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Crème Brûlée

By · Published · Desserts

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Crème brûlée in a white ramekin with a caramelized, golden-brown sugar top.

A cool vanilla custard under a thin sheet of caramelized sugar that cracks when you tap it with a spoon. Made with Canadian 35% whipping cream and demerara sugar, because Quebec cassonade is a different sugar.

I make crème brûlée for guests here, because everything is done ahead and the torch is the only last-minute job. The thing to watch in Canada is brown sugar. It's soft and moist, and it clumps into little lumps in the bag, so it won't scatter into an even layer and melts in sticky patches instead of one clean sheet.

That's why I keep demerara for the tops: its dry crystals spread evenly and crack like the brasserie version. If brown sugar is all you have, spread it on a plate to dry for a few hours and rub out the lumps between your fingers before you sprinkle it.

Crème brûlée is a vanilla custard of cream and egg yolks, baked gently in a water bath, chilled, then topped with sugar you melt into a glassy crust just before serving. It's a French brasserie classic, and the custards wait in the fridge for up to two days. Two things trip people up in Canada: the cream and the sugar.

Which cream: 35% whipping cream, not cooking cream

French recipes say crème liquide entière, which is 30–35% fat. Here that's 35% whipping cream, in every dairy case. In Quebec, don't grab the 15% crème à cuisson next to it: 15% cream doesn't have the fat to set a custard, and it bakes loose and watery.

Cassonade isn't cassonade here

French recipes often say cassonade for the top, meaning dry, golden raw cane sugar. In Quebec, cassonade is soft brown sugar, which melts into a sticky layer instead of a crisp one. Buy demerara or turbinado instead, in the baking aisle next to the brown sugar.

Why a custard turns grainy

Out of the oven, the edges are set and the centre jiggles like jelly. After chilling, the custard should be smooth and thick, like soft-set pudding. A grainy texture or bubbles on the surface mean it baked too hot or too long, so trust the jiggle and a low oven over the clock.

Making it in Canada

The 3 French ingredients, and what to buy for them in Canada.

  • Crème liquide entière→35% whipping cream

    French whole liquid cream is 30–35% fat, and Canadian 35% whipping cream gives the same rich, smooth custard. Don't use 18% table cream or 15% cooking cream (crème à cuisson): they set loose and watery.

    Lactantia 35% Whipping Cream (237 mL, 473 mL and 1 L) is listed at Sobeys, and Walmart carries Sealtest 35%. Any brand marked 35% M.F. works; one 473 mL carton plus a splash from a second gets you to 500 mL.

  • Cassonade (France)→Demerara or turbinado sugar

    In France, cassonade is raw cane sugar with dry, golden crystals. In Quebec, cassonade means soft brown sugar, which is too moist to caramelize cleanly. Demerara and turbinado have the same dry crystals and give a crackly, slightly caramel-flavoured top; plain white sugar works too and gives a thinner, clearer crust.

    Redpath Demerara Style Sugar (1 kg) is at Metro and Walmart. Lantic Demerara (Rogers in Western Canada) comes in 1 kg bags at Sobeys and Real Canadian Superstore, and Metro also stocks Redpath Turbinado (500 g).

  • Gousse de vanille→Pure vanilla extract (or a vanilla bean)

    A vanilla bean gives the black specks and the deepest flavour, but 2 tsp of pure extract works well in a custard this simple. Avoid imitation vanilla, which tastes flat here.

    Club House Pure Vanilla Extract (46 mL and 125 mL) is at Metro, Super C, Maxi and Walmart. Check for the word 'Pure' on the label: the smaller 43 mL Club House bottles are imitation or 'French vanilla' flavour.

Good to know: Kitchen Stuff Plus sells the A La Tarte crème brûlée torch, which runs on butane refills. If you don't have a torch, the broiler method in the last step works.

Ready to cook?
Crème brûlée in a white ramekin with a caramelized, golden-brown sugar top.

Crème Brûlée

A cool vanilla custard under a thin sheet of caramelized sugar that cracks when you tap it with a spoon. Made with Canadian 35% whipping cream and demerara sugar, because Quebec cassonade is a different sugar.

Prep time
30 min
Cook time
40 min
Resting time
4 hr
Total time
5 hr 10 min
Servings
6

At least 4 hours in the fridge before caramelizing, or up to 2 days.

Ingredients

Original recipe: 6 servings.

Instructions

  1. Infuse the cream. Heat the oven to 150°C (300°F). Heat the cream with the vanilla seeds and pod until steaming, not boiling. Take it off the heat and let it steep 15 minutes. If you're using extract, add it at the next step instead.
  2. Mix the custard. Whisk the yolks, sugar and salt just until smooth; don't beat in air. Remove the vanilla pod and pour the warm cream into the yolks slowly, whisking gently.
  3. Strain. Strain through a fine sieve into a jug and skim off any foam with a spoon.
  4. Bake in a water bath. Put six 125–150 mL ramekins in a roasting pan and fill them. Pour hot tap water into the pan to come halfway up the ramekins. Bake 30–40 minutes, until set at the edges but still jiggly in the centre, like jelly. An instant-read thermometer pushed into the centre of one custard should read about 77–80°C (170–175°F).
  5. Chill. Lift the ramekins out of the water, cool to room temperature, then refrigerate at least 4 hours, or up to 2 days.
  6. Caramelize. Just before serving, sprinkle about 1 tbsp sugar evenly over each custard and tip off the excess. Melt it with a kitchen torch, moving the flame in small circles, until amber all over, then let it harden 1–2 minutes. No torch? Put the ramekins on a tray on the top rack under a preheated broiler for 1–3 minutes, watching closely and turning the tray as needed, then chill 15 minutes: the custard warms a little under the broiler.

Equipment

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Notes

  • If the custards are still liquid in the centre after 40 minutes, give them 5 minutes more. Deeper ramekins take longer.
  • Grainy custard can't be fixed once baked, but it's still good to eat. Next time, check the oven with a thermometer and pull the custards while the centre still jiggles.
  • Caramelize no more than 30 minutes before serving, or the top softens in the fridge.
  • Save the 6 egg whites: they freeze well, and make good meringues or financiers.
  • Use shallow, wide ramekins if you have them: more surface means more crust. Keep the sugar layer thin, about 1 tsp per ramekin, so it melts before the custard warms.

Course: Desserts · Cuisine: French · Adapted for Canadian kitchens

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Canadian guides

French ingredients and what to buy in Canada »

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