Crème Brûlée Recipe

Cooking a multi-course meal for everybody is no easy task, particularly when I mostly have recipes which hog the oven for hours. Once dinner starts and I sit down with everybody, it's also not enjoyable to get up to check on food cooking in the oven. Sometimes, a baked soft cheese fits the bill, as it can be baked in the time it takes to clear the table. But mostly, recipes that you can do ahead are a god-send. A crème brûlée also fits the bill. It's a show-stopper that demands to be refrigerated a day before serving, and with the finishing touches - breaking out the blow torch to complete a layer of crunchy caramel on the custard - applied at the dinner table. 

A burst of flame, and as the scent of slightly singed, caramelising sugar fills the room, it'll be a dinner to remember. 

Crème Brûlée

Adapted from the New York Times 
Makes 6-8 servings
Crème Brûlée, à la burnt cream, is meant to be a luxurious affair: rich, indulgent and to sate with one serving. Because half-and-half leads to a runny custard which may not fully set, I prefer to go all-cream. If you wish to substitute some of the cream with milk, the milk should be capped within 25% volume.   

INGREDIENTS 
480ml (2 cups) heavy cream 
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
⅛  teaspoon salt
5  egg yolks
50g granulated sugar + more for topping

STEPS

Preheat oven to 160C. 

In a small saucepan set over low heat, combine cream, vanilla bean and salt. Bring it just until it starts to simmer, and then remove from heat. If you are using vanilla extract, add it just as you remove the pan from the heat. Let sit for a few minutes. If using vanilla bean, remove that from the cream mixture. 

In a bowl, beat yolks and sugar together until light. Lightly temper the yolks by slowly drizzling a quarter of the warm cream into the yolk mixture while whisking briskly, before pouring the yolk mixture into the pot of warm cream. Whisk continuously as you do. Avoid using an electric mixer at this stage, which can cause the cream mixture to foam up. Strain the mixture. 

Set shallow ramekins in a leak-proof baking tray. Pour the cream mixture into the ramekins. Place tray into preheated oven, and then fill baking tray with boiling water about 1cm in height (roughly half the height of the ramekins). Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until centers are barely set. Remove from oven and carefully remove each ramekin from the hot water bath. Allow to cool completely to room temperature, and then refrigerate for several hours until well-chilled. At this point, the custard can be kept for a couple of days. 

When ready to serve, top each custard with a light scatter of sugar (about 1-2 teaspoons). Apply blow torch at a low heat to the sugar to gently melt and caramelise it to an amber hue. The caramel will harden as it cools. Allow it to cool slightly before serving.