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'Stovetop' Creme Brulee


Wendy DeBord

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I've done brulees as layers in tortes, but now that I have my new flexible molds it's time to make them free form. I can't recall seeing a brulee recipe that holds a shape, can you dirrect me to one? (I have most of the pro (and amatuer) baking books, if they were published in English in the 20th century)

Didn't Bri mention one on the mini pastry thread?

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yes I did and I will post it later. It is a stovetop method (creme anglaise style) with a small amount of gelatin, poured into the flexipan, fozen then popped out- these can be used on top a sable base or inserted in an entremet.

you'll like the fact that the recipe is courtesy of Norman Love

"Chocolate has no calories....

Chocolate is food for the soul, The soul has no weight, therefore no calories" so said a customer, a lovely southern woman, after consuming chocolate indulgence

SWEET KARMA DESSERTS

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550 East Meadow Ave. East meadow, NY 11554

516-794-4478

Brian Fishman

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steve,

your making an anglaise then pull it off the stove, add teh softened gelatin, dissolve, strain then mold. In your experience would it be better to chill in the frigerator first then transfer to the freezer?

"Chocolate has no calories....

Chocolate is food for the soul, The soul has no weight, therefore no calories" so said a customer, a lovely southern woman, after consuming chocolate indulgence

SWEET KARMA DESSERTS

www.sweetkarmadesserts.com

550 East Meadow Ave. East meadow, NY 11554

516-794-4478

Brian Fishman

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Bri- I'd love the recipe when you get a chance. I'm really looking forward to making some new items with my new molds.

O.k. I have a couple of questions if you don't mind.

I put my frozen custards on my sables (1. when they defrost won't my sables get soft soaking up the condensation?), but if I defrost them first, it will be harder to move them with out nicking. What's the best proceedure?

Then I brulee them, (2. doesn't it have to be a flat shape?) can I make pyramid shaped ones work?

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A comment and a couple of questions.

The "stovetop" creme brulee in Julia's Mastering 1 did not work for me at all. It did not set when chilled and when baked in a bain-marie by the time it did set the texture was too firm. What went wrong?

When referring to a creme brulee - especially as a layer in an entremet - is it understood elsewhere that it does have a burned sugar crust? That apparently is not the case amongst the French who understand it to mean primarily the custard. What does Bau say?

Sinclair, I'm fascinated as to how the pyramids might work. Mold them like a creme caramel - to stick the sugar - freeze solid, unmold, sugar, brulee? I have no idea, but can't wait to find out.

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lou--I usually add back a caramel tuile or crunchy caramel powder somehow, even when I use it as a filling in a cake. even if you present it in a ramekin you can serve this thin tuile above it like a lid. crack through it and everything. very elegant and a la minute and each element is at the perfect temperature. (Herme has a nice picture of this presentation in his French language only--and much better than his US--dessert book with a pistachio creme brulee and a cacao nib tuile "lid.")

but yes, many pchefs just refer to the cream or custard that way because it has the texture of the creme brulee cream.

don't think too much of the Ramsay dessert book, Jon, he's like 10 years behind anything the French or Spanish are doing in print. But I have the book, give the page reference and I will re-read the recipe. I like yolks in my brulee. I'm also not a fan of Julia's baking, with all apologies to Dorie.

If you try to unmold frozen things of different densities, you will discover that hard sugar, creams, gelees all defrost or thaw at different rates and usually do not yield an acceptable end result once thawed. Like a frozen panna cotta with a thin frozen gelee top. You pour the gelee in first, let it set up and then pour the panna cotta in. Freeze and unmold. It comes out fine. But it will not make it to service. You have to be careful how you compose things and you may not be able to get the desired visual effect without some tweaking or compromise.

Steve Klc

Pastry chef-Restaurant Consultant

Oyamel : Zaytinya : Cafe Atlantico : Jaleo

chef@pastryarts.com

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don't think too much of the Ramsay dessert book, Jon, he's like 10 years behind anything the French or Spanish are doing in print.  But I have the book, give the page reference and I will re-read the recipe. I like yolks in my brulee.

The ref from an even earlier book, his first one in fact.

Its a custard tieh 500ml double cream, 100ml UHT, 4 egg yolks and 85g sugar (custard baked in ramekins at 120c). Says he uses UHT to "stabilise the custard mixture during baking and it also means that we can use fewer eggs"

Looking at the desert book, actually, the coffee creme brulee on p141 also uses UHT.

