs instead of custard. Add this custard to the remaining cream in the saucepan and whisk well. Strain the custard and transfer it into ramekins.
Place the ramekins in a deep baking tray and pour in hot water in the tray until little above halfway up the sides of the ramekin. Transfer the baking tray to the oven and bake until the custard is set yet wobbly in the middle. remove the ramekins from the hot water bath and allow to cool completely. Once cooled completely, transfer the ramekins to the refrigerator to chill overnight. Take out the ramekins from the refrigerator, just before serving. Sprinkle an even coating of brown sugar on top.
Caramelise the sugar with the help of a blow torch. Do not overdo this step and burn the sugar. Also, move the blowtorch evenly over the sugar to achieve an uniform caramelised coating. A good way to know if the coating is good is by the sound it makes when tapped. Hence, people usually tap the caramelised sugar with the back of the spoon and then crack it open and pick up a spoonful of that silky, creamy custard along with the caramelised sugar coating. While tapped, the coating should give out a firm tapping sound and hold its shape and not a flimsy, brittle sound and crack with a solitary tap.
If you do not have a blow torch, do not fret. Coat the top of the custard with the sugar and place it under a hot grill until the sugar caramelises. This is the basic recipe for Creme Brulee. You can however add your own personal touch by flavouring it differently. I hope you enjoy making this dessert. Happy baking!
Basic Creme Brulee
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- Whisk
- Ramekins
- Deep Baking Tray
- Blow torch
Ingredients
- 3 Egg yolks
- 200 gms Whipping cream
- 2 tsp Vanilla essence
- 2 tbsp Caster sugar
- Brown sugar, as needed, for caramel crust
- Hot water, as needed, for the water bath
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 150°C
- Take the cream and vanilla in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat
- Whisk the eggs and caster sugar in a small bowl until creamy
- Add a small quantity of the cooked cream to the eggs and whisk
- Add this to the cream in the saucepan and whisk well
- Strain this custard and pour it into a ramekin.
- Place the ramekin in a deep baking tray and pour in hot water in the tray until little above halfway up the sides of the ramekin.
- Bake for about 40 mins or until set yet wobbly in the middle.
- Remove the ramekin from the hot water bath and let it cool completely at room temperature.
- Chill overnight
- Before serving, sprinkle brown sugar on top and caramelise it with a blow torch.
- Creme Brulee is best enjoyed by tapping the caramel crust with the back of your spoon and then cracking it. Enjoy!
Notes
- If you don’t have a blow torch, place the ramekin under a hot grill until the sugar caramelizes.