This classic crème brûlée recipe is creamy, dreamy, and easy to make ahead! It’s a simple yet stunning French dessert, perfect for date night at home, holidays, and special occasions.
Table of Contents
- Why you’ll love this recipe:
- What is crème brûlée?
- Key Ingredient Notes:
- How to make classic creme brulee:
- 1. Prepare the custard mixture
- 2. Bake the crème brûlée custard
- 3. Allow the custard to chill
- 4. Broil and serve
- Tips for Success:
- Make-Ahead Tips:
- Storing Tips:
- FAQs:
- More Elegant Dessert Recipes:
- Classic Creme Brûlée Recipe
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Pin ItWhy you’ll love this recipe:
With its silky smooth baked custard base topped with a caramelized golden crust, crème brûlée is one of my all-time favorite desserts.
And, even though it looks like a dessert that only a French pastry chef could master, it’s actually surprisingly easy to make!
- This is a fool-proof classic crème brûlée recipe that has been tested and served to party guests countless times.
- It’s simpler than making ice cream or pudding. Just warm up the cream, temper the egg yolk mixture, and bake until set. Easy peasy!
- You don’t need to buy a special kitchen torch to create that beautiful, hard caramel crust. A broiler works perfectly!
Serve crème brûlée topped with fresh berries and a dollop of whipped cream after an equally as elegant dinner such as bacon-wrapped filet mignon or baked lobster tails. Your guests will think they’re dining at a 5-star restaurant!
What is crème brûlée?
Essentially a texture-lovers dream, crème brûlée is a creamy custard with a crunchy, melted sugar shell. It’s a traditional French dessert that translates to “burnt cream” in English. While this is a classic crème brûlée recipe, many different variations exist with additions such as fruit, chocolate, espresso, and maple syrup.
Key Ingredient Notes:
There’s no need for anything fancy with this classic crème brûlée recipe! It requires just 6 common ingredients!
- Heavy cream gives the crème brûlée its signature rich and creamy mouthfeel. Unfortunately, lighter cream substitutes, like half and half or whole milk, aren’t an option here. The high fat content in heavy cream is the key to achieving a velvety, smooth texture in the custard.
- Egg yolks thicken the custard and give it structure while also adding to the overall richness of the dessert. I like using the shell-to-shell technique to separate egg yolks from whites. If you’re unfamiliar with this method, take a look at this post on how to separate egg whites.
- Sugar sweetens the custard and forms the burnt, golden crust on top of the crème brûlée. You can use white, granulated sugar for both the custard and the caramelized top. However, if you happen to have superfine sugar on hand, it’s a better option for sprinkling on top of the custard, because it melts more quickly.
- Pure vanilla extract – Using a high-quality, pure (not artificial) vanilla extract is essential because vanilla infuses crème brûlée with the sweet vanilla flavor it’s known for. The fake stuff just won’t cut it!
- Salt – A pinch of salt enhances the sweet taste.
- Lemon zest – While lemon zest is not found in most classic crème brûlée recipes, I think it’s necessary to cut through the richness and slightly lighten up the flavor. Just be sure to avoid the bitter white pith when zesting your lemon peel!
How to make classic creme brulee:
Before you get started, preheat your oven to 300°F, and make sure you have 4 ramekins and a fine-mesh sieve on hand.
1. Prepare the custard mixture
- Bring the heavy cream to a simmer over low heat in a medium-sized saucepan. Don’t allow the cream to boil. Once simmering, turn off the heat.
- Whisk the egg yolks, ⅓ cup of the sugar, and vanilla extract in a medium-sized mixing bowl.
- Pour about ⅓ cup of the warm heavy cream into the egg yolk mixture while stirring continuously.
- Add the remaining cream, salt, and lemon zest, and mix well to combine.
- Divide the custard equally among the 4 ramekins set in a baking pan with deep sides.
2. Bake the crème brûlée custard
- Pour hot water into the baking pan until it reaches halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
- Bake for about 30 minutes or until the custard is set.
Use a baking sheet
Place the ramekins on a baking sheet to make them easier to remove from the oven and to catch any spills.
3. Allow the custard to chill
- Remove the custards from the water bath, and cool to room temperature.
- Cover loosely with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.
4. Broil and serve
- Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar evenly over the top of each custard.
- Carefully melt the sugar on top using a kitchen blow torch.
Broiler Method
No blow torch? No problem. Use your broiler instead to melt the sugar.
