Oolong Earl Grey Crème Brûlée

Let's be real here. The human condition means finding any excuse to luxuriate in sensual decadence. I 1000% support this, for the record. Taking a time out to play and enjoy a treat is a wonderful gift to give yourself. For some people this looks like taking a walk in the fresh air or going to the movies. For others, ballroom dancing or binging crappy TV shows in their jammies. For myself personally, this looks like baking five million delicious desserts and sharing them with my friends and family.

My fifteen years as a professional chef made for a brain full of wild recipe ideas, and I hope you all benefit from them in tasty ways. This recipe is one of my favorite creations to date, with rich texture and palpatation-inducing flavor. From the crack of the burnt sugar to the last of the cream coating your tongue, I promise you'll be hooked.



Recipe time: 1 hr active cooking, 2 hr chill
Serves: 4
You will need:

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 4 Tablespoons Oolong Earl Grey
• 1/8 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 5 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar 
• 1/8 cup raw sugar (aka demerara sugar) 

Process:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F and gather your materials. In addition to the ingredients above, you will need one small mixing bowl, one small saucepan, four 6 oz. ramekins and one deep baking dish that can hold the ramekins. A pastry torch is very helpful, but if you are lacking a torch when you arrive at the final step, pop the brûlées under the broiler for about 5 minutes instead.
2. Heat heavy cream, Oolong Earl Grey and salt in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, stirring frequently until hot (don't let it boil, though!), then remove from heat and strain through a mesh sieve to remove tea leaves. Pour the leafless hot cream back into the saucepan, stir in vanilla and set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks and sugar together until creamy. Mix about a quarter of your hot cream into the egg mixture and beat well, then pour the whole eggy mess back into the saucepan of hot cream and stir until well mixed.
4. Pour hot custard into four 6 oz ramekins and set side by side in a deep baking dish.
5. Fill the baking dish with hot water until the water level is about halfway up the side of the ramekins. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the custard just slightly jiggles when shaken.
6. Chill at least 2 hours, or up to 5 days. When ready to serve, sprinkle each with 1 teaspoon of raw sugar and torch the heck outta the tops until they bubble and turn dark amber verging on black. Serve within the hour and enjoy!

How sexy is that?

Whether you share your desserts with a lover, a group of friends, or keep them all for yourself, I invite you to really savor and enjoy the creamy, rich, decadent goodness. I don't think you'll be disappointed!

After all, as Donna says...


<3, Friday