La Crême Caramel Food

CREME CARAMEL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place eight 4-ounce ramekins in a large roasting pan. Add 4 tablespoons water to a small pot. Add 1 cup sugar and stir to dissolve. Cook over medium-high, swirling occasionally, until caramel begins to turn amber, 6 to 8 minutes. Working quickly, divide caramel between ramekins, swirling ramekins to coat bottoms evenly, set aside.
• In a medium pot, heat milk over medium until hot, but not boiling. In a medium bowl whisk together whole eggs and yolks, salt, and remaining 1/2 cup sugar. While whisking, ladle some milk into the egg mixture. Whisk in remaining milk, one ladle at a time. Strain through a fine sieve into a large liquid measuring cup, and stir in vanilla. Divide custard evenly among ramekins.
• Transfer roasting pan to oven. Add enough boiling water to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until custards are just set, about 35 minutes.
• With tongs, remove ramekins from hot water and let cool slightly. Cover and refrigerate until cold, at least 3 hours (or up to 3 days). To unmold, run a sharp knife around inside of each ramekins and invert onto a serving plate, gently shaking to release.

CREME CARAMEL

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Place the sugar and water in a heavy-bottomed saucepot over low heat. Let the sugar dissolve. Carefully brush the walls of the pot with a little water to prevent the sugar from crystallizing on the sides. Increase the heat to medium-high and boil until the syrup turns golden brown. Remove from the heat promptly and carefully divide the hot caramel among the 6 ramekins. Let cool for at least 2 minutes.
• In a medium saucepan, bring the milk and cream to just below a boil over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, mix together the egg yolks, caster sugar, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Place the mixing bowl on top of a towel to keep it from wobbling while whisking in the hot liquid. Gently whisk 2 tablespoons of the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture. Slowly whisk in the remaining hot milk mixture 1/3 at a time, trying to prevent excess bubbles. Strain though a sieve.
• Place 6 ramekins evenly spaced in a paper towel-lined baking dish to prevent the ramekins from sliding. Pour 6 ounces into each caramel-coated ramekin. Place on the extended middle rack of the oven. Carefully pour boiling water into the baking dish until 2/3 of the way up the sides of the ramekins. (Be careful not to get any water on the custard mixture.) Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and very gently slide it towards the center of the rack. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until the custards are almost fully set. Remove from the oven. Use tongs to remove the ramekins from the hot water bath. Let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes, then refrigerate until well chilled.
• To serve, dip the ramekin in very hot water for 15 to 20 seconds. Run a sharp knife around the sides of the ramekin. Invert the custards onto serving plates. The caramel will pool around the inverted custards. Serve immediately.

CREME CARAMEL

Steps:

• In a large heavy saucepan, combine all but 1/2 cup of the sugar with 2 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, without stirring, until thick and amber in color. When caramelized, remove from the heat and divide among 6 individual crème caramel cups or ramekins. Let caramel cool to room temperature.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a medium bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, milk, lemon zest, vanilla, food coloring, and eggs, and mix very well. Pour this mixture into the cups or ramekins; fill each until nearly full.
• Place the creme caramel cups into a large baking dish. Make a water bath by adding water to the dish so that it comes about halfway up the sides of the cups. Bake for 45 minutes. Carefully remove from the water bath, let cool to room temperature, and then refrigerate until completely chilled before serving.

THE ULTIMATE CREME CARAMEL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Combine the water and sugar in a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed pot. Cook over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Tilt pan to ensure that sugar is dissolved. Do not stir the mixture or the sugar will crystallize. Increase heat to high and cook until sugar turns amber in colour.
• Pour liquid caramel into six 3-inch (6 ounce) ramekins, dividing equally and tilting ramekins to cover the bottoms with the caramel.
• Over medium heat, bring milk just to a boil in medium saucepan with salt and scraped vanilla bean. Remove from heat and cover and let steep for 10 minutes. Add the sugar and stir with a wooden spoon until dissolved.
• Stir together eggs and egg yolk in a medium bowl until well blended. Add warm milk and stir. Strain the mixture over a large measuring cup or clean bowl and pour or ladle over caramel-lined ramekins.
• Transfer ramekins to a baking pan. Add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake in preheated oven until a tester comes out clean when inserted in the centers and the crème caramel jiggles as one, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove ramekins from bath. Let cool to room temperature. Garnish with shards of the Pistachio Praline.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Add sugar and pistachio nuts to a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over high heat for 3 to 4 minutes, tilting the pan (do not stir), until the sugar melts and turns a rich brown caramel colour. Remove from heat immediately and pour onto prepared baking sheet. Let cool completely. Once cooled, break into shards for garnish.

LA CRêME CARAMEL

Steps:

• Caramel: Pour ½ Cup granulated sugar in a medium-size, heavy-bottomed frying pan and place over Medium-High heat.
• Let sugar cook 3-5 minutes till it reaches an evenly golden brown colour stirring with a wooden spoon to remove any lumps. Do not overcook since caramel will continue browning in the oven; overcooking will give it a bitter taste.
• Once the caramel has reached the proper colour, add 1Tbsp water (may splatter) to pan to keep caramel from becoming too hard. Remove from heat and carefully cover bottom of a 2-qt mould. Tilt mould from side to side if necessary to completely cover bottom.
• When caramel has cooled, butter sides of mould. Set aside.
• Crème: Preheat oven to 350*. Beat together lightly eggs, sugar and salt. Pour over warm milk; add vanilla and stir to blend.
• Pour the mixture over caramel in mould.
• Place mould in pan containing 2 inches hot water.
• Place pan in oven; bake about 1 hour until set.
• Custard is done when knife blade inserted comes out clean.
• You can also use ramequins for individual desserts.

CHEF JOHN'S CREME CARAMEL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly spray 4 heatproof 6.5-oz. ramekins with vegetable spray. Place ramekins in a casserole dish.
• Place 1/2 cup sugar in a small, heavy, dry skillet over medium heat. When sugar begins to melt around the edges, gently shake the pan continually, swirling sugar around, until all the sugar melts; don't use utensils to stir. When sugar is completely melted and dark brown, remove the pan from heat.
• Quickly pour equal amounts of caramel syrup into the 4 prepared ramekins.
• Place 1 egg and 3 egg yolks in a bowl with a pinch of salt and 1/4 cup sugar. Whisk until sugar is dissolved and mixture becomes frothy, about 1 minute.
• Spoon the creme fraiche into the egg mixture; add the milk, vanilla, and Grand Marnier. Whisk together until ingredients are completely mixed.
• Ladle mixture into the prepared ramekins, filling them about 2/3 to 3/4 full.
• Fill casserole with hot tap water to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Place casserole on middle rack of preheated oven.
• Bake until just barely set, 45 to 50 minutes. You can start checking for doneness at about 40 minutes.
• Using tongs, remove the ramekins from the casserole to a cooling rack. When just slightly warm, run a sharp paring knife around the edge of each custard.
• To unmold, cover ramekin with a small plate, then invert. Chill before serving.