- Preheat your broiler to high.
- Broil for 2-3 minutes or until the sugar is melted, crispy, and caramelized.
Tips for Success:
- Tempering the egg yolks is essential. Otherwise, you’ll end up with scrambled eggs!
- A water bath is the key to smooth and creamy custard. So, don’t skip it! Without a water bath, the egg yolks will cook too quickly and become curdled and lumpy-looking.
- Preheat your broiler for the best results. The secret to a hard, caramelized crust using the broiler is to preheat the broiler before placing the crème brûlée in the oven. Set the top rack on the highest shelf, and broil for just 2 minutes or so.
- Watch closely during broiling to prevent the tops from burning. The sugar will melt faster than you think!
- Serve this classic crème brûlée recipe with fresh fruits like blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries.
Make-Ahead Tips:
Crème brûlée should be prepared at least 3 hours in advance (or up to overnight) to give the custard enough time to chill and firm up.
- Let the baked crème brûlée custard cool to room temperature. Then, cover the ramekins loosely with plastic wrap, and place them in the refrigerator to chill.
- When you’re ready to serve, sprinkle the tops with sugar, and broil as instructed in the recipe. There’s no need to reheat the custard before broiling it. The contrast in temperature between the cool, creamy custard and the warm, crisp top is part of what makes crème brûlée so irresistible!
Storing Tips:
This classic crème brûlée recipe doesn’t store well. It’s best eaten right after the tops are caramelized because they will lose their crispy texture as they sit. This shouldn’t be a problem, though, as I’ve never once had any leftovers!
FAQs:
Custard is created when eggs and milk (or cream) are blended and then baked, boiled, or cooked on the stovetop. It is used in both sweet and savory dishes, ranging from cheesecake, flan, and ice cream to frittata and quiche. On the other hand, a classic crème brûlée recipe is a French dessert featuring a sweet custard base topped with a caramelized layer of sugar.
Regular white granulated sugar and superfine sugar (caster sugar) are the best for topping crème brûlée. They have small crystals that melt quickly and smoothly, and their bright color makes it easy to tell when they’re caramelizing. You’ll want to avoid using brown, turbinado, or powdered sugar.
If you don’t have ramekins, you can bake crème brûlée in a wide, shallow, ceramic, or glass baking dish. Avoid metal, and be aware that the baking time may increase if using a larger dish.
More Elegant Dessert Recipes:
Classic Creme Brûlée
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (360 ml) heavy cream
- 3 egg yolks
- 1/3 cup (65 g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon fresh lemon zest
- 4 tablespoons (60 g) granulated sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C).
- In a medium saucepan, bring the cream to a simmer on low heat. Don’t boil. Turn the heat off.1 ½ cups heavy cream
- In medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks, 1/3 cup of sugar and vanilla extract.3 egg yolks, 1/3 cup granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- To temper the egg yolk mixture, pour about 1/3 cup of warm cream while continuously stirring the egg yolk mixture.1/8 teaspoon coarse kosher salt, ½ teaspoon fresh lemon zest
- Add remaining cream, salt and lemon zest and mix well. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, if desired.
- Place 4 ramekins in a deep baking pan and divide the custard into ramekins.
- Pour hot water into the baking sheet to reach halfway up the side of ramekins. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the custard is set.
- Take the custards out of water bath and let them cool to room temperature. Then refrigerate loosely covered with plastic wrap at least 3 hours or overnight.
- Right before serving, evenly sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar on each custard and melt the sugar using a kitchen torch.
- Alternative broiler method: Preheat the broiler. broil for 2-3 minutes until sugar is melted and caramelized. Keep a close eye to prevent burning.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on May 18, 2013.
This creme brulee is the best that I have ever made!! It was so tender and silky. It was AWESOME!!!!
Awesome, so happy you tried and loved the recipe, Linda. Thanks for your feedback. Merry Christmas!
What size of ramekins do you use? I need to buy some but don’t know what size.
Thanks,
Lynnette
Hi, Lynnette. I use 4oz ramekins, like these.
Hi is there anything I can sub for the heavy cream that’s non dairy?
Thanks!
Hi, Leah. I’m not sure as I have never tested any substitutes for this recipe.
Looks absolutely delicious Shinee! Saw it on Foodgawker 🙂 I never use a torch for the crust, I make it like you under the broiler, just like you. Pinning!
Thank you, Mira!