Amelie was one of the first films that came to mind when I thought of food in films. The scene of her favourite pleasures and cracking crème brûlées; perfect. I spent a week making these, trying to get the right consistency. Had nothing to do with the fact I got to play with the blowtorch and eat so many.
I am very tempted when I make them again to either flavour the cream by infusing it with a tea (such a jasmine) as I do love my tea infused creams, or to put something at the bottom of the ramekins like chocolate or a fruit puree just to give it a little more oomph.
Serves 6
Hands-on Time 15 minutes (plus cooling)
Baking Time 40 minutes
Ingredients
600ml Double cream
1 tsp Vanilla bean paste or extract
6 Egg yolks, large
65g plus 6 tsp Caster sugar
Equipment
Saucepan
Bowl
Whisk
Sieve (optional)
Jug
6 Ramekins
Kitchen paper
Roasting tray
1 Kettle of water
Blowtorch (optional)
Preheat the oven to 160°C/140°C(Fan)/325°F/Gas mark 3.
Add the cream and vanilla to the saucepan and place over a low heat.
Whisk together the egg yolks, and 65 grams of sugar until you have a thick creamy mixture.
At this point the cream should hopefully have started to steam.
Take the pan off the heat. Whilst whisking the mixture gradually pour the cream into the bowl until fully combined.
If you want to ensure a very smooth crème brûlée place a sieve over a jug and pour the mixture into it. It will filter out any egg.
Pour the mixture into the 6 ramekins and give each of them a gentle tap on the worktop to get rid of any bubbles.
Place a piece of kitchen paper on the bottom of the roasting tray and put the ramekins on top. The paper will stop the ramekins moving about. Carefully pour freshly boiled water into the tray around the ramekins, try and avoid splashing.
Pop the tray into the oven on a middle shelf for 40 minutes.
When the time is up the crème brûlées should be set but have a nice wobble to them.
Carefully remove them from the tray and dry their bottoms.
Leave to cool.
If you don’t have a blowtorch, preheat your grill on a medium setting.
Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of sugar over each crème brûlée. Either torch their tops using a blowtorch or pop them under a grill. If you are grilling do keep an eye on them as they can turn burnt quickly.
You want the tops to be a gloriously golden colour and all of the sugar melted. I’d also recommend having serving plates if you’re grilling as the ramekins will get VERY hot to handle.
Serve immediately and tap their tops into shards of caramel.
Enjoy
