Caramel Creme
Crème Caramel — the epitome of French dessert elegance. A silky vanilla custard baked to perfection, resting beneath a pool of glistening amber caramel.
Ingredients
- 150 ggranulated sugar
- 60 mlwater
- 500 mlwhole milk
- 1 vanilla bean
- 4 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 100 ggranulated sugar
- pinchsalt
Method
- Make caramel: cook sugar and water in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat without stirring until deep amber (8-12 minutes). Immediately pour into 6 ramekins and swirl to coat bottoms. Be careful — hot caramel is dangerous.
- Preheat oven to 160°C. Heat milk with vanilla bean until steaming (not boiling). Remove from heat and infuse 15 minutes.
- Gently whisk eggs, yolks, sugar and salt until combined. Slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve.
- Pour custard over hardened caramel in ramekins. Set in a baking dish with hot water halfway up the ramekins. Bake 35-45 minutes until edges are set and center jiggles slightly.
- Remove from water bath, cool to room temperature, cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours. To serve: run a knife around each edge and invert onto a plate.
FAQ
Crème caramel is unmolded onto a plate — the caramel sauce flows over the top. Crème brûlée is served directly in the ramekin with a crunchy caramel crust made with a torch. In composition, crème caramel uses whole milk and whole eggs, while crème brûlée uses heavy cream and only egg yolks.
The sugar was overheated — dark brown caramel starts to taste bitter. Remove the pan from the heat when it reaches a golden-amber color (170–175°C). Always keep cold water nearby to quickly stop the caramelization.
Before unmolding, run a thin knife around the edge of the ramekin. If the custard hasn't released yet — wait 10 seconds with the mold inverted. Make sure the dessert has fully cooled in the refrigerator (at least 4 hours).
Without a water bath, the custard will bake unevenly and develop a bubbly, grainy texture. The water bath is essential for a smooth, creamy result.
In the refrigerator in the ramekin (not unmolded) — up to 3 days. Unmold just before serving. Once unmolded, it should not be stored.
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Comments (1)
I weigh every ingredient for caramel creme instead of using cups. Baking is chemistry. An extra tablespoon of granulated sugar can push this from perfectly balanced to dense and heavy. A $15 scale pays for itself immediately.