Easy Orange Crème Brûlée Recipe

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

8 large egg yolks

½ cup sugar

2 cups heavy cream

2 teaspoons vanilla extract or 1 vanilla pod, scraped 1/3 cup superfine sugar

1 teaspoon fresh orange juice

1 teaspoon fresh orange zest

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 300°F. Place six 6-ounce ramekins into the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan or roasting pan.

2. In a large mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to beat together the egg yolks and sugar until smooth and velvety, about 3 to 5 minutes.

3. Pour in the heavy cream, vanilla extract and orange juice. If using a vanilla bean pod, split it open lengthwise and scrape the seeds directly into the egg mixture. Beat the mixture on low until combined, 1 to 2 minutes. 4. Strain the custard through a fine mesh strainer to remove any egg chunks. Add the orange zest.

5. Then pour it into the prepared ramekins, filling each to ¼ inch from the top. Pour hot tap water into the pan to surround the ramekins with water ½ inch deep. Be careful not to get any water in the custard.

6. Carefully transfer the pan to the oven. Bake in the preheated 300°F oven for 45 to 50 minutes until set.

7. Carefully remove the pan from the oven and transfer it to a wire rack. Let the custards cool slowly in the pan with the water until completely cooled. Then remove the ramekins from the water, cover and refrigerate them until ready to serve, at least 4 hours.

8. Just before serving, sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar over each one. Use a kitchen torch to melt the sugar until caramelized, or place the ramekins 2–3 inches under the oven’s broiler and broil 1 to 2 minutes, watching carefully, until the sugar is caramelized, with a deep brown color.