I didn't think my husband would enjoy desserts so much but that delighted expression on his face whenever I make sweets gives it all away. Today, as part of breakfast we had strawberry Creme brûlée, which he insisted on torching..I was content to just have the creamy custard...
This is the recipe, modified from Alton Brown's version and Hummingbird's High..slightly lower in sugar and calories but still very smooth and satisfying..(I didn't cut the sugar for health reasons...it's mainly cos I prefer a less sweet taste...and the egg yolk? I just didn't think it was needed...and disliked the idea of having 5 leftover egg whites.....the 4 leftover egg whites were turned into egg white omelette for breakfast the very next morning...there are some fantastic ideas on this page for leftover egg whites if omelettes are not your thing..)
Strawberry Crème Brûlée
Serves 6 / 6 four oz ramekins
Ingredients:
- 500ml heavy whipping cream
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
- 1/4 cup sugar + 6 teaspoons for caramelization
- 3 strawberries
Method:
1. Put the cream in a microwave proof dish (I used a 2 cup capacity Pyrex glass measuring cup) and then microwave till just below boiling. In my 1200 watt microwave, this took about 3.5 minutes- I took it out every minute to give it a good stir to spread the heat more evenly. How do you know it's done? There's steam rising from the surface of the cream and it looks like it's just about to bubble. Add vanilla essence.
Set aside to cool for about 15 minutes. (the following steps should at least 15 minutes....)
2. Preheat oven to 325F.
3. Prepare strawberries. Cut from top down, in 4 slices per strawberry and then make a V cut in the middle and trim the sides to make it look like a heart.
2. Combine 1/4 cup sugar and egg yolks and whisk till pale yellow and creamy. (On my handheld electric whisk, this took about five minutes.)
4. Pour the cooled cream into the egg yolk sugar mixture slowly, stirring all the time with a spoon.
5. Pour into the ramekins and place the ramekins into a baking dish. Carefully place a few slices of strawberries into each ramekin. Pour boiling hot water into the baking dish up to half the height of the ramekins like so.
6. Bake in a 325F degree oven for 20-25 minutes. Start checking at 20 minutes. It should look firm but still jiggle. It's better to be underdone rather than over..
7. Cool on wire racks. When completely cooled, cover with cling flim and chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours up to 3 days. (Yes, this is a make in advance dessert.)
8. When ready to serve, sprinkle 1 teaspoon castor sugar and caramelise the sugar with a blow torch.
9. Enjoy!!!
