I kept my eyebrows

I recently received a lovely crème brulee set from Mike’s parents John and Joan Hession. I could not wait to try it out since crème brulee is one of my favorite desserts. I found a recipe in my Ina Garten cookbook Barefoot in Paris, where she claims that if you make this dessert for a guy he will “follow you anywhere.” It was then clear that this was the recipe to use.

Crème Brulee

1 extra-large egg

4 extra large egg yolks

½ cup of sugar plus a little extra for the top

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

3 cups of heavy cream

1 tablespoon of Grand Marnier

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees

Serves 5-6

The first thing I did was mix the egg, egg yolks, and ½ cup of sugar together with my hand help mixer until they were combined. While I was mixing those ingredients Mike tended to the heavy cream. It is important to heat the cream in a heavy saucepan until it is scalded but not boiling. Once the heavy cream was scalded, Mike added it to the egg mixture very slowly while I held the mixer on a low speed until the cream and egg mixture were fully combined. The last step was to add the vanilla and Grand Marnier and stir it together. The mixture is then ready to be poured into the ramekins.

My crème brulee set came with a pan and a ramekin holder, which is very convenient, but not necessary. Once the mixture was poured into the ramekins until almost full, I placed them in a baking pan and poured boiling water in until filled halfway up the ramekins. I carefully put the pan into the oven and baked for 35- 40 minutes, until the custards were set. After baking, I removed the ramekins from their bath and let them cool to room temperature. Once cooled, I put them in the fridge until they were completely firm. The next step was the most fun because it involved a torch. I just used a torch that I bought at the hardware store which only cost $15.00. Some of the fancy cook ones which range from $35-50. It was a little hard to light, but once we got it lit it was a blast to use. I spread a little bit of sugar on top of the brulee in an even, thin coating. Then, starting at one side, torched the sugar so it was a medium brown color and the sugar was caramelized. They were delicious and really fun to make.

The advice I would give is to not use too much sugar because then it burns and does not caramelize easily. I can’t wait to make it again!

Thanks to the Hessions for a great gift!