Bake the Book: No-Bake Crème Brûlée

[Photograph: Stacy Newgent ]

Crème Brûlée? Without an oven? Bien sûr. Bakeless Sweets presents a recipe for sweet, milky mini-puddings with that inimitable burnt sugar crunch. The bonus: you get to use a torch.

Tips: To get the most out of your vanilla bean, lay it down and use a small, sharp knife to cut it lengthwise. Holding it over the saucepan, open it with your fingers and use a spoon or knife to scrape out the seeds. Don't toss the pod—once you remove it from the milk, quickly rinse and let dry on a paper towel. Soak it in bourbon or stuff it in sugar to infuse either with the essence of vanilla.

Tweaks: Normally, I advise bringing ingredients up to room temperature before combining. However, this recipe uses corn starch as its thickener, and the best way to avoid lumps is to combine it with cold liquids. So, in the first step, whisk in cold heavy cream straight from the fridge. A smooth slurry guarantees a silky finish.

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No-Bake Crème Brûlée »

As always with our Bake the Book feature, we have five (5) copies of Bakeless Sweets to give away.

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