Bouchon Creme Brulee

Silky vanilla custard baked low and slow, finished with a brittle caramelized sugar crust.

Ingredients

• 4 cups heavy cream
• 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 9 large egg yolks
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar, plus more for the crust
• Pinch of salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 F. Heat the cream with the vanilla bean and seeds until steaming, then remove from heat and steep 15 minutes.
2. Whisk the yolks, sugar, and salt until smooth, then slowly whisk in the warm cream to temper. Strain the custard.
3. Divide among shallow ramekins set in a roasting pan and add hot water to come halfway up the sides.
4. Bake 40 to 50 minutes until just set with a slight jiggle in the center.

Cool, then chill at least 4 hours.

1. Just before serving, sprinkle an even layer of sugar over each and torch (or broil) until the crust caramelizes and hardens.

Notes

Adapted from Thomas Keller’s Bouchon; shallow ramekins give the ideal ratio of crisp crust to custard.