Presumably the reason is to keep the richness of the mixture down by limiting no. egg yolks. Am just curious because I haven't seen this anywhere else, and wonder how UHT helps...

cheerio

J

More Cookbooks than Sense - my new Cookbook blog!
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  • 6 months later...

Hello everybody,

I tried to make creme brulee on top of the stove yesterday since our oven is broken. The recipe that I used was for stovetop. I used 4 egg yolks, half a pint of whipping cream and half a pint of half-and-half. I was careful to poor the warm creams over the beaten eggs (plus vanilla and sugar) slowly. I brought the mixture to the pan and started cooking it at a low heat. Once it was thicken, it appeared to have split. Not a major cream/scramble egg, but clearly it is not a desirable creamy texture. The taste was acceptable, but not great.

I have the chance to do it again today. My available ingredients are still whipping cream (1 pint and a half left), half and half (plenty left), eggs (plenty left), and vanilla... Do any of you have any recommendations for the ratio between eggs and creams? I just need two servings, although making more is not a problem.

My guess is that I cooked it too fast, but I would like to know if changing the ratios could allow me more room for error.

I appreciate your help. Thanks.

Alex

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alexp,

it doesn't sound as if there's enough egg yolk to make that much of a difference. it seems to me you may be cooking it a little too long maybe over a high heat. it should never boil. if steam is coming off the surface, you should be fine. or better yet, use a thermometer and cook to 175F that should definitely be hot enough to thicken and kill bacteria but not scramble (maybe someone else has a better temperature...i'm not quite sure).

also, strain after you cook and get it into an ice bath immediately to cool it down.

if it still looks broken, as a last resort, use a burr mixer. again, i don't think it is the recipe...but i could be wrong.

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I just do not own one. I switched pans not to long ago and I have not tried to put a couple together and "create" a double boiler. It could be an option...

Thanks for the responses. I will report today’s attempt, probably on Friday.

Alex

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if you have a stainless steel mixing bowl, you have a double boiler. just make sure the pot is large enough to keep the custard away from any flames which may come up the side of the pot (though, at custard cooking temps, you shouldn't have to worry about that). this is what we do in the restaurant.

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Thanks for the suggestions. I did use the double boiler idea. I thought about the stainless steel bowl, but then I realized that I had two sauce pans that kind of fit quite well as a double boiler, so I used those.

I decided to use 5 egg yolks and a pint of heavy cream in addition to the vanilla and sugar (different recipe from the first try). I was worry about the consistency of the original recipe used so I looked for a heavier ratio using just heavy cream. It turned out quite well, although I will cook them in the oven when that option is available since they require less attention.

Once again eGullet members saved the day.

Thanks a lot.

Alex

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  • 4 months later...

Creme Brulee Bouchees

This is an elegant presentation of creme brulee in a pastry cup, perfect for a buffet or if you don't own a bunch of ramekins.

Bouchees

1 box Puff Pastry Dough, thawed if frozen (or make your own)

1 ea Egg, beaten

1 Tablespoon Water

1. Mix egg and water to make egg wash.

2. On a floured surface, roll out one sheet of puff pastry dough 1/8 inch thick.

3. On a floured surface, roll out one sheet of puff pastry dough 1/4 inch thick.

4. Cut the same number of circles from each piece of dough with a round 3-inch cutter.

5. With a round 2-inch cutter, cut out the centers of the thick circles.

6. Optionally, dock the thin circles.

7. Wash the thin circles with egg wash and place one of the thick rings on top of each. Wash the top of the rings carefully -- do not drip wash down the sides -- and let rest 30 minutes.

8. Place a sheet of greased parchment paper over the tops of the shells to prevent them from toppling over while baking.

9. Bake in preheated 400 oven until brown & crisp.

10. Cool completely. Check the shells to make sure there is a sufficient indentation in the center. If not, carefully cut out the center taking care not to pierce the bottom of the shell.

Creme Brulee Filling (Pastry Cream Style)

24 ea Egg yolks, blended

2 pounds Granulated sugar

2 ounces Cornstarch

2 quarts Heavy Cream

1 ea Vanilla Bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped

1. Scald cream with bean. Mix starch & sugar together in a mixing bowl.

2. Add yolks to sugar mixture and mix until smooth.

3. Temper yolk mixture with a bit of the hot cream.

4. Put back on stove & stir constantly until mixture starts to boil. Immediately, and working quickly, remove from heat and strain out bean.

