Recipes · Dessert

Classic Vanilla Crème Brûlée

Silky vanilla custard under a crisp torched sugar crust. Four ramekins, a water bath, and a chill in the fridge that does most of the work while you do nothing.

A white ramekin of crème brûlée seen from above, its sugar crust torched to a crackled amber with darker caramel patches across the middle

How this recipe was made

I love High School Musical and was inspired to create this delicious dish. I didn't even know what crème brûlée was to be completely honest—HSM opened my eyes to so many things!

Cooked in our kitchen on July 12, 2026. The photo above is our plate.

Ingredients

Makes 4

  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped, or 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 5 large egg yolks
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • A pinch of salt
  • For the tops
  • 2 to 3 tsp granulated sugar per ramekin

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 325F and set four ramekins in a deep baking dish.
  2. Heat the cream with the vanilla over medium heat until it just comes to a simmer. Take it off the heat and let it steep for 10 minutes.
  3. Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and salt together until pale and smooth.
  4. Pour the warm cream into the yolks slowly, whisking the whole time, so the eggs do not scramble. Strain through a fine sieve to catch the vanilla pod and any lumps.
  5. Divide the custard between the ramekins. Pour hot water into the baking dish until it comes halfway up their sides.
  6. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, until the custards are set at the edges and still slightly loose in the middle.
  7. Lift the ramekins out of the water and let them cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 2 days.
  8. Just before serving, sprinkle a thin even layer of sugar over each custard and torch it until deep golden and crackly.
  9. Give the caramel a minute or two to harden, then serve.

Notes and tips

Keep the torch moving in a wide sweep rather than holding it over one spot. Holding still scorches dark blotches into the sugar; sweeping gives you the even, speckled amber crust.

The three-hour total is mostly the fridge. Hands-on time is about twenty minutes at the stove and another two at the torch, which makes this a good thing to build the night before.

Custards keep in the fridge for two days, but only torch the ones you are about to eat. The crust goes soft within an hour of meeting the custard.

Keep this one in your kitchen

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