I was still very good!

 I really wanted to make the traditional Crême Brulée but, every recipe I found, had 8 egg yolks and 1 cup of cream; not a good thing for this lady; cholesterol is an issue. What is a person to do?…so I cheated.

Last Christmas Jean gave this book; La cuisine by Françoise Bernard;  it is  a culinary bible featuring 1,000 recipes from this legendary woman who revolutionized French cooking by simplifying recipes for the home cook.

Françoise has recipes that are easier than what most people think of typical French cuisine.  Each recipe begins with the English & French title.  Next,  she outlines how easy or difficult it is to prepare and how expensive it is.  After each recipe there is her personal little note; “From Françoise”. 

There are no photos here;  it is like reading a novel;  we find out how the French families really eat; very similar to the way we enjoy our daily meals; all you need is your imagination to make it happen.

I found her Crême Caramel Recipe in this book and made my Cheater's version of Crême Brulée.  I needed something special; we were celebrating Thisha’s birthday.  It was kind of bold on my part with the 2 chefs sitting at the table; Jean and Kathryn. (she was nice enough to use the blowtorch part without knowing yet that I had cheated).

I was watching as they tasted and tested and I knew they knew what I had done; at this point I am pretty sure I blushed.   I wasn’t aware that is was one of their things; test Crême Brulées in restaurants just to see if the chef made the Real Thing; of course I just got a knowing glance.  I cheated and I’m glad I did; I have tasted a lot worse and paid big bucks in several restaurants.

Here is the tasty,healthy and easy recipe:

Faux Crême Brulée

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 pinches salt
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

My caramel is almost ready.

Directions

In a small sauce pan, combine1/4 cup sugar with 2 Tablespoons water.

Place over medium high heat; bring to a simmer and cook stirring often until sugar dissolves.

Partly cover pan and continue cooking until sugar turn medium amber.

Immediately remove pan from heat and let cool slightly.

Add 3 Tablespoons of water and return to medium low heat to melt the caramel.

In a bowl whisk the cornstarch with the remaining sugar, the salt, the eggs and the milk.

Pour into a medium saucepan, place over medium heat and cook stirring constantly

with a wooden spoon, until the cream thickens.Add vanilla. When pudding barely simmers,

remove the pan from heat.

Stir the caramel into the pudding. If lumps form, use your whisk.

Spoon into dessert dishes or ramekins.

Cover and refrigerate until cold. I placed mine a cake pan and covered with foil making sure the pudding did not touch the foil.

Refrigerate at least 3 hours or overnight.

Just before serving, while someone is preparing coffee,

sprinkle with white fine sugar and caramelize with a slow torch.

Faux Crême Brulée

 

Sage’s Tips.

Make sure you cover this properly otherwise a skin will form on your custard.

Use fine sugar to make caramelizing easier.

Thank you again for your visits and kind words. Don’t ever be afraid to improvise in the kitchen. Have you ever cheated in your kitchen?

Happy Cooking,

Rita

my cute little blow torch.

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