★★★★ (4/5)
Merry Christmas everyone! So Book Nerd has been on me about my overdue blog posts… and she’s right, it’s been far too long since we’ve had some OC from the Cook Nerd. I have to preface this post by saying that this is another bake, and that everything that I bake does not always begin as a yellow soup (see: Lemon Curd Tart). This recipe was born from some last minute Christmas shopping and an opportunistic find in TJMaxx. While walking through the aisles I noticed a set of four ramekin & a blow torch and said to myself “Hey, that’s a good price on something that I don’t have, will only use once, and probably don’t need” (I think that should be the TJMaxx slogan). So, as one does, I added the ramekins to our cart, checked out of TJMaxx, and went home to embark on making my first crème brulee (Christmas style, of course).
The recipe, all in all, isn’t that complicated (I have the full instructions & the link to the original at the bottom of the post):
It was at this moment that I realized that the egg custards that my brothers and I had growing up courtesy of my grandmother, were actually crème brulees without the caramelized sugar topping. I only realized this because I tried cooking some of the crème brulees without the hot water bath, which lead to what were essentially egg custards.
Lastly, when we were ready to try these out, we layered the top with a mixture of Christmas themed sugar sprinkles and regular sugar to give it a holiday spin. Using our newly acquired mini-butane torch (best part of the whole purchase, in my opinion), I proceeded to try to figure out how to appropriately melt the top of the crème brulee. Out of four ramekins, three crème brulees successfully emerged (one tasted a little more like coal and a little less like sugar).
Merry Christmas everyone! So Book Nerd has been on me about my overdue blog posts… and she’s right, it’s been far too long since we’ve had some OC from the Cook Nerd. I have to preface this post by saying that this is another bake, and that everything that I bake does not always begin as a yellow soup (see: Lemon Curd Tart). This recipe was born from some last minute Christmas shopping and an opportunistic find in TJMaxx. While walking through the aisles I noticed a set of four ramekin & a blow torch and said to myself “Hey, that’s a good price on something that I don’t have, will only use once, and probably don’t need” (I think that should be the TJMaxx slogan). So, as one does, I added the ramekins to our cart, checked out of TJMaxx, and went home to embark on making my first crème brulee (Christmas style, of course).
The recipe, all in all, isn’t that complicated (I have the full instructions & the link to the original at the bottom of the post):
- Egg yolks and sugar in one bowl
- Oil and heavy cream with a few tablespoons of vanilla in a sauce pan
- Use your artisanal mixer to mix the warm cream mixture into the eggs without cooking the eggs immediately. Now you have your yellow soup!
- Pour into the ramekins
- Put in the oven for about 45 minutes in a hot water bath that comes up about half-way on the ramekins (we just filled a roasting pan with hot water)
- I highly recommend the water bath as it makes sure the top of your crème brulee doesn’t crack or burn, which helps later on with caramelizing the sugar topping.
- Remove from the oven and let them cool from 2-48 hours.
Lastly, when we were ready to try these out, we layered the top with a mixture of Christmas themed sugar sprinkles and regular sugar to give it a holiday spin. Using our newly acquired mini-butane torch (best part of the whole purchase, in my opinion), I proceeded to try to figure out how to appropriately melt the top of the crème brulee. Out of four ramekins, three crème brulees successfully emerged (one tasted a little more like coal and a little less like sugar).
PSA*: For the sugar layer, you definitely want it to be thin and even to make melting it more uniform and limit any “charred” areas (per Book Nerd: “The charred areas taste like marshmallows that have caught on fire”). I added apple slice and blackberry garnishes to the final product to add some tartness and crunch.
When all was said and done, I would give these crème brulees a solid 4/5. My sugar distribution needed a little work, and the Christmas sprinkles turned out great but made gauging the caramelized tops harder than it needed to be; for first timers a standard sugar caramelized top is probably the way to go. Nonetheless, the end result was delicious and festive, and it’ll definitely be a recipe we try again!
Original recipe and instructions from the Food Network here (I made a few tweaks), ingredients below:
- 6 egg yolks
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 1 qt heavy cream
- 2 tbsp vanilla
- Christmas sprinkles
- Blackberries (garnish, optional)
- 1 apple (garnish - optional)
Merry Christmas everyone!
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