Texas Orange Crème Brûlée

by Chef Natalie Good

This classic French dessert gets a Texas twist as it highlights the sweet oranges from the Rio Grande Valley. (Makes 6 medium ramekins.)

Ingredients

¼ cup + 1 Tbsp granulated white sugar

3 cups of heavy cream

9 egg yolks

½ tsp of vanilla extract

2 Texas oranges – Peel long strips of zest with a peeler and set aside

Set aside 1 Tbsp of juice from oranges

¼ cup + 2 Tbsp granulated white sugar for torching

Equipment

6 medium oven-safe ramekins

Roasting pan

Blow torch*

*Can use an oven with broil setting to Brûlée sugar

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Whisk ¼ cup + 1 Tbsp of sugar into 3 cups of heavy cream. Add the orange peel strips into the mixture and allow to steep while cream heats. The cream mixture can be heated either on the stovetop over medium or in the microwave. Should take 1-2 minutes. Heat until warm to the touch. Do not let the mixture boil.

3. Remove orange zest from mixture.

4. Whisk the mixture to dissolve all the sugar. Add in 9 yolks, the vanilla extract, and 1 Tbsp of orange juice. Whisk to combine until smooth.

5. Evenly pour the mixture between 6 ramekins and place in roasting pan.

6. Carefully pour hot water into the side of the roasting pan. The water should come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Make sure water does not spill into ramekins.

7. Carefully place roasting pan into oven and allow custard to set. Bake for around 50 minutes or until ramekins are set but have a slight jiggle in center.

8. Remove roasting pan from oven, carefully remove ramekins from hot water, and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours to overnight.

9. Set aside ¼ cup + 2 Tbsp of sugar. Sprinkle each ramekin with 1 Tbsp of sugar and rotate to evenly coat the top.

10. Torch the tops of each ramekin using a circular motion to get even coverage. If using a broiler to caramelize the sugar, place the ramekins under the broiler for a minute or until tops are golden.

11. Serve, crack the top, and enjoy!

Download or print this recipe.