Happy Birthday Mark!
Creme Brulee
He’s not much of a cake eater but his favorite dessert is Creme Brulee so that’s what was on the menu last night. Paired with some fabulous fresh berries it made for a very decadent end to his birthday dinner!
I tried something new: rather than fuss with a bain marie in the oven, I steamed the custards in the Varoma and they worked PERFECTLY. Oh, so simple!!
500g cream
1 vanilla pod, split
2 pieces of orange rind
100g sugar
5 egg yolks
6 teas rapadura or raw sugar milled to caster sugar.
Heat the cream, sugar, vanilla & orange rind on 90°C SP 2 REVERSE for 6 minutes.
Add the yolks and mix on SP 3 REVERSE 10 seconds. You do not want to chop up the vanilla or rind.
Strain into 6 x 120 ml ramekins and set in the Varoma.
Steam for 20 minutes on VAROMA temp, SP 4. They will still be very wobbly, don’t worry.
Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Sprinkle cold custards with a teaspoon each of fine rapadura or raw sugar and hit with a blow torch.
The secret with the blow torch is to hold it at about 2 inches above the sugar and as soon as the sugar starts to melt, move the flame to a different area. It will brown further without the flame with the retained heat. I go over the surface to melt the sugar and then repeat. This will prevent it catching although, I do like a bit of burnt sugar bitterness to take away from the cloying sweetness of the custard, but this is personal.
Voila!
