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Espresso Crème Brûlée - Full of Flavor Creamy Recipe

Crusty Espresso Custard French Dessert

Quick answerMakes 4 servings, cook at 300F / 150C, French cuisine.
By Jaron Kimhi··👁 360 views
Espresso Crème brûlée
This is a wonderful take on the familiar French dessert. This espresso crème brûlée is made with a strong espresso shot and gives a delicious coffee taste! You can also try making it with other types of coffee. They'll each give a slightly different flavor. Personally, my suggestion is to use what you usually drink — and since I'm a coffee addict, I like my coffee very strong! There are only five ingredients in this recipe, so it's quite easy to make, but it does require you to be careful with the technique, otherwise the custard might turn into sweet scrambled eggs.... If you follow the directions below you should get a lovely creamy custard. See the picture! [caption id="attachment_4225" align="alignnone" width="225"]so-creamy So Creamy!![/caption]

Some tips for success:

  1. You need a good burner. It is possible to caramelize the sugar in the oven under the grill, but you control the process much better with a burner.
  2. All of the ingredients you're using should be at room temperature.
  3. When you're adding the warm cream to the eggs, do it very carefully — little by little, and stir it well each time you add it. Once the temperature of the eggs has risen enough, you can add the rest of the cream with no fear!
  For more classic desserts you could try making our gorgeous Cream Puffs or Lemon Meringue Tart

Method

  1. 1

    Making The Custard· 10 Minutes

    Heat the cream and sugar on a medium heat. When it starts to simmer set aside. Mix the egg yolks with the vanilla (you can also use a vanilla stick but because this is an espresso brulee pure vanilla extract works just fine). Beat the eggs and vanilla. Add the cream carefully. The temperature should rise slowly so each time add a bit more. When all the cream is added you can pour the espresso in (Better if the espresso is in room temperature).

    creme-brulee-ingredientsheating-cream-and-sugarmixing-eggs-and-vanillamixing-eggs-and-vanillaadding-creamstirring-everything-welladding-espresso
  2. 2

    Baking The Custard· 20 - 25 Minutes

    Heat the oven to 300F / 150C. Pour the custard in 4 brulee dishes and set on a baking pan. Pour water in the baking pan to reach at least half the hight of the brulee dishes. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Take out when the custard is almost firm i.e. all but the center is firm enough.

    pouring-the-creamplace-in-ovenmaking-water-bathcooling-down
  3. 3

    Caramelizing the custard· 8 Hours

    Let the custards rest outside till they reach room temperature. Move them to cool in the fridge overnight. Before serving take out of fridge. Sprinkle a nice coat of brown sugar on top. With a burner gently broil the sugar till it caramelize.

    Step 3carefully-caramelizing-sugargolden-browncreme-brulee-readyadding-sugar
Recipe by

Jaron Kimhi

Jaron Kimhi — self-taught home cook from Tel Aviv, writing and cooking every recipe on this site himself. 20+ years of tinkering in the kitchen, leaning toward slow cooking, classic technique, and honest ingredients.

More recipes by Jaron →

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Categories
Creams and CurdsDesserts
Cuisines
French
Features
Gluten FreeVegetarianEggsOven
Tags
Gluten Freecustard

Questions & answers

Can I use regular brewed coffee instead of espresso?
You can, but the flavor will be much weaker — espresso gives you that punchy, concentrated kick. Brew it as strong as possible if you go that route.
Why does the espresso need to be at room temperature before adding it?
Adding cold liquid to the warm custard mix can cause the eggs to seize or the temperature to drop unevenly. Let it cool down after pulling the shot before you pour it in.
How full should the water bath be in the baking pan?
Get it at least halfway up the sides of your brûlée dishes — that's what keeps the custard cooking gently and evenly without curdling.
How do I know when to pull the custards out of the oven?
Give the pan a gentle shake — the edges should be set but the center should still have a slight wobble. That's your cue to take them out.
Can I use white sugar instead of brown sugar for the brûlée topping?
The recipe calls for brown sugar on top, so stick with that — it caramelizes beautifully and adds a deeper, molasses-y crust that pairs great with the espresso.