Crème Caramel
Another one of my favorite desserts! Both crème caramel and crème brûlée are classic French desserts, but while crème brûlée emphasizes contrasts, crème caramel provides a more unified silky and eggy texture (which tastes very similar to flan). Making the caramel is a bit tricky, but otherwise it's fairly straightforward and a lot of fun!
Active Time: 45 min
Total Time: 3 hr
Ingredients
(Caramel)
> 1/2 cup granulated sugar
(Custard)
> 1 egg + 3 egg yolks
> 1/4 cup granulated sugar
> 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
> 1/2 cup crème fraîche
> 1/2 cup whole milk
Instructions
1. Prep: Use a oil spray to lightly oil the insides of your ramekins. (I used six 4-oz ramekins) Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Making the caramel: Pour sugar into pan over medium-high heat. Heat and swirl until entirely liquified. Quickly and evenly pour caramel into ramekins.
3. Making the custard: First mix together eggs, egg yolks, and sugar until incorporated. Then add vanilla, creme fraiche, and whole milk, and mix thoroughly until completely incorporated. Ladle the mixture into the ramekins, around 75% of the way up the top of the ramekins.
4. Bake for around 45-50 minutes in a hot water bath. The water should come up around 1/2 of the way up the ramekins.
5. Remove ramekins from water bath and let cool until safe to touch. Run a knife around the edges to prevent sticking, and invert custards onto a dessert plate. Pour any remaining caramel onto the dessert, if possible. Chill in the fridge for at least a few hours.
6. (Optional) If you’re feeling extra fancy, you can use the caramel stuck at the bottom of the ramekins to make a caramel garnish! Heat the ramekin in the microwave for around 30-45s, or until re-liquified. Carefully pour onto a sheet of parchment paper your design of choice. Let cool, remove from paper, and arrange onto the creme caramel. Enjoy!
Notes/Tips:
> Making the caramel can be tricky. The key is to NEVER use a utensil of any kind; the caramel will stick to it. Instead, vigorously swirl the pan. Don’t worry about a few wisps of smoke here and there; that’s part of the process.
> Oven times may vary, so to ensure your crème caramel is properly cooked, try lightly jiggling a ramekin. The custard should be set but with a slight jiggle to it.