Okay. It’s finally here. The moment you have all been waiting for.
I am finally posting my crème brûlée recipe. Wow, that took a while, didn’t it?
As I sit here writing this post, I’m having an internal debate with myself over which dessert I prefer more: crème brûlée or cheesecake? At first, I would have totally thought cheesecake would beat out crème brûlée. (And, yes, this is totally a legitimate debate to have in one’s head).
But…then I remember just how good crème brûlée is. Hard decision, right?
Hmmm…anyone else thinking crème brûlée cheesecake? Yup — that’s how my mind works. Heehee.
Which dessert is your favorite? Is there a tie between the two? Does it even include either?
Well, this easy crème brûlée recipe is not a hard decision at all. You won’t even believe how easy it is.
No heating up the custard and slowly tempering the egg yolks. No crazy double boiler action needed. No fuss.
Just sweet custardy goodness with a crunchy caramelized sugar topping. Mmm.
Just mix, pour, bake and broil (or torch, if you prefer).
So. Easy.
Easy Crème Brûlée
yields 4 individual ramekins/servings
2 cups heavy cream
5 egg yolks
1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus more to sprinkle for topping
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
optional: fresh berries or mint for garnish
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Whisk together egg yolks and 1/2 cup sugar in a medium mixing bowl until smooth and creamy. Add cream and vanilla and gently stir to combine, taking care not to mix quickly so as not to introduce extra bubbles. Place un-filled ramekins in a baking or casserole dish and fill baking dish with hot water until about half-way up sides of ramekins. Pour egg mixture into ramekins.
Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, checking every 10 minutes after 35-40 minutes. When done, a knife inserted into the center of the egg mixture should come out mostly clean.
Remove from baking dish and lay onto clean dish towel to dry, set and cool. Allow to sit for 15 minutes.
Place in refrigerator for 1 hour or longer to cool.
Set oven to low broiler setting.
Sprinkle a thin, even layer of granulated sugar over the top of the cooked custard. Completely, but lightly, cover the custard with the sugar. Place the ramekins back into the baking dish and surround by ice and cold water until the water almost reaches halfway up the sides (don’t fill too high with water, as the ice will melt and add to the volume of water). Place baking dish with ramekins under broiler (or use crème brûlée torch) for 2-5 minutes, or until the sugar has melted and creates a golden brown, caramelized crust.
If you don’t want to wait for the custard to cool in the refrigerator and would prefer to have the custard warm, follow the step above without letting cool. This is pretty tasty as well.
Garnish with sliced strawberries, a few fresh berries and/or some fresh mint leaves.
Enjoy!
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Posted in Sweets | 
Tags: custard, desserts, Poll Results: Which sweet treat should I make next?, Sweets
35 Responses to “Easy Crème Brûlée”
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These look so good!
My dear Mum bought my dear Dad a wee kitchen torcha few years back. The dear man wore it out burning the old paint off their windows, ready for a major (and much needed) repaint. the window now look great and Mum ahs bought a replacement little torch that Dad might even use in the kitchen (he is a way better cook that my much loved Mum).
Sending super happy and caring thoughts for the upcoming birth of your dear wee daughter, and much care and love to you all,
Michelle down in Wellington, New Zealand (and from my sleeping feline, Zebby Cat)
Thank you so much for sending your kind thoughts, Michelle
Very much appreciated.
And one day I’ll even learn to proof read! I sincerely hope that all is going well for you, dear Lacey,
Michelle again, xxxxxx
It certainly is going well, Michelle. Thank you again!
YES! Wahoo! Woot Woot! Hooray!
Now that it’s published, I’m suffering from shock and awe. Who would have thought it would be so easy to make? I have all the ingredients in my kitchen, and TCP has a torch, too. I may even break out the expensive vanilla bean paste for this one. I can see this is going to be dangerous. Amazing, but very, very dangerous!
Okay, Lacey. I made it tonight, and it was FABULOUS! Mine aren’t nearly as pretty, but they really are everything I was hoping for in the flavor department. I need to practice my blow torch skills. This could not have been easier to make. I plan to make it again and again and again. See it here:
http://insidenanabreadshead.wordpress.com/2011/04/21/a-recipe-review-a-sweet-pea-chefs-easy-creme-brulee/
Yay, NanaBread! I just read your post and am so incredibly flattered. I’m blushing! Thank you very much for the great review and continuous support of my blog and photos. Can’t tell you how much I appreciate it
Jeanne, it is SO easy! I have been thinking about you for this post and hoped you would see it
Sorry it took me so long!
