Recipes ~ Creme Brulee

Happy Sunday friends. With Valentine's day a few days away, it is time to start thinking about serving up something sweet for your sweetheart. For me, Creme Brulee is hands down my all time favorite dessert and I am lucky enough to have a husband that loves it just as much as I do.

You see, I have long had a love affair with this sinful dessert that is worth the cheat once in a while. There is something incredibly satisfying about the contrasting textures and flavors of this custard that is simply heavenly.

Creme Brulee can be made in a ton of flavors such as orange, chocolate, coffee, almond, raspberry, lemon but my favorite flavor will always be the traditional vanilla. So why not indulge your sweet tooth this Valentine's day with this tasty and mouth watering dessert that will always have you craving for more.

Here is the recipe I always use. It is the recipe used by Philadelphia Restaurant City Tavern. It is a simple recipe to follow and comes out perfect all the time.

Creme Brulee Recipe

Ingredients

1 and 1/2 cup of heavy cream
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
3 tablesspoons of sugar, divided
4 large egg yolks
1/2 granulated sugar for browning on top (after cooked an refrigerated)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Place 1 cup of the heavy cream, vanilla bean and its pulp into a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat and heat until you see tiny bubbles around the edge of the pan. Remove from the heat, cover and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Remove the vanilla bean and reserve for another use.

Meanwhile, in a glass bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and half of the sugar until well blended and it just starts to lighten in color. Add the remainder (1/2 cup) of the cream into the egg mixture. Slowly stir in hot cream. A little at a time, stirring continually. Note: I always strain the mix after I am done just to get rid of any lumps.

Pour the liquid into 3 to 4 ounce oven-safe ramekins. Place the ramekins into a large cake pan or roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake just until the creme brulee is set, bout 25 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days.

Remove the creme brulee from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top. Divide about 1/2 cup vanilla sugar equally among the 4 dishes and spread evenly on top. Using a torch, melt the sugar and form a crispy top. Allow the creme brulee to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving.