Christmas Brûlée

My husband adores crème brûlée so, at his request, I created this recipe for him. They make a light change from the rich christmas pudding. As they are best prepared a day in advance they make a great pudding when entertaining.

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12 Portions
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Prep: 5 minutes plus 2 days soaking of fruit and at least
Cook: 20 minutes

Ingredients

Crème Brûlée:

  • 1.2 litres double cream
  • 1 vanilla pod
  • 6 large egg yolks
  • 150g caster sugar
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • pinch nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp mixed spice
  • finely grated zest of 1 orange

Fruit

  • 75g currants
  • 75g sultanas
  • 150g dried berries
  • 6 tbsp brandy

To Serve

  • 12 tbsp caster sugar or light demerara sugar

Method

  1. Fruit: Place the currants, sultanas and berries in a bowl and pour over the brandy. Cover and leave them to soak for a couple of days. Distribute the soaked fruit among the twelve ramekins.
  2. Crème Brûlée Brûlée: Place the cream in a saucepan with the vanilla pod and bring just to the simmer and remove from the heat. Whisk the egg yolks with the caster sugar until creamy. Gradually whisk in the cream and return to the saucepan and place over a medium heat. Stir with a wooden spoon, until the mixture has thickened and coats the back of the spoon (don't allow it to boil or you will end up with scrambled eggs). Take off the heat, remove the vanilla pod and stir in the cinnamon, nutmeg, mixed spice and orange zest. Distribute the custard among the 12 ramekins with the fruit. Cover and place in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours (the crème brûlée is best prepared a day in advance).
  3. To Serve: Sprinkle a layer of sugar over each creme brûlée. Caramelise with a blow torch or place under a very hot grill for 2-3 minutes. Allow the sugar to cool for a couple of minutes before serving. Serve.