Snack · 60 min · french

Crème Brûlée

Weeknight-friendly French cooking: Crème Brûlée comes together in 60 minutes with heavy cream, egg yolks, and not much else.

✓ USDA-verified nutrition data

Ingredients

• 2 cups Heavy cream
• 5 Egg yolks
• 0.33 cup Granulated sugar
• 1 Vanilla bean
• 4 tsp Fine sugar

Steps

1. Heat the oven to 325°F and set a kettle of water to boil. Split the vanilla bean, scrape the seeds into the cream, and warm it in a saucepan until steaming — not boiling. Let it sit 10 minutes so the vanilla fully perfumes the cream.
2. Whisk the yolks with the granulated sugar just until combined; you want no foam, because bubbles become craters in the finished custard. Pour the warm cream over in a thin stream, whisking gently, then strain through a fine sieve into a pitcher. The strainer is non-negotiable — it catches any bits of cooked egg and stray vanilla fiber.
3. Divide among four ramekins and set them in a roasting pan. Pour in the boiling water to come halfway up the sides — this water bath is what keeps the custard silky instead of rubbery. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, until the edges are set but the centers still wobble like jelly when you nudge the pan.
4. Cool to room temperature, then chill at least 4 hours or overnight. Cold custard plus hot sugar is the whole contrast; skip the chill and the top will melt instead of crack.
5. Right before serving, blot any moisture off the tops with a paper towel, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of fine sugar over each in an even layer, and torch in slow circles until deep amber. Wait 2 full minutes for the glass to set — then listen for the crack.

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