Crème Brûlée

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 150 °C (fan 140 °C) for 10 min. Set out the ramekins (you need 2, about 120 ml each, 9–10 cm wide and 3 cm deep) in a deep roasting tin lined with a folded tea towel, which stops them sliding and keeps the bottoms from overheating. Put the kettle on.

   oven

2. Split the vanilla pod lengthwise with the tip of a knife and scrape out the seeds. Put the cream, milk, vanilla seeds and pod in a 16 cm saucepan and heat on medium heat for 4 min, until it steams and tiny bubbles appear around the edge; do not let it boil. Take it off the heat, cover and leave to infuse for 10 min.

   Add in this stepDouble or heavy cream (at least 35% fat) 200 mlWhole milk 50 mlVanilla pod ½

   medium heat

3. In a bowl, whisk the yolks, sugar and salt for 1 min, just until the sugar dissolves and the mixture turns a shade paler. Whisk gently: froth ends up as bubbles on top of the custard. Fish out the vanilla pod, then pour the warm cream into the yolks in a thin stream, whisking all the time so the yolks don't scramble.

   Add in this stepEgg yolks 2Caster sugar (for the custard) 40 gSalt 1 pinch

4. Strain the custard through a fine sieve into a jug and spoon off any foam. Divide it among the ramekins, filling them almost to the top. Pour hot water from the kettle into the tin until it comes halfway up the sides of the ramekins. This water bath keeps the heat gentle, so the custard sets silky rather than grainy.

5. Carefully slide the tin into the oven and bake for 32 min. It is ready when the edges are set and the centre wobbles like jelly when you nudge a ramekin (a thermometer in the middle reads about 80 °C). If the centre still ripples like liquid, give it 5 more minutes and check again; overbaked custard puffs up and turns grainy.

   oven

6. Lift the ramekins out of the water with tongs or an oven glove and let them cool on a rack for 30 minutes. Cover and chill for at least 2 h, or up to 2 days. The custard firms up as it cools.

7. Just before serving, dab any moisture off the surface with kitchen paper. Sprinkle the caramel sugar evenly over each custard, tilt to spread it and tip out the excess. Hold a kitchen blowtorch 5 cm above and keep the flame moving in circles until the sugar melts, bubbles and turns deep amber, about 2 min in total. No torch: set the ramekins on a tray right under a fully preheated oven grill for 3 min, watching constantly. Let the caramel harden for 2 minutes, then crack it with a spoon.

   Add in this stepCaster sugar (for the caramel top) 3 tsp