Trinity College Cambridge banned crème brûlée torches in 1691, so students used red-hot fire pokers to caramelize sugar.
Crème Brûlée
Indulge in the exquisite delight of Crème Brûlée, a timeless French treat that combines a velvety custard base with a perfectly torched layer of crunchy caramelized sugar on top. With rich vanilla and a touch of cream, this dessert is a showstopper that’s surprisingly easy to make at home. Get ready to impress your guests with this sweet, creamy masterpiece!
Prep
15
min
Cook
30
min
Serves
4
people
Level
intermediate
📝 Ingredients
Serves 4🥛Dairy & Eggs(2)
- 100 g de yema de huevo (3.53 oz)
- 240 ml de crema para batir (8.11 fl oz)
🫙Pantry Staples(4)
- Azúcar extra para caramelizar
- 100 g de azúcar (0.5 cup)
- 1 vaina de vainilla
- 1 cucharada de extracto de vainilla (15 ml)
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Preheat the oven to 175 °C (350 °F).
- 2
In a saucepan, heat the heavy cream with the vanilla extract.
- 3
In a bowl, mix the sugar with the egg yolks. Split the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape the seeds, and add them to the yolk and sugar mixture.
- 4
Slowly pour the hot cream over the yolk mixture, whisking constantly to prevent cooking the eggs.
- 5
Pour the mixture into ramekins and place them in a deep baking dish. Add hot water until it covers halfway up the sides of the ramekins and bake in a water bath for 30 minutes.
- 6
Let cool to room temperature and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours or overnight.
- 7
Just before serving, sprinkle a thin layer of sugar on each crème brûlée and caramelize with a kitchen torch until a golden, crispy crust forms.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Heat cream to exactly 170°F before tempering into egg yolks - hotter than 180°F will scramble the proteins, while cooler won't properly dissolve the sugar or extract vanilla compounds.technique170°F
- ✓Use a 3:1 ratio of heavy cream to egg yolks by weight (typically 6 yolks per 500ml cream) because this ratio provides optimal protein structure for silky custard without graininess.ingredient3:1 ratio
- ✓Bake custards at 325°F instead of 350°F in the water bath - the lower temperature prevents the proteins from overcooking and creating a grainy texture while ensuring even heat distribution.timing325°F
- ✓Strain the custard mixture through a fine-mesh sieve before pouring into ramekins to remove any cooked egg bits and vanilla bean pieces that would create texture inconsistencies.technique
- ✓Use superfine sugar for the brûlée topping because its smaller crystals caramelize more evenly at 320°F and create a thinner, more delicate crust than regular granulated sugar.ingredient320°F
Share this recipe
Prep
15
min
Cook
30
min
Serves
4
people
Level
intermediate
Share this recipe
Trinity College Cambridge banned crème brûlée torches in 1691, so students used red-hot fire pokers to caramelize sugar.
Crème Brûlée
Indulge in the exquisite delight of Crème Brûlée, a timeless French treat that combines a velvety custard base with a perfectly torched layer of crunchy caramelized sugar on top. With rich vanilla and a touch of cream, this dessert is a showstopper that’s surprisingly easy to make at home. Get ready to impress your guests with this sweet, creamy masterpiece!
📝 Ingredients
Serves 4🥛Dairy & Eggs(2)
- 100 g de yema de huevo (3.53 oz)
- 240 ml de crema para batir (8.11 fl oz)
🫙Pantry Staples(4)
- Azúcar extra para caramelizar
- 100 g de azúcar (0.5 cup)
- 1 vaina de vainilla
- 1 cucharada de extracto de vainilla (15 ml)
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Preheat the oven to 175 °C (350 °F).
- 2
In a saucepan, heat the heavy cream with the vanilla extract.
- 3
In a bowl, mix the sugar with the egg yolks. Split the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape the seeds, and add them to the yolk and sugar mixture.
- 4
Slowly pour the hot cream over the yolk mixture, whisking constantly to prevent cooking the eggs.
- 5
Pour the mixture into ramekins and place them in a deep baking dish. Add hot water until it covers halfway up the sides of the ramekins and bake in a water bath for 30 minutes.
- 6
Let cool to room temperature and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours or overnight.
- 7
Just before serving, sprinkle a thin layer of sugar on each crème brûlée and caramelize with a kitchen torch until a golden, crispy crust forms.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Heat cream to exactly 170°F before tempering into egg yolks - hotter than 180°F will scramble the proteins, while cooler won't properly dissolve the sugar or extract vanilla compounds.technique170°F
- ✓Use a 3:1 ratio of heavy cream to egg yolks by weight (typically 6 yolks per 500ml cream) because this ratio provides optimal protein structure for silky custard without graininess.ingredient3:1 ratio
- ✓Bake custards at 325°F instead of 350°F in the water bath - the lower temperature prevents the proteins from overcooking and creating a grainy texture while ensuring even heat distribution.timing325°F
- ✓Strain the custard mixture through a fine-mesh sieve before pouring into ramekins to remove any cooked egg bits and vanilla bean pieces that would create texture inconsistencies.technique
- ✓Use superfine sugar for the brûlée topping because its smaller crystals caramelize more evenly at 320°F and create a thinner, more delicate crust than regular granulated sugar.ingredient320°F