Photograph by Bennett Pruitt
When we think of Valentine, do we not automatically think of red roses and chocolate?
At my house, we love chocolate in all shapes and forms. My husband and daughter are the chocoholics. For Valentine’s, I always serve something chocolate. It's not necessarily the same dessert each year, though these past few years, crème brûlée has been on the menu.
This rich and creamy dessert is definitely worthy of your sweetheart. It’s also one of the simplest desserts to put together, since it has only five ingredients.
White Chocolate Crème Brûlée
2 cups whipping cream
½ cup sugar
½ cup white chocolate morsels
8 egg yolks or 4 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
Sugar for sprinkling
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
Bring whipping cream to a simmer in a medium-size saucepan. Add white chocolate, stirring until melted. Remove from heat. Beat egg in a medium-size bowl. Add sugar and vanilla, mixing well.
Slowly pour cream mixture to the egg mixture, stirring constantly to prevent egg from curdling.
Strain through a sieve into a bowl with a pouring lip. Pour into 6-8 ramekins and place in a baking dish. Set in an oven and pour boiling water into pan, halfway up the ramekins. This is called a water bath, which protects the custards from overcooking.
Bake for 40-50 minutes until set, but still slightly quivery in the center. Remove from water bath and let cool to room temperature. Cover with a plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or up to three days.
Before serving, gently blot any moisture that has formed on the surface. Sprinkle with sugar and caramelize with a propane torch until sugar has melted. You can also do this under the broiler. Watch carefully and rotate for even browning.
