Ingredients

Method

• 4 free-range egg yolks
• 50 g sugar, plus extra for caramelising
• 2 cups cream
• 1 t vanilla extract

Method

Ingredients

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C.
2. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light and creamy. Heat the cream in a saucepan over a medium heat until a skin forms on the surface. Remove from the heat and add the vanilla extract or the seeds of ½ vanilla pod.
3. Pour the warm vanilla cream into the egg yolk mixture, whisking continually. Strain the mixture, divide between 4 ramekins and cover with foil.
4. Place into a bain marie (a larger container half-filled with water) and bake for 45–50 minutes, or until set. Chill for 2 hours.
5. Sprinkle over a thin layer of caster sugar and blowtorch until caramelised. Allow to cool slightly before serving.
6. If you don’t have a blowtorch, melt a little sugar in a pan until golden and caramelised and carefully spoon over the crème brûlées.

Cook's note: Who doesn’t love cracking the perfectly caramelised layer on the top of a crème brûlée to get at the silky custard beneath? And you don’t have to be a chef to get it right – but you will need a blowtorch. Get one.

Browse more warm desserts here.