fine dining at home

Mexican vanilla crème brûlée. My husband and I used to go out to eat quite a bit, but that has slowed stopped since Eva came along. I don't miss it as much as I would've expected.

It helps that I'm a pretty good cook (all modesty aside, obviously). However, I don't even try to make fancy dishes, unless you count scallops.

I received some Mexican Pure Vanilla Extract from Nielsen-Massey to review, and immediately decided it was deserving of something elegant. I chose crème brûlée, a dish I've eaten only a handful of times, and always at nice restaurants. As it turns out, it's not that hard to make, as long as you have Alton Brown guiding you.

This is a very rich, super creamy dessert that makes a great vehicle for fine vanilla extract. I got a kitchen torch a few years ago and can count on one hand the number of times I've used it, so I was excited to break it out for this! It produced a top that absolutely shattered when hit with a spoon, and the air in my kitchen smelled of caramelized sugar for the rest of the night and into the next day!

Use your best vanilla when you make a crème brûlée--it's the only thing flavoring it so you want it to be strong and pleasant! Nielsen-Massey describes their Mexican Pure Vanilla Extract better than I ever could: "A rich marriage of sweet and woody notes, the Mexican vanilla flavor profile has a deep, creamy, spicy-sweet character, similar to clove or nutmeg." It was delightful in this dessert and I can't wait to try it other dishes!

Crema Quemada
(Based on this recipe)

(printable recipe)
Serves 4
Ingredients:

• 1 pint heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon Nielsen-Massey Mexican Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