Crème Brûlée
Ingredients
300ml Double cream
200ml Full fat milk
1 Vanilla pod or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
90-100g Egg yolks (out of 5-6 medium eggs)
80g Caster sugar
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 150C (130C fan)
2. Mix milk and cream in a little sauce pan
3. Split and scrape seeds from vanilla bean, chop the rest add into milk mixture or add the vanilla extract
4. Heat milk mixture on the LOWEST HEAT, remember, not to boil it but bring it to a simmer. I usually consider it as ready once the STEAM appears or as soon as you see BUBBLES AT THE SIDES OF THE PAN, then turn it off and wait 1 minute prior to adding it to egg and sugar mixture.
5. Whilst milk mixture is heating up and infusing with vanilla, separate egg yolks into a heat proof bowl
6. Add sugar and MIX well WITH A FORK until sugar dissolved DO NOT BEAT IT, YOU DON'T WANT AIR BUBBLES IN IT!
7. Your milk mixture should be ready by now, using a wisk MIXING ALL THE TIME add a splash of milk mixture into egg yolks to temper them, NO BEATING BUT MIXING ALL THE TIME slowly add the rest of milk mixture
8. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a large jug, and then use this to fill ramekins, you will have about 600 ml of mixture so split it equally
9. Place the ramekins into a large roasting tray and pour in enough BOILING WATER FROM A KETTLE to come halfway up their outsides. (This is called a bain-marie)
10. Place the bain-marie onto the centre shelf of the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the custards are just set but still a bit wobbly in the middle
11. Remove the ramekins from the water and set aside to cool to room temperature
12. Chill in a fridge until needed, covering with a cling film so they don't dry out
13. When ready to serve, sprinkle one level teaspoon of caster sugar evenly over the surface of each crème brûlée, then caramelise with a chefs' blow-torch
