I am dedicating this post to my dear husband, who is taking good care of the house and waiting patiently for me to go home.

Crème brûlée is Nick’s favorite dessert of all time.  He orders it every time we go out to eat, even when there are other enticing desserts on the menu.  For Christmas, he got me a kitchen torch and a cookbook with different variations of crème brûlée. So much for a subtle hint!

Crème brûlée means “burnt cream” in French.  It has luxurious custard on the bottom and a hardened shell of caramelized sugar on top.  This classic dessert has several variations including chocolate- and lemon-flavored custard.  It is also common to serve crème brûlée with a couple of berries on top.

You need a heavy duty kitchen torch and some ceramic ramekins to make crème brûlée.  I like my sugar a bit more caramelized than what’s shown in the photos, but my torch ran out of butane when I made this and I didn’t have enough time to refill it.

Compared to how elegant it looks, this dessert is so easy to put together.  Just be sure to budget enough time for the custard to cool.  Make it and you will be even more loved by your significant other.

Crème Brûlée

Adapted from “Crème Brûlée the Bonjour Way” by Randolph W. Mann

• Whipping creme, 1 cup
• Egg yolks, 2
• Granulated sugar, 1/4 cup
• Salt, pinch
• Vanilla extract, 1/2 teaspoon
• Mixture of granulated and brown sugar in equal amounts, 8 teaspoons

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Pour cream in a saucepan and stir over medium heat just to the point of boiling.  Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks, granulated sugar, salt and vanilla extract until blended.  Whisk the cream into the egg mixture a little bit at a time until everything is incorporated.  Whisk quickly, so the egg yolks don’t curdle.  Strain the mixture through a fine sieve.

Place four 1/3-cup ramekins in a baking dish.  Fill the baking dish with boiling water until the water reaches half the height of the ramekins.  Fill the ramekins with the egg and cream mixture evenly.

Bake for about 35 minutes until the custard is mostly set with the center slightly jiggly. Remove hot water bath from oven and cool until the ramekins are comfortable enough to handle.  Cover with clear plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one and a half hours or up to two days.

Just before serving, evenly sprinkle two teaspoons of granulated and brown sugar mixture on the surface of each custard and torch until caramelized.

Makes 4.