Rodelle Vanilla Bean Crème Brûlée

Directions

Prepare things:

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Place 6 six ounce heatproof ramekins, canning jars, bowls, or cappuccino cups in a roasting pan or deep cake pan.

Make the Custard

1. In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the cream, sugar, vanilla pods and scrapings and salt.
2. Over a medium flame, heat the mixture, stirring frequently, until small bubbles appear around the sides of the pot and the mixture is hot and steamy.
3. Remove from the heat, cover and steep at least 10 minutes, and up to 1 hour.
4. Meanwhile, place the egg yolks in a medium bowl. When the cream has steeped, gradually whisk the hot cream into the yolks, whisking constantly.
5. Strain the mixture through a fine=mesh sieve and into a pitcher or bowl, squeezing any extra seeds out of the vanilla pods and into the custard.
6. At this point, set aside the vanilla pods to rinse, dry and eventually make into vanilla sugar.
7. Bring a kettle of water to a boil.
8. Divide the custard mixture among the ramekins.
9. Cover the roasting pan with a sheet of aluminum foil, poke a few holes in it to let steam escape, and peel back a corner.
10. Carefully transfer the roasting pan to the oven and then carefully pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
11. Close the oven door and bake the ramekins until the custards wobble like Jello when you give them a jiggle, about 30-40 minutes. Be careful not to overbake or the custard will turn grainy; if bubbles appear around the sides of the custards, remove them immediately.
12. Remove the custards from the oven and use tongs or oven mitts to carefully transfer them from the water bath to a rack. Let cool completely, about 1 hour.
13. Cover and chill the custards until firm, at least 4 hours and up to 3 days.

Finish the custards

1. When ready to serve, sprinkle a chilled custard with enough sugar to coat it in a thin, even layer, about 1 teaspoon.
2. Tilt the ramekin and tap it around to even out the sugar layer.
3. Use a crème brûlée torch or kitchen blow torch, held a few inches away from the sugar and pointing straight down to gently caramelize the sugar.
4. If it starts to blacken, pull the torch further away and use a circular motion to evenly torch the whole top.
5. Now repeat with a second teaspoon of sugar; this step produces the thick "lid" of sugar that you'll love to crack into!
6. Repeat the last two steps with the remaining crème brûlée(s).
7. Chill for 10-20 minutes to harden the sugar on top and cool the custard back down.
8. Now, crack the caramelized sugar lid and enjoy the rich Rodelle crème brûlée!
9. Want a little more direction? Watch this how-to guide to help you craft the perfect Brulee!

For the chocolate lover in your life, we also have a cocoa creme brulee and cocoa souffles that you might like! Sticking with vanilla? We don't blame you...we also love this traditional vanilla ice cream because of its rich custard base!