Everyone always loves crème brûlée and of course pumpkin and its classic spices are the favorite flavor of the season. So here I combine the two to make a wonderful fall/winter dessert. The trick to a pumpkin crème brûlée is making it taste like the classic combination of flavors but keeping the texture of a traditional crème brûlée. Usig this recipe you get the ideal result.
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| Julian's Pumpkin Crème Brûlée |
You do not have to use the special sugars for the topping, but as table sugar does not melt as well as the Demerara or turbinado, use only 1 teaspoon on each ramekin or 1 1/2 teaspoons on shallow fluted dishes. I never like too much sugar anyway because you don't want them to be hard to crack. Also note that if your oven heats unevenly, the custard may be cooked in some but not all of the ramekins. Check each one separately and take out those that have finished cooking as noted below, while the others come up to temperature.
Ingredients (8-12 servings)
3 cups heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup whole milk
8 egg yolks
1/2 canned pumpkin puree
2/3 cup sugar for topping
turbinado, Demerara or table sugar
Instructions
Adjust oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat to 300F degrees. Place a kitchen towel on the bottom of a large baking dish or roasting pan and arrange 4-5 ounce ramekins (or shallow fluted dishes) on the towel. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan, heat the cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves and sugar over medium heat, stirring regularly, just until it the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is 150-155F degrees. Immediately turn off the heat and set aside to infuse flavors for approximately 15 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup whole milk to continue cooling down the mixture. In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the remaining 1/2 cup whole milk. Whisking constantly, gradually pour in the warm cooked cream mixture. Whisk in the pumpkin puree. Pour or ladle the mixture into ovenproof ramekins. Place the ramekins evenly spaced in to the prepared baking dish. Bring a kettle or pot of water to boil for the water bath noted below (bain-marie).
Gently place the baking dish with the ramekins on the oven rack. Pour the boiling water into the baking dish, being careful not to splash any water into the ramekins, until he water reaches about two-thirds of the height of the ramekins. Bake until the centers of the custards are just barely set and are no longer sloshy, and a digital instant-read thermometer inserted in the centers registers 170-175F degrees, about 30-35 minutes (or 25-30 minutes for shallow fluted dishes). Begin checking the temperature about 5 minutes before the recommended time.
Remove the ramekins from the water bath to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. Tightly cover each ramekin with plastic wrap, making sure the plastic does not touch the surface of the custard. Refrigerate at least 2 hours, and up to 4 days.
Unwrap the ramekins; if condensation has collected on the custards, dab with a paper towel to soak up the moisture. Sprinkle each custard with about 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons of turbinado/Demerara sugar (1 1/2 - 2 teaspoons for shallow fluted dishes); tilt and tap the ramekin for even coverage. Pour off any large excess to get an even coating across the entire surface. Using excess sugar will make a thicker, hard to break coating.
Ignite a torch and caramelize the sugar by holding the end of the flame about 1 inch from the surface of the custard until the sugar melts, then burns to a golden brown, proceeding the same way until the entire surface is deeply golden brown and hard. (NOTE: If you don't have a torch, adjust the over rack to the upper position and pre-heat the broiler on high. Then place the ramekins on a baking sheet and place on the rack while standing at the oven as the sugar melts and browns. Watch closely so they do not burn and remove from the oven just as soon as they reach the desired coloration so as not to overheat the custard.)
Refrigerate the ramekins, uncovered, to rechill, about 30-45 minutes (but not much longer or the tops will soften). If making for a dinner party, prepare the crackly sugar top just before you begin final dinner plans and start serving the meal.
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