With this recipe, there’s no need to go to a restaurant to get your fix of crème brûlée. This homemade crème brûlée features a rich vanilla flavored custard with a caramelized sugar topping that comes together effortlessly. It is so satisfying to crack the top of the hardened sugar surface with a spoon to get a spoonful of the caramelized bits and creamy custard.
It’s the perfect make-ahead dessert as it requires a few hours of chilling before serving and can stay in the fridge for 2 days before enjoying. Try my Palmiers or French Macarons for another delicious French dessert that you can make ahead of time.
What You Need to Make this Recipe
Heavy cream — while some recipes may use milk or a lighter cream, I highly recommend using heavy cream. The custard is much more flavorful, rich, smooth, and silky when made with heavy cream.
Vanilla bean — for the best vanilla flavor, a vanilla bean is ideal. I do not recommend using artificial vanilla extract as the vanilla bean is the main flavoring of the dessert.
Eggs — the egg yolks will emulsify and produce a smooth and satin-like texture for the custard. Egg whites will make the custard more firm, so I only use the yolks. Save the whites for my Meringue Cookies by storing them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Sugar — the sugar is used both in the custard and the topping. It won’t be a classic crème brûlée without the caramelized topping made by running a blow torch over the layer of sugar.
HOW TO MAKE CREME BRULEE
1. Add heavy cream to a small saucepan.
2. On a cutting board, slice open the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds out.
3. Bring cream and the vanilla bean and its scrapings to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat and let stand for 15 minutes.
4. In a bowl, separate the egg yolks from the egg whites.
5. Whisk together the egg yolks, ½ cup sugar, and salt.
6. Strain the cream mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Discard any solids and the vanilla bean pod.
7. Slowly whisk the hot cream into the egg yolks.
8. Place the ramekins in a baking dish and pour very hot water into the baking dish until it fills the dish by about a third.
9. Divide custard among 6 (6-ounce) ramekins. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the custard edges have set, but the center wobbles slightly.
Remove from the oven and let cool completely before chilling for several hours or up to 2 days.
10. When ready to serve, sprinkle 1½ teaspoons of sugar over the top of each chilled custard. Using a blow torch, caramelize the sugar until dark amber and bubbling. Serve the crème brûlée immediately.
PRO TIPS FOR MAKING THIS RECIPE
- Be very careful when tempering the eggs. Increase the temperature of the egg yolks by adding the heavy cream mixture slowly. The slower, the better. If you add too much of the heated mixture to the yolks quickly, the yolks will curdle, and you’ll end up with scrambled eggs.
- The sugar needs to completely cover the custard before you torch the top. If there is custard exposed, then it might curdle when exposed to heat. Give the ramekin a gentle shake to help the sugar evenly distribute.
- Once the sugar on the crème brûlée has caramelized, serve immediately. If left out for too long, the moisture of the custard will cause the sugar topping to soften, and you will not get that satisfying crack.
- You can substitute 2 teaspoons of real vanilla extract for the whole vanilla bean if desired. Alternatively, you can use vanilla bean paste.
- Typically, recipes call for pouring hot water into the baking dish after placing the filled ramekins in it. I find the hot water can splash into the custard, creating a soupy mess, so I like to fill the dish first and then add the ramekins. It’s up to you which way you prefer to prepare the ramekins.
- If there is foam on top of the ramekins after pouring the custard filling, skim it off. The foam will yield a bumpy surface after baking.
- If there is moisture on the top of the custard after chilling, be sure to blot dry with a paper towel before topping with sugar.
- Feel free to use a shallow ramekin to increase the caramelized topping to custard ratio. Keep in mind that a shallow dish will require less baking time.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How do I brûlée the top without a torch?
If you do not own a torch, you can caramelize the tops of the crème brûlée with your oven. Place the oven tray to the top of the oven and broil the crème brûlées for 1 to 2 minutes, keeping a close eye on them to avoid burning. It will not be as even as using a torch, but it’ll work in a pinch!
Why does my custard taste eggy?
If your crème brûlée tastes eggy, it means you’ve overcooked your custard. Unfortunately, there isn’t any way to fix it and you’ll have to start over.
What’s the best sugar to use?
Standard granulated sugar is ideal for crème brûlée. The sugar caramelizes quickly, so it doesn’t burn. The granulated sugar is also best for providing a visual cue to caramelizing the sugar by turning golden brown. Other sugars, such as raw sugar, are brown to start, so it’s difficult to tell.
Is this gluten-free?
All the ingredients used to make crème brûlée are naturally gluten-free.
If you love this recipe try these out!
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Crème Brûlée
Equipment
- 6 (6-ounce) ramekins
Ingredients
- 3 cups heavy cream (720mL)
- 1 vanilla bean split and scraped
- 5 egg yolks
- ½ cup plus 9 teaspoons granulated sugar divided (150g)
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F.
- In a small saucepan, bring cream and vanilla bean and scrapings to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat and let stand for 15 minutes.
- Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Discard any solids and the vanilla bean pod.
- In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt. Slowly whisk the hot cream into the egg yolks. Divide custard among 6 (6-ounce) ramekins.
- Pour very hot water into the baking dish until it fills the dish by about a third. Carefully place the filled ramekins in the dish.
- Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the custard edges are set but the center wobbles slightly. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Chill for several hours or up to 2 days.
- When ready to serve, sprinkle 1 1/2 teaspoons of sugar over the top of each chilled custard. Using a blow torch, caramelize the sugar until dark amber and bubbling. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- Be very careful when tempering the eggs. Increase the temperature of the egg yolks by adding the heavy cream mixture slowly. The slower, the better. If you add too much of the heated mixture to the yolks quickly, the yolks will curdle, and you’ll end up with scrambled eggs.
- The sugar needs to completely cover the custard before you torch the top. If there is custard exposed, then it might curdle when exposed to heat. Give the ramekin a gentle shake to help the sugar evenly distribute.
- Once the sugar on the crème brûlée has caramelized, serve immediately. If left out for too long, the moisture of the custard will cause the sugar topping to soften, and you will not get that satisfying crack.
- You can substitute 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract for the whole vanilla bean if desired. Alternatively, you can use vanilla bean paste.
- Typically, recipes call for pouring hot water into the baking dish after placing the filled ramekins in it. I find the hot water can splash into the custard, creating a soupy mess, so I like to fill the dish first and then add the ramekins. It’s up to you which way you prefer to prepare the ramekins.
- If there is foam on top of the ramekins after pouring the custard filling, skim it off. The foam will yield a bumpy surface after baking.
- If there is moisture on the top of the custard after chilling, be sure to blot dry with a paper towel before topping with sugar.
- Feel free to use a shallow ramekin to increase the caramelized topping to custard ratio. Keep in mind that a shallow dish will require less baking time.
