Desserts
French
FrenchCreme Brulee
The classic baked vanilla custard with a crisp caramel top, at three levels of indulgence. The basic uses vanilla extract and a grill, while the ultimate is a Tahitian vanilla and egg-yolk custard finished with a blowtorch.
Vegetarian
Gluten-free
Nut-free
Ultimate version
A rich Tahitian vanilla custard with extra yolks and a torched dark-caramel crust.
Per serving£2.63
Total cost£10.50
Time1 hr 20 min
Ingredients for 4
- Custard
- 450 ml Jersey double cream
- 50 ml whole milk
- 1 Tahitian vanilla pod , split and seeds scraped
- 6 free-range egg yolks
- 70 g golden caster sugar
- 1 pinch flaky sea salt
- To finish
- 5 tbsp golden caster sugar , for the tops
Method
- Heat the oven to 130C fan. Warm the cream, milk and vanilla pod with its seeds until just steaming, then cover and infuse for 30 minutes.
- Whisk the yolks, sugar and salt to a pale ribbon without aerating too much, then pour over the warm strained cream and stir gently.
- Skim off any foam, pour into shallow ramekins and bake in a water bath for 45-50 minutes until the centres barely tremble.
- Cool completely, then chill uncovered for at least 6 hours so the surface dries for crisper caramel.
- Blot the tops, dust with an even layer of sugar and torch in slow passes to a deep mahogany, then re-torch a second thin layer for extra crunch.
- Leave the crust to set for two minutes before cracking into it at the table.
Equipment
- saucepan
- shallow ramekins
- roasting tin
- fine sieve
- kitchen blowtorch
The three ways, side by side
Budget
A simple whole-egg custard with vanilla extract, caramelised under the grill.
Better
An all-cream custard with real vanilla pod seeds for deeper flavour and a smoother set.
Ultimate
A rich Tahitian vanilla custard with extra yolks and a torched dark-caramel crust.
