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Crème brûlée.  When I first heard of the dessert, it sounded fancy… and intimidating!  How could I ever learn to make a dessert of which I could barely spell the name?  The creamy goodness underneath a crunchy, caramelized sugar top?  Impossible!

I first tasted this dessert on a fancy outing with my husband at a high-dollar restaurant.  And it was absolutely delicious.  I had to learn how to create a crème brûlée dessert at home… after all, I could not afford to pay for this restaurant to make it every time I wished to eat it.

Crème Brûlée

I read through dozens of recipes.  After that, a half dozen more.  And I took a risk in combining a few of them.  It paid off, as I believe that I have created a recipe that I’m almost willing to call “foolproof”.

The ingredients are quite simple:  cream, sugar, egg yolks, and vanilla extract.  But the results?  Decadent.

Ingredients

Unfortunately I was interrupted midway through making making this dessert by a rather charming 11.5 month old… so I only have these two pictures: the ingredients and the final product.  Hopefully my instructions will make up for the lack of pictures.

Crème Brûlée

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Ingredients
  

  • 3 egg yolks
  • 6 tablespoons sugar divided
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions
 

  • In a small bowl, whisk together yolks and 2 tablespoons of sugar. In a small saucepan, heat cream and 2 tablespoons of sugar over low/medium heat until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Whisk a small amount of cream into yolks to temper them. Slowly whisk the rest of the cream into the yolks. Pour into two 7-oz ramekins. Place in a baking dish, and pour enough boiling water into the dish to reach about 2/3 of the way up the sides of the ramekins. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes. They are finished baking when they jiggle slightly when shaken (the consistency of gelatin). Cool about 10 minutes on wire racks. Refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours, but no longer than 2 days. Sprinkle each with 1 tablespoon sugar. Broil 4-6 inches from heat, or use a small kitchen torch to caramelize sugar. Chill a few minutes to set sugar before serving.