The Brûlée !

If I was going to make a dessert to impress someone and almost guarantee to make them happy then Creme Brulee would be my pudding of choice. When cooked well its soft, creamy and rich texture is as delectable as Uma Thurman ! (change that last name to suit your romantic preferences ! ha ha).
I first learnt to make these at college and being an inexperienced cook at the time I learned patience. You cannot rush these little ramekins of joy when cooking in the oven or on the stove top. 150 degrees for about 45 minutes in the oven where after every 10 minutes I would carefully and lovenly turn my tray around ensuring they all received equal amounts of sun on their backs !!!
On the stove top cooking them is a great challenge. Some say they taste better but certainly as a cook they need more care. For a start as a Chef you are used to doing two or more tasks at once but if you are making stove top Brulees your culinary world is on hold for 15 to 20 minutes as you slowly stir the cream and egg yolks and sugar on a low heat. Their is no forgiveness when making them this way. If you take them off the stove too early they will not set and will end up in the bin. If you cook them too long they will split and once again they will end up in the bin. It was Kelvin the Head Chef at Treehouse in Alnwick that introduced me to making them on the stove and when I first made them they did not set, the second time they did not set and the 3rd time they did not set. I was on a proper  downer about making them but on the fourth time they did set and I felt I had learned a great cooking technique.
Today Uma Thurman said she was popping around so I thought I would treat her. OK its my blog so I can write what I want end of conversation.
This version is the Oven way which if you have never made brulees before I would recomend doing this way to start with and then move on to the game of 'Chicken' that the stove top version can be.

Into a Pan add 500 mls of Double cream and 1 Vanila pod with its seeds scooped out and added to the cream. I have just used a TBSP of Vanilla extract here. Bring the pan to boil slowly.
In a mixing bowl add 5 large egg yolks and 75 grams of sugar and whisk until the mix is well incorporated.
You will need about 4 ramekins and into these I placed a few sliced strawberries. You can use any fruit you want to at this stage like blueberries or Raspberries its up to you. Now place your ramekins in a deep oven tray and move next to your oven.

When the cream is hot add it slowly to the egg mixture.

When it is all combined pour the mix into a jug and then carefully pour into your ramekins. Allow to settle for a minute and then top them up as far as you dare. The brulees will shrink in the oven. Now pour some hot water into your oven tray until the water covers just over half way of the ramekins.Now place in the oven at 150 degrees C and cook for about 45 minutes turning the tray carefully after every 10 minutes.

Now be patient !

They are ready when they have a bit of a wobble about a 10 pence size in the middle. Take them out and let them cool befre placing in the fridge to set over night.

These are truly stunning as a dessert and the oven method is a bit safer than the stove top way which is a bit more of a touchy, feeley kind of thing guessing if they are ready which is what I had in mind to do with Uma had she arrived but sadly she did not show...!! still I was able to eat two brûlées instead of one which was the only plus point to my evening of being stood up ! ha ha....enjoy !