A Pie Per Week: Creme Brulee

Creme Brulee Pie

Brian:  We recently went to a nice restaurant and somebody in our dinner party ordered creme

brulee.  It is one of my favorite desserts, and one day while thinking about possible pie ideas, I thought to consult my good friend Google.  It turns out there are quite a few great recipes out there to choose from.

Angie:  I was torn between two pie recipes this week.  Since I'll be away with my mom next weekend I thought we should make the more involved pie recipe when I would be around to help!  We had some fun making this pie and it even involved experimenting with my embossing gun.  :)

Brian:  Angie will not be here next weekend, so if I choose to make a crust, I'll be on my own.  I decided to dive in and try my hand at it.  It is funny, when I first read about making pie crust, I was convinced that the key to success was not overworking the dough.  After watching Angie mastering the art, I'm convinced that there is a different secret... ice water.  If the crust starts to crack, you need to add a little water, or it will continue to break up.


Angie:  The crusts are finally getting to be pretty automatic for me after having many challenges in the beginning.  I've found a recipe that really works for me after adjusting it.  We normally use a pastry cutter to cut the ingredients in, but today I actually utilized the "2 fork" method which I've read about.  The two forks really worked well today.

Brian:  For the Creme Brulee recipe, you bake the crusts first, and then you have to cool completely.

Adding the ingredients to the saucepan over medium heat

Angie:  I went to work on adding the
ingredients.  The recipe calls for dissolving the cornstarch into the cream to begin with, and then you add the beaten egg yolks, and the sweetened condensed milk.  The next directions were pretty vague, because it says to cook until thick and bubbly.  Since it didn't specify a temperature, I went for a medium temperature.  Be careful as it will start to burn on the bottom of the pan if you overcook.  The mixture did thicken up nicely.  After you remove from heat, you add the vanilla and butter.

The pie before cooling and the broiler

Brian:  The pies had to cool for two hours before adding the final touch of the sugar.  I love breaking the texture of Creme Brulee, and all this time I had no idea that it was pure sugar!  No wonder it is so good!

Embossing Experimentation!

Angie:  I put the first pie in with the broiler on high, and within as little as 2 minutes the pie started to brown.  I only left it in for a total of about 3 minutes b/c I was afraid it was going to have more of a burnt taste.  I just didn't have as much control of the heating process as one would with a kitchen torch.  I did use my embossing heat gun to add some touch ups to the pie, and for a moment tried to use it exclusively for the second pie.  However, it was just taking too long.  I opted to go with a Lo broiler setting for the second pie.  It was a longer time to cook, but I think it was the better overall result.  I need a torch, or whatever it is one uses to properly burn sugar on top.

Brian:  The family really enjoyed it!  The reviews for the pie, as with any pie, were all over the board.  It had a really great flavor, and happiness is the feeling of your fork breaking the top layer of some creme brulee!

Angie:  I loved this pie.  I loved the texture, the crunch of the sugar on top.  It had a very rich flavor but not overly sweet.

Pie of the Week Recipient

Our pie of the week recipients are Kris and Ken.  They are the parents of our son's girlfriend, and he said that Ken's favorite dessert was creme brulee.  This made our recipient an easy choice.  Their daughter Kennedy is a delightful young lady and it was a pleasure to make the delivery.

Recipe (From Food Network)


Ingredients
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 2/3 cups heavy cream
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
3 egg yolks, beaten
1 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 (9-inch) pastry shell, baked and cooled
1/4 to 1/3 cup sugar
Sweetened whipped cream, to garnish

Directions
In a heavy saucepan, dissolve the cornstarch in the cream; stir in sweetened condensed milk and egg yolks. Cook and stir until thick and bubbly. Remove from heat add butter and vanilla. Pour into pastry shell and chill for 2 or more hours. Top with sugar and brown under the broiler. Garnish with sweetened whipped cream around the edge. Refrigerate leftovers.


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