I made creme brulees this weekend. I use the cooks illustrated recipe . . . and the beauty is that you can multiply and divide the recipe pretty nicely.
To make 6 1/2 cup servings (but, really just 1/2 a cup? I have these oval dishes that are about a cup each but have the perfect ratio of crunchy top to creamy goodness.) Pre-heat oven to 275 degrees and bring a teapot of water to a boil:
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
6 egg yolks
6 tablespoons of sugar
1/2 tsp powdered vanilla
Whisk the sugar and yolks together until light and all the sugar is dissolved. Mix in cream. Pour into buttered dishes . . .
I put the dishes in a glass baking dish . . . like a glass casserole dish . . . and I put a dish cloth on the bottom to keep the dishes from sliding. put the larger dish on the oven rack, and gently pour the boiling water into the larger dish . . . being careful to not splash into the creme brulees . . . filling the vessel up to half way up the brulee dishes. Bake in the water bath for 45 minutes.
Remove carefully . . . the water will be boiling hot . . . and let cool just a bit on the stove top or on a rack on the counter. When the dishes are cool enough for you to lift out of the warm water with the aid of a spatula or other sturdy utensil, remove them and allow to cool completely on a rack. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the frig.
I like to mill sugar in the food processor to make it extra fine . . . sprinkle it evenly over the cremes . . . and torch to a lovely brown but not burned. Pop in frig as you complete each one. Make sure each one gets about 5 minutes but no more than 20 minutes in the frig before you eat.
There is just something wonderful about cracking into the crust with your spoon.
No comments:
Post a Comment