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This heavenly creme brulee is so easy to make and yet fantastically delicious. It is a perfect party dessert because you can make it ahead of time and caramelize the top just before serving.
My inspiration for this dessert came while my husband and I were in France on our 2nd anniversary trip. We spent about 8 days in France and toured part of Normandy (Mont St Michel, Bayeux, The American Cemetery, Omaha Beach) and of course, Paris.
Our first day in France was … well, rainy. After traveling all day, we were tired (as we had been up from 4:30 am and arrived at our hotel in Normandy around 7 pm, whew), so we decided to drive around the little village of La Ceserne and quickly pick a place to eat because we didn’t want to miss the sunset view of Mont St Michel. We stumbled upon this quaint restaurant La Ferme St. Michel. The service was friendly, the atmosphere was fantastic and the food… mmm, delightful.  So, why am I telling you all of this? This restaurant is a gem (as we later found out it is the #1 restaurant in that area according to TripAdvisor) and serves the best classic creme brulee and incredibly delicious meals. I couldn’t wait to try to recreate the same classic creme brulee when we got back home from our trip.
Here are a couple of pictures from our trip to Mont St. Michel.
When I was experimenting with my recipe, I made two batches of creme brulee. In the first batch, I used coconut sugar which is a somewhat healthier alternative to regular sugar. While the custard didn’t change its texture that much, the top was a disaster. Simply because the darker coconut sugar Burned, with capital B. So, if you want to try this creme brulee, better use the coconut sugar only for the custard and top with regular white sugar. Later, you could eat only the custard since the top is pretty easy to remove. Or you could simply skip the caramelizing step. 🙂
How To Make Creme Brulee with Fresh Berries
What you will need
2 cups heavy cream
10 Tbsp sugar (4 Tbsp for custard & 6 Tbsp for top)
4 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla
berries, optional
6 ramekins
Preparation
Preheat oven to 300 F.
Heat heavy cream and 4 Tbsp sugar (or coconut sugar)Â in a sauce pan over medium heat. Cook stirring occasionally until small bubbles appear around the edges of the pan. About 6 minutes.
In the meantime, beat egg yolks and vanilla until smooth and light.
Slowly add the hot cream mixture, beating continuously with mixer running on medium-low speed, until well blended. Strain mixture through a fine strainer into a bowl. Divide mixture among 6 ramekins.
Arrange ramekins in a baking pan on the middle shelf of preheated oven. Fill pan with boiling water until it comes halfway up sides of ramekins. Cover pan loosely with aluminum foil. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the custard is just set but still jiggles in the center. Allow the ramekins to cool to room temperature without removing them from the water bath. Once cool, cover in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for about 2-3 hours.
I will give you some tips how to get the best creme brulee topping. Sprinkle about 1 Tbsp sugar over top of cooled custards. Holding the ramekin with your hand and the bottom still touching your working surface shake it from side to side to spread the sugar evenly. With the cooking torch move the flame in a circular motion over the top. First, you will see the sugar forming bubbles. Continue to melt it with the torch until the top melts and it’s golden brown. Serve immediately surrounded by fresh berries or cut-up fruit.
Voila! Creme brulee is surprisingly easy to make and a fantastic dessert for your loved ones.
I love to crack the hard crust on top and take a bite of that soft creamy custard. What is really amazing is that it tastes and looks so sophisticated but it is so simple to make. Can you imagine it has only four main ingredients?
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Creme Brulee
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups organic heavy cream
- 10 Tablespoon sugar, 4 Tbsp for custard & 6 Tbsp for top
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- berries, optional
- 6 ramekins
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 300 F.
- Heat heavy cream and 4 Tbsp sugar (or coconut sugar) in a sauce pan over medium heat. Cook stirring occasionally until small bubbles appear around the edges of the pan. About 6 minutes.
- In the meantime, beat egg yolks and vanilla until smooth and light. Slowly add the hot cream mixture, beating continuously with mixer running on medium-low speed, until well blended. Strain mixture through a fine strainer into a bowl. Divide mixture among 6 ramekins.
- Arrange ramekins in a baking pan in the middle shelf of preheated oven. Fill pan with boiling water until it comes halfway up sides of ramekins. Cover pan loosely with aluminum foil. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the custard is just set but still jiggles in the center. Allow the ramekins to cool to room temperature without removing them from the water bath. Once cool, cover in plastic wrap and chill in fridge for about 2-3 hours.
- Sprinkle about 1 Tbsp sugar over top of cooled custards. Holding the ramekin with your hand and the bottom still touching your working surface shake it from side to side to spread the sugar evenly. With the cooking torch move the flame in a circular motion over the top. First, you will see the sugar forming bubbles. Continue to melt it with the torch until the top melts and it's golden brown. Serve immediately surrounded by fresh berries or cut-up fruit.
NUTRITION
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Creme brulee is one of my favorite desserts! Love that you showed how easy it is to make at home!
Creme brulee is my favourite dessert! But I have never made it even though I have a kitchen blowtorch somewhere. This recipe has inspired me to give making creme brulee a try. Yours look delicious!
I agree, creme brulee is really easier than many people think and so delicious. Sounds like a lovely trip too.
One of my favorite desserts ever – especially with the fresh berries – such a delicious recipe!
I’ve never actually tried making creme brulee but it sounds pretty easy and looks so rich and creamy. Love the addition of fruit. Can’t wait to try this.
Such an elegant dessert – but the recipe makes it seem so easy! I’ve never made creme brulee before, but have always loved it. Now I think I can make it at home!
Good morning, I loved reading about your trip. SOunds like you visited some glorious places. I have to tell you I loved your dessert more though lol. I made this today and it came out remarkably well. Your instructions were on point and everyone enjoyed it.
There’s something so satisfying about cracking the top of a creme brulee! And those berries! Gah!
Such a delicious dessert!I love that I can now make it at home myself!
I always choose creme brûlée when it’s available on a dessert menu but have never tried to makw it myself. With this great recipe I just may take the plunge!!
creme brulee might just be one of the best things ever. i love the crispy sugar crust and the creamy custard. so delicious!
I’ve always been too scared to try and make creme brulee but after readin this I’m definitely going to have to try!!
This is one of my husband’s favourite desserts, and he always orders it when we eat out. I need to try making it myself.