5. Add sugar/starch mixture all at once and whisk constantly until thick and smooth.

6. Pour into hotel pans (or other shallow pans) and cover with plastic wrap, pressing plastic wrap directly onto surface (to prevent skin from forming). Cool completely.

7. Using a pastry bag (or a large plastic bag with one corner snipped off), fill cooled pastry shells. Fill the bouchees very full -- right up to the rim -- and then spread the filling to coat the top edges of the pastry. That protects it during the torching.

8. Caramelize as for Creme Brulee.

Edited by vogelap (log)

-drew

www.drewvogel.com

"Now I'll tell you what, there's never been a baby born, at least never one come into the Firehouse, who won't stop fussing if you stick a cherry in its face." -- Jack McDavid, Jack's Firehouse restaurant

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thanks very much for posting the recipe, vogelap. Sounds good. Maybe when you have the time you could also post it in RecipeGullet - if you haven't already.

I have a couple questions: two pounds of sugar seems like a lot for that volume of cream - is this correct? Also, what is your technique for torching the cream without burning the top edges of the pastry?

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Maybe when you have the time you could also post it in RecipeGullet - if you haven't already.

Thanks for the reminder... I'll do that in a moment!

I have a couple questions: two pounds of sugar seems like a lot for that volume of cream - is this correct? Also, what is your technique for torching the cream without burning the top edges of the pastry?

2 pounds of sugar is what we used when we made it in class this week, and the result was just fine.

For torching the tops... Actually, you fill the bouchees very full -- right up to the rim -- and then spread the filling to coat the top edges of the pastry. That protects it during the torching.

-drew

www.drewvogel.com

"Now I'll tell you what, there's never been a baby born, at least never one come into the Firehouse, who won't stop fussing if you stick a cherry in its face." -- Jack McDavid, Jack's Firehouse restaurant

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to 24 yolks and 2 quarts of cream - I would use only 8 oz of sugar and if it is flavored with something sweet (like pistachio paste) I would back off on that.

I believe that the whole idea behind creme brulee is to take the sugar out of the custard and put it on top. - just as in creme caramel you take out sugar and make it into the caramel syrup. You may want to test your recipe using less sugar and see if you actually find it more enjoyable

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Thanks for the tip...

I'll double-check with the chef just to make sure that's the correct amount (again, we made it with 2 pounds of sugar and it worked, but I want to make sure that's the amount he intended). I'll report back.

-drew

www.drewvogel.com

"Now I'll tell you what, there's never been a baby born, at least never one come into the Firehouse, who won't stop fussing if you stick a cherry in its face." -- Jack McDavid, Jack's Firehouse restaurant

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I checked with the chef, and 2 pounds of sugar is what he uses. He admits that the cream is sweet by itself, but that it is a 'perfect balance' when put into the Bouchees.

-drew

www.drewvogel.com

"Now I'll tell you what, there's never been a baby born, at least never one come into the Firehouse, who won't stop fussing if you stick a cherry in its face." -- Jack McDavid, Jack's Firehouse restaurant

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  • 4 years later...

I have an order for creme brulee tarts. I would really like a good recipe that can made on the stove completely then poured into pre-baked tart shells and refrigerated for later brulee'

Thanks in advance

"Chocolate has no calories....

Chocolate is food for the soul, The soul has no weight, therefore no calories" so said a customer, a lovely southern woman, after consuming chocolate indulgence

SWEET KARMA DESSERTS

www.sweetkarmadesserts.com

550 East Meadow Ave. East meadow, NY 11554

516-794-4478

Brian Fishman

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the one from Roland Mesnier in Dessert University - he has a Champagne version and an orange version. I've done the Champagne one as tartlets, works great, as long as you don't burn the crust when bruleeing :biggrin:

PM me if you are interested in the recipe

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  • 2 weeks later...

Late to the party, but it was the subject of a previous post. There's a recipe here (eGullet ca. 2003!):

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=64052&st=30

Mark

The Gastronomer's Bookshelf - Collaborative book reviews about food and food culture. Submit a review today! :)

No Special Effects - my reader-friendly blog about food and life.

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