Today's guest post is from the lovely, beautiful, and wonderful mother of A Dash of Delish! She has been so kind to take the time to write, cook, photograph and enjoy this dessert recipe for me while my computer has been on the fritz! Here is to hoping that my computer will be fixed by the end of this evening! I hope you all enjoy this decadent post!

As the long days of winter persist into what are traditionally warmer months (lady spring, where for art thou?) and my New Year's resolution feels ready to fade away, I decided that this yet again frigid day was the perfect opportunity for a small slide on the decadent side.

Mmmm, yes, crème brûlée was calling my name. 

Add to that the fact that my teen daughter had been itching to make it for a while and the fact that I had plenty of cream on hand and, well, it was an easy sale.

I love crème brûlée.  Not just because it's delish... tho, it is.  But also because it's super easy to make and I can usually talk my husband into joining the fun by providing the final 'torching' touches! Trust me, if I can make it, you can too.  With very little effort, you too can make this decadent dish for you and your family.  Give it a try... it will be well worth the effort!

Ingredients

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 6 egg yolks
• 4 cups cream
• 1 tspn vanilla extract (alt. 1 1/2 vanilla bean)
• 1/4 tspn salt
• several small porcelain or ceramic ramekins

Method

1.  Preheat oven to 300°.
2.  Mix egg yolks, vanilla, and salt in a small bowl - - I like to use a glass measuring cup.  Whisk together for a few minutes.
3.  Mix sugar along with a couple of tablespoons of water in a deep stainless steel pan.  I use a 3 quart pan with deep sides.
4.  Cook over medium heat until the sugar starts to 'burn' and turns a nice caramel color.  You will need to wipe down the sides of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in the spare water and swirling the pan.  The trick is to keep the sugar at a nice liquid consistency (if you don't wipe down the sides of the pan with water the sugar will begin to crystallize along the edges) and to swirl the mixture so that the color becomes consistent from the edges to the center of the pan.  Note:  Be careful during this process.  The sugar becomes extremely hot and sticky.  Be careful not to swirl the pan so vigorously that you risk spilling any of the liquid on yourself or anyone near by!
5. Once the sugar has reached a nice amber color, turn down the heat to low and add the 4 cups of cream while whisking briskly with a metal whisk.  The liquid will boil up rapidly and you will also see a hard lump of brittle sugar form... keep whisking! 
6. Once all the sugar has mixed with the cream, remove the pan from heat.  Keep whisking for a few minutes to cool the liquid.
7. Pour a small amount of the sugared cream into the egg mixture while whisking rapidly.  Continue to add a little sugared cream at a time until the egg mixture is at the same temperature as the hot sugared cream.  
8. Mix all together.
9. Pour the liquid evenly into several small ramekins that have been placed in a baking pan.
10. Add hot water to the baking pan until the water is about half way up the sides of your ramekins.
11. Place in the oven and cook until the crème brûlée is set approximately 40 - 45 minutes.
12. Let cool for at least 3 hours or overnight.
13. Sprinkle sugar on top of each crème brûlée and either place in a broiler until the sugar caramelizes about 3 minutes or for a fun treat, use a cooking torch to caramelize the sugar.

If you are like me, and you enjoy 'mixing things up a bit,' reserve a cup or two of the liquid before you fill all the ramekins (step 9) and add your favorite espresso/cappucino powder, some dark chocolate, or maybe both.  Then follow instructions for baking and...
 
EnJoY!