Crème Brûlée

One of my favorite desserts ever.  And it's only the first time I've ever made it.  Dathan and I decided to cure our boredom and our empty stomachs by making a fun dinner together for Carsten.  We decided on pork sous vide (slow cooked under 145 degree water for a few hours), with a yummy sauce and zucchini, peppers, and beet stems (had them leftover from the bruschetta party).  Dathan asked if we had a blow torch to finish off the pork with, and when I remembered we were gifted one for our wedding, I couldn't help but pick up some cream at the grocery store while we were there.  Guilty.

Whenever I think of crème brûlée, I think of Mangiamo!, one of our favorite late night date spots in Grand Rapids, MI.  We would go there all the time just for an hour away from school, and a delicious bite for dessert.  Their crème brûlée was some of the best I've ever had.  Mmmmm... with fresh berries on top and everything.

It turned out pretty good for my first try - the only thing I struggled with was trying to caramelize the sugar without warming up the custard.  I think crème brûlée should be very cold, it's so much tastier that way.  After practicing a few more times, I think all you need to do is let it sit for a few minutes after you caramelize the sugar.  It helps the temperature to even out inside a bit.

Ingredients
1 vanilla bean pod
2 cups heavy cream
3 egg yolks
pinch of salt
1/4 sugar, plus more for dusting

Procedure
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Set the kettle on, or have a a saucepan of boiling water ready.  Line a shallow baking pan with a small kitchen towel (I forgot this part - not sure if it mattered or not).

Using a small knife, split the vanilla pod lengthwise, and scrape the seeds into a medium sauce pan.  Throw the pods in too.  Add the cream and stir.  Set the pan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until the cream begins to bubble around the edges.  Don't let it come to a full boil!  Remove from the heat and let steep for about 15 minutes.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, salt, and 1/4 cup sugar until the mixture is thick and pale yellow, about five minutes.  Continue to whisk while very gradually adding the cream mixture.  Stir until well blended, then pour the custard through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the vanilla pods and any unwanted small bits.

Divide the custard about four 6oz ramekins, or six 4oz ramekins.  Place the ramekins in the prepared baking dish, and place the baking dish on the middle rack of your oven.  Add the boiling water to fill the pan halfway up the sides of the ramekins.  It's important to do this after the pan is already in the oven, to keep from spilling boiling water everywhere!  Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil and bake until the custards are just set around the edges, about 30 to 35 minutes.  Transfer the ramekins to a wire rack to cool to room temperature.  Again, no need to take the water-filled pan from the oven until the water has cooled!  Once cooled, cover the ramekins with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled - at least four hours.

When ready to serve, sprinkle 2 tsp of sugar over each custard.  Using a kitchen butane torch, melt the sugar.  Hold the flame perpendicular to the custard, keeping the tip of the blue flame right up to the custard.  Heat until the sugar bubbles and begins to turn brown. Be careful not to burn the sugar!  Let sit for one or two minutes before serving.

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