Creme Brulee

Let's see.....creme brulee is one of my least favorite things to make because of the water bath and the chilling time. But I always seem to make it on mother's day or on September 8th....my beautiful mother's birthday. Sometimes I want to make it fancy with dried lavender flowers or lemon zest and raspberries. This time I did a simple vanilla. In the past I've had access to free vanilla beans, but alas, one bean was $13.99 at the store so I just used vanilla extract.
I based this recipe off of Alton Brown's. He used vanilla bean and vanilla sugar. I made this less fancy.

Basic Creme Brulee

• 1 quart heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons high quality vanilla extract
  
• 1 cup sugar, divided
• 6 large egg yolks
• 2 quarts hot water

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Place the cream, vanilla extract into a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover and allow to sit for 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup sugar and the egg yolks until well blended and it just starts to lighten in color. Add the cream a little at a time, stirring continually. Pour the liquid into 6 (7 to 8-ounce) ramekins. Place the ramekins into a large cake pan or roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake just until the creme brulee is set, but still trembling in the center, approximately 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days.

Remove the creme brulee from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top. Divide the remaining 1/2 cup vanilla sugar equally among the 6 dishes and spread evenly on top. Using a torch, melt the sugar and form a crispy top. Allow the creme brulee to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving.

I also made homemade whipped cream, added a tablespoon of cane sugar, sprinkle of cinnamon, and a tiny splash of vanilla extract.
I served that along side of it with some fresh organic raspberries.

I put a candle in the whipped cream and sang happy birthday.
Thanks Antonio for helping me torch the sugar! XOXO

sorry no picture