We love a good creme brulee. If you can you want to use a vanilla bean. The flavor you get is really nice and with a delicate dessert like this you can really taste the bean. I didn’t get the even coloring I would normally like, I had an eager to help toddler wanting to help with the torch part so it was all hands on deck.

Vanilla bean:

To make sugared blackberries:

Beat an egg white with a splash of water in a bowl.  Dip rinsed and dried berries in egg wash, then roll in sugar.  Place sugared berries on a plate or cookie sheet, separated, and dry for a couple of hours at room temperature.  Use to decorate a dessert, or eat by themselves.

Crème Brûlée

(Adapted from Saveur)

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1 qt. heavy cream

1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved

¾ cup sugar

8 egg yolks

Turbinado sugar, for serving

Heat oven to 300°. Bring cream and vanilla bean with seeds to a simmer in a 2-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and let sit for 30 minutes; discard vanilla bean.

In a bowl, whisk sugar and yolks until smooth.

Slowly pour in cream mixture, whisking until smooth; set aside.

Place a paper towel in the bottom of a 9″ x 13″ baking pan, and place six 6-oz. ramekins inside pan. Divide custard among ramekins.

Pour boiling water into pan to come halfway up outsides of ramekins. Bake until custards are set but still slightly loose in center, about 35 minutes.

Transfer ramekins to a wire rack; cool. Chill until firm, at least 4 hours.

Dab any condensation off surface of custards with a paper towel. Sprinkle turbinado sugar evenly over surface of each custard. Guide the flame of a blowtorch back and forth over surface until sugar caramelizes; let sit briefly until sugar hardens.