How long can you let this cool? Could they cool overnight and broil right before serving?
Good question, Karen. Yes, it can definitely cool overnight. Just make sure to wait on topping with the sugar until right before you want to caramelize it. Otherwise, it will get soggy.
This looks delicious! It looks so perfectly browned. Last time I made creme brulee I scorched the top of it – whoops! Beautiful!
Thanks, Kate! Better luck next time
looks gorgeous and delicious!!
Thanks so much, Katie!
oh yes, and perfect way to use up 4 more dozens of cage free eggs I have!
Oh, wow. Most definitely!
Fabulous recipe! Thanks so much, Lacey. Made this tonight for my partner and family – first ever time making creme brulee – and it came out beautifully. The custard was incredibly smooth and creamy and it tasted divine (not eggy in the least, which is what I was worried about).
I will definitely be adding this to my repertoire.
Yay! I’m so glad to hear you all enjoyed this dessert. Thank you for sharing
I am so excited to try this! I’ve never tried it and was always worried about making it…. Not any more!! I’m thinkin about makin it tonight and sharing with family that lives near by… Thank you
Good luck, Penny! I’d love to hear how it goes
I have made this twice, and each time it came out chunky and watery soup. Any suggestions?
Hmmm…I’m so sorry to hear this, Leslie. Are you following the directions exactly?
Hey Lacey
I just came across this and it looks so simple, I’m going to try it this weekend!!!
p/s: yes, when you mentioned creme brulee and cheese cake, I thought of a creme brulee cheesecake too! You’re not alone
This recipe is awesome and easy. Yummy.
I just made this recipe. I love how inexpensive the ingredients are, and how simple the steps are to understand and do. Mine didn’t seem to set very well though, it’s quite soupy. The flavor is wonderful, though, and we’re enjoying them anyway. Thanks for sharing!
I Googled “easy creme brulee” and found your recipe. I have used another recipe in the past that required cooking the custard and took a lot longer. Your recipe was SO easy and absolutely delicious!! This is definitely my new “go to” when I want this awesome dessert.
Thanks for posting it!
Do we bake the ramekins in the baking dish?
this is my go-to creme brulee recipe. I have made it 4 times now and everyone loves it!! Thanks for sharing
Sarah recently posted..(Easy) White Chocolate Raspberry Petit Fours
Very good. To those who thought soupy, maybe you used deeper ramekins? Need to ccok longer?
As a busy mom and owner of http://www.babybeddingshop.com, I am often looking for ways to indulge my sweet tooth–and creme brulee is one of my favorites! I made this 2 or 3 times for guests, and they LOVED it! Unfortunately, my hubby and I both decided to go on diets several months ago (he’s on Atkins and I’m just trying to eat more sensibly and cut back on simple sugars). I knew we were going to miss having this lovely creme brulee, so I set us on a mission of being able to still make despite our diets!I loved your recipe because it required no cooking and seemed straight forward and simple. Instead of using real sugar, I substitute Stevia. Since Stevia isn’t as sweet as regular sugar, I nearly double the amount of sugar you are using in this recipe. I follow all the rest of the directions, but stop at caramelizing the sugar on top. Sadly, you can’t caramelize these substitute sugars, as they simply don’t melt. Sigh! What we do instead is a thin layer of sugar-free honey on top to get a similar taste. Voila! It makes for a no-carb dessert for my hubby and it solves my low/no sugar diet concerns. I’ve now made your recipe in this modified manner about 5 times and it’s truly wonderful! In fact, it’s in the oven right now for dessert tonight! Thanks for offering up a really simple recipe that is super easy to modify given one’s dietary restrictions.
This turned out awesome for me. As for those who think it turned out soupy. Cook longer or in a dish not as deep. Mine ended up taking an hour and 20 min in a deep dish but turned out great! Tastes awesome!
Not going to lie…I have the cheesecake/creme brule debate in my head ALL THE TIME!! I think I’ve made a decision and then eat one or the other and change my mind again. Would LOVE if you could meld the two!
Found your recipe yesterday and made it last night for Valentine dessert. It was fantastic and much, much easier than most of the recipes out there. Creme Brûlée is our favorite dessert – my official taster, my husband of almost 33 years, thoroughly enjoyed it! Thanks for a great recipe.
I used larger ramekins and it is taking nearly 1.5 hours to set in the oven. Glad to hear that cooking it for longer won’t change its properties.
This was the first attempt Creme Brulee, well that did not come out of a box, bad I know. The recipe was really easy. Everyone loved it and my dear picky friend said it was the best he has had.