Amaretto Crème Brûlée Food

AMARETTO CRèME BRûLéE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Place six 6-oz. oval or round ramekins or custard cups in 13x9-inch pan. In medium bowl, combine egg yolks and 1/2 cup sugar; beat with wire whisk until light and fluffy. Add whipping cream, amaretto, vanilla and salt; mix well.
• Strain mixture into 4-cup measuring cup or another medium bowl. Pour about 1/2 cup mixture into each ramekin. Pour hot water into pan until halfway up sides of ramekins. Cover loosely with foil.
• Bake at 350°F. for 40 to 50 minutes or until edges are set but center still jiggles slightly when gently shaken. Remove ramekins from water bath; place on wire racks to cool for 30 minutes. Pour out water from pan.
• Transfer ramekins to same pan. Cover; refrigerate at least 3 hours or up to 24 hours before serving.
• Sprinkle each ramekin with 1 teaspoon sugar. Watching constantly, broil custards 4 to 6 inches from heat for 1 to 4 minutes or until sugar bubbles and is caramelized. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 3 hours to harden topping.
• Just before serving, sprinkle toasted almonds over chilled crème brûlée. Store in refrigerator.

CREME BRULEE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Place the cream, vanilla bean and its pulp into a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Remove the vanilla bean and reserve for another use.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup sugar and the egg yolks until well blended and it just starts to lighten in color. Add the cream a little at a time, stirring continually. Pour the liquid into 6 (7 to 8-ounce) ramekins. Place the ramekins into a large cake pan or roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake just until the creme brulee is set, but still trembling in the center, approximately 40 to 45 minutes.
• Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. Remove the creme brulee from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top. Divide the remaining 1/2 cup vanilla sugar equally among the 6 dishes and spread evenly on top. Using a torch, melt the sugar and form a crispy top. Allow the creme brulee to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving.

THE BEST CREME BRULEE

Steps:

• Arrange a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 300 degrees F. Line a large heavy roasting pan (a turkey roasting pan works great) with a clean kitchen towel and place 4 six-ounce ramekins on top of the towel spaced a few inches apart.
• Heat the cream in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Using the back of a paring knife, scrape the vanilla seeds from both halves of the pod. Add the seeds and pod to the cream. Whisk in the salt and 3 tablespoons of the sugar and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat.
• Vigorously whisk the yolks and 3 more tablespoons of the sugar in a large bowl until pale yellow and very thick and creamy, about 2 minutes. Alternatively, you can use an electric mixer on high speed and beat until pale yellow and very thick and creamy, about 1 minute.
• Whisking the yolks constantly, add a couple of teaspoons at a time from 1 cup of the hot cream, then increase to a steady stream until the cream is fully incorporated. (Don't pour too much hot cream at once or you'll end up with scrambled eggs.) The yolks are now tempered. Whisk the tempered yolks back into the remaining hot cream until combined. Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a large measuring cup or medium pitcher for easier pouring; discard the vanilla pods.
• Skim the foam off the top of the custard by placing a clean paper towel on top and lightly pressing down so it touches the surface and absorbs some of the liquid. This will make for a completely smooth and silky custard. Fill the ramekins with the custard, about 3/4 cup per ramekin.
• Carefully pour boiling water into the roasting pan halfway up the sides of the ramekins without getting any water in the custard. Cover the pan tightly with foil and bake until the custard is set around the edges but still has a slight jiggle in the center, 35 to 45 minutes. Carefully remove the roasting pan from the oven and transfer the ramekins to a wire rack to cool for 30 minutes. Then refrigerate until very cold, about 3 hours.
• Just before serving, evenly spread 1 tablespoon of the sugar over the top of a custard. Hold a kitchen torch 2 inches above the surface. Starting in the center of the ramekin, move the flame in a circular motion and work your way out to the edges to caramelize the sugar. Repeat with the remaining sugar and custards.
• Alternatively, arrange a rack in the top position of the oven and heat the broiler on high. Place the ramekins on a rack set inside a baking sheet and broil until deep golden brown, 15 to 60 seconds, checking every 10 seconds.
• Freeze the custards for 5 minutes before serving (see Cook's Note).

AMARETTO CRèME BRûLéE

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients. Preheat oven to 350 F.
• In a saucepan, bring cream, amaretto, and almond extract to a boil.
• Meanwhile, whisk egg yolks with 1/2 cup granulated sugar. Slowly whisk the hot cream into the egg yolk mixture until well blended, gradually adding the hot liquid so the eggs don't cook.
• Place 6 to 8 shallow individual 6- to 8-ounce baking dishes in a large baking or roasting pan.
• Pour cream mixture into the baking dishes. Pour boiling water into the baking dish to about halfway up the small baking dishes.
• Carefully place the pan in the oven. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the centers barely move. You may have to adjust the baking time, depending on the size/depth of the baking dishes.
• Cool the crème brûlée, then chill for about 4 to 6 hours or overnight.
• Sprinkle each crème brûlée with 2 to 3 teaspoons of sugar.
• Carefully torch to melt the sugar, moving and taking care not to burn. Or, place under the broiler, turning and watching very closely, until sugar turns a darker brown, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. A cooking torch is good to have if you make this often. You have much more control on melting the sugar, which forms the famous crust.
• Top each crème brûlée with a sprig of mint and sliced toasted almonds if desired.

AMARETTO CRèME BRûLéE

Steps:

• Position oven rack in the center of oven; preheat oven to 325°; lightly butter or spray the ramekins.
• In a saucepan, combine the cream, sugar, salt, and almond paste; heat gently over low heat, stirring and mashing the almond paste against the side of the pan until it melts, about 8 minutes (do not let mixture boil); remove from heat.
• In a bowl, beat the egg yolks and Amaretto; whisk ¼ of the cream mixture into the egg mixture, then slowly whisk the egg mixture into the cream mixture.
• Set ramekins in a large baking pan lined with a dish towel.
• Ladle the cream mixture into the ramekins.
• Place the pan on the oven rack and carefully pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
• Bake, uncovered, until the cremes are just barely set, about 30-35 minutes.
• Remove the baking pan from oven; using a dish towel, carefully remove the ramekins from the hot water and cool to room temperature on a baking rack.
• Cover the ramekins with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours or overnight.
• When ready to serve, place the oven rack in the 2nd-highest position and preheat the broiler.
• Remove the chilled cremes from the refrigerator, uncover, and gently blot any moisture on the surface with a paper towel.
• Sprinkle each one evenly with 2 teaspoons of dried brown sugar.
• Set the ramekins on a baking sheet and slide it under the broiler; broil, watching constantly and rotating the pan for even caramelization, until the tops are bubbling and a rich brown, about 2-3 minutes, depending on the intensity of the heat.
• **OR, you may use a torch instead, be very careful as the sugar may spatter because of the alcohol in the creme mixture.
• Serve immediately.