Creams

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Six straight-sided 4-ounce (120 ml) ramekins
• •Deep roasting tin for the bain-marie
• •1-quart pale-lined saucepan
• •Fine-mesh sieve and pouring jug
• •Electric hand mixer or balloon whisk
• •Instant-read thermometer, optional

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare both temperatures

   Heat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Set six straight-sided 4-ounce (120 ml) ramekins in a deep roasting tin and bring a kettle of water nearly to the boil. Put a clean mixing bowl and the mixer beaters in the refrigerator for the Chantilly. This preparation looks modest, but it protects both creams before the delicate work begins.

   Use ramekins with smooth, nearly vertical sides if you intend to turn out the custards. Fluted or sharply angled moulds hold the set cream too firmly.
2. 2

   Cook the caramel

   Put the caramel sugar and water in a small pale-lined saucepan. Heat gently until the sugar dissolves, then raise the heat and let it boil without stirring. Swirl the pan only when the syrup begins to colour, and remove it at a deep amber, before it smells burnt. If crystals gather on the sides while the syrup is still pale, cover the pan for thirty seconds so condensation washes them down, then continue uncovered. Ça se rattrape. Divide the caramel among the ramekins at once, tilting each carefully to coat its base. Hot caramel burns fiercely, so use a dry towel and keep your fingers above the rims.

3. 3

   Infuse the milk

   Put the milk in a saucepan. Scrape in the vanilla seeds, add the pod, and heat until small bubbles gather around the edge, about 180°F (82°C), without letting the milk boil. Take it off the heat, cover, and infuse for ten minutes. Gentle heat draws out the vanilla while keeping the milk sweet and clean-tasting.

4. 4

   Build the custard

   Whisk the eggs, yolks, custard sugar, and salt only until evenly blended, not pale or foamy. Remove the vanilla pod, then pour the warm milk into the eggs in a slow stream while whisking constantly. Strain through a fine sieve into a jug and skim away surface bubbles. If the heat catches a few threads of egg, don’t discard the mixture; the sieve removes them, and the custard can proceed. Pour it gently over the hardened caramel in the ramekins.

5. 5

   Poach in bain-marie

   Pour the hot kettle water into the roasting tin until it reaches halfway up the ramekins. This bain-marie, a water bath, softens the oven’s heat so the eggs set without curdling. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the edges are set and the centre trembles in one small circle when nudged; a thermometer should read 175 to 180°F (79 to 82°C). If the bath begins bubbling, add a little cool water and lower the oven slightly. Tiny bubbles around an overcooked edge are not a catastrophe, but a hard-set centre cannot be made delicate again, so pull the custards while they still quiver.

6. 6

   Chill and unmould

   Lift the ramekins from the bath and cool them for 30 minutes, then cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. To serve, run a thin knife only around the upper edge, dip the base of each ramekin in warm water for 8 to 10 seconds, place a chilled plate on top, and invert decisively. If the crème moulée stays put, return the base to the water for another 5 seconds. Don’t prolong the dip or the custard will melt at the edge. Lift the mould straight up and let the amber caramel pool naturally.

7. 7

   Whip the Chantilly

   Pour the thoroughly chilled cream into the chilled bowl. Whip at low speed until frothy, then at medium speed until the whisk begins leaving soft tracks. Add the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla, then continue only until smooth medium peaks hold their curve. Stop and check often. If the Chantilly turns slightly grainy, fold in the optional cold cream one spoonful at a time by hand until it becomes smooth again. Once yellow beads and liquid appear it has crossed into butter, so keep that for breakfast and begin again with cold cream.

8. 8

   Serve the two branches

   Serve the crème moulée cold on its own plate, surrounded by its caramel. Spoon the Chantilly into small chilled bowls close to serving time, or offer it with ripe fruit, poached fruit, or a simple chocolate dessert. These are two branches of the same family, not layers that must be piled together. One is held by eggs, the other by air. À table!

Chef Tips

• •The extra egg in a crème moulée is structural, not decorative. A custard served in its cooking pot can be more delicate because it never has to stand alone; reduce the eggs here and it may collapse when turned out.
• •Choose heavy cream with at least 35 percent milk fat for Chantilly. Lower-fat cream struggles to hold air, and no amount of determined whipping will replace the missing butterfat.
• •Caramel continues darkening after the pan leaves the heat. Stop at deep amber rather than brown-black, then pour promptly; burnt caramel tastes bitter all the way through and is the rare kitchen mistake best remade.
• •For Chantilly, ripe berries belong when the season gives them. At other times, serve poached pears, prunes, or preserved fruit rather than tired fresh berries. The classical pantry already solved this problem.

Advance Preparation

• •The crèmes moulées can be baked and chilled up to two days ahead. Keep them covered in their ramekins and turn them out shortly before serving.
• •The caramel may be poured into the ramekins several hours before the custard is added. Leave the moulds at room temperature and keep water away from the hardened caramel.
• •Crème Chantilly is best within two hours, though it can wait up to four hours in a covered chilled bowl. Give it one gentle whisk before serving if it relaxes, and do not freeze it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 175g)