Crème Brûlée (French Recipe)
Classic French crème brûlée made with silky vanilla custard topped with a crisp caramelized sugar crust. Elegant yet simple, it’s the perfect make-ahead dessert for special occasions.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35–40 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 50 minutes (including chilling)
- Yield: 4 servings
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking + Caramelizing
- Cuisine: French
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
4 egg yolks
1 ¾ cups half-and-half
4 tbsp sugar
1 vanilla bean, scraped (or 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract)
2 tbsp granulated or raw sugar (for caramelizing)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C).
- Heat half-and-half with vanilla bean (or paste/extract) in a saucepan until hot but not boiling. Remove from heat and let infuse.
- Whisk egg yolks with sugar until pale and slightly thickened.
- Slowly pour warm cream into yolks, whisking constantly to avoid scrambling.
- Strain mixture into a measuring cup to remove any solids.
- Pour custard into ramekins and place in a baking dish. Add hot water halfway up ramekins.
- Bake 35–40 minutes until edges are set but center is slightly jiggly.
- Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight.
- Before serving, sprinkle sugar on top and caramelize with a kitchen torch or broiler until golden and crisp.
Notes
Infuse cream with citrus zest, lavender, or liqueur for flavor variations.
Espresso powder or melted chocolate can replace vanilla for unique twists.
Always caramelize sugar just before serving so it stays crisp.
Bake in a water bath to ensure gentle, even cooking.
Use a torch for best caramelization control, but a broiler works too.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 ramekin
- Calories: 290
- Sugar: 22g
- Sodium: 45mg
- Fat: 20g
- Saturated Fat: 11g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 24g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 5g
- Cholesterol: 180mg
Find it online: https://justsosavory.com/creme-brulee-french-recipe/
