A simple dessert, crème brûlée is made with only milk, cream, egg yolks, sugar, and vanilla. The creamy custard is topped with caramelized sugar for a pleasant contrast in each bite.
Preheat the oven to 325°F. Arrange six 4-ounce ramekins in a 2-inch deep baking dish. Set aside.
Add milk, cream, and vanilla bean paste to a medium saucepan and heat over medium-high heat until bubbles appear along the sides of the pan.
In a medium bowl, quickly whisk the sugar and egg yolks together.
Slowly pour the hot cream into the yolk mixture while whisking continuously until well combined.
Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a pitcher or large liquid measuring cup.
Pour the custard into the ramekins. Place the baking pan with filled ramekins inside the oven. Then, carefully fill the pan with enough hot water to come ⅔ of the way up the sides of the ramekins.
Bake 25-30 minutes, just until set. Start checking the custard early. Bake time will vary depending on the thickness and depth of your ramekins. The custard should be set and not soupy with only a small area of jiggle in the center.
Carefully remove the baking dish from the oven and allow the ramekins to cool in the water bath. Once the ramekins are cool enough to handle, remove them from the water, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 2 days before serving.
Just before serving, sprinkle the tops of the custard with an even layer of granulated sugar, then immediately caramelize the sugar with a propane torch or broiler.
Notes
Milk & Cream: You can use 2 cups of heavy cream if preferred. Omit the milk. This will give you a richer custard.
Vanilla: Traditional creme brulee uses vanilla bean that is steeped in the cream mixture. Currently, good-quality vanilla beans are expensive. If you have some on hand already, feel free to use one - Add it to the cream in step 2 then scrape the seeds out and add them to the custard in step 5. Otherwise vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract work perfectly.
Remove the foam: When stirring to get the ingredients combined, you will likely incorporate air into the custard. This in turn will create foam. In step 5, after straining the custard through a sieve, use a spoon to skim the foam off the top. If the foam is baked on top of the custard, it can inhibit the sugar from caramelizing properly.
Water bath: The water bath will help the custard bake slowly and evenly. Take extra care not to get water in the custard. This will ruin it.
Baking the custard: Timing can be tricky and will vary depending on the type of ramekin you use. I used shallow ramekins and they took about 25 minutes to bake. The custard is done when it jiggles uniformly from edge to edge when shaken gently. You can also test with a fingertip - press it lightly in the center and the custard should spring back will leaving your fingertip clean.