Recipe Courtesy of Nancy Silverton

• 7 egg yolks
• 6 tablespoons granulated sugar or 3 ounces chopped maple sugar
• 3 cups heavy cream
• 2 vanilla beans, split and scraped

In a large heatproof bowl set over gently simmering water, whisk the egg yolks and sugar vigorously until mixture thickens, forms a ribbon when the whisk is lifted, and resembles a thick hollandaise sauce. You may need to take the bowl off the heat briefly a couple of times if the mixture gets too hot and starts to cook too quickly around the edges of the bowl. Leave the bowl over the heat most of the time, however, because it is essential that the egg yolks be warmed through at this point.

Meanwhile, scald the cream with the vanilla beans. Slowly whisk into the yolks. Cook over a pot of warm water for 40-45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the custard is slightly thickened. The heat must be very low – check the water from time to time to make sure it stays just below simmering. The custard should never be too hot to put your [impeccably clean] finger in comfortably.

The mixture is cooked when it is thick enough to heavily coat a finger dipped into it and not to drip off. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer. (When you dip you finger into the crème brûlée mixture, it should be smooth. If there are any white dots in it, showing curdling, remove the vanilla beans and process the mixture briefly in a food processor before continuing.)


Caramelizing a Dessert

Caramelizing the top of a custard dessert gives it a marvelous, translucent, golden-brown layer of crunchy caramel that cracks when broken with a fork. Caramelized sugar adds texture to a custard, and when used on fruit, gives it a shiny glazed look/ To caramelize, a layer of sugar is sprinkled on a dessert and then melted under very high direct heat, either under a broiler or with a propane torch. Restaurant-style salamander broilers are perfect. Most home oven broilers will work on something solid, like a fruit tart, broiled apple slices, or an oven-baked custard, but they won’t get hot enough to caramelize sugar on a soft custard, such as the crème brûlées. When the broiler is not hot enough, the sugar will liquefy rather than brown.  One of my favorite tools is the propane torch, which is the fastest and most effective way to caramelize anything. Available in hardware stores at very reasonable prices (compared to a number of other kitchen gadgets), torches may seem a bit frightening at first, but they’re perfectly safe when used carefully. Their direct, powerful flame is not only enough to caramelize perfectly, but it is so localized that there is never any danger of burning the edge of a tart shell, as you can caramelizing under a broiler. A good torch should have a steady flame; if it sputters or goes out when tilted, it is faulty.

To caramelize with the torch, sprinkle the top of the dessert with a thin, even layer of granulated or powdered sugar. Turn the torch on low, light with a match, and adjust the flame to high. Sweep the torch evenly from side to side, stopping just long enough in one place to allow the flame to brown the sugar. If the sugar starts to bubble and burn, just blow it out. Don’t caramelize the dessert more than 30 minutes before serving or the caramel will lost its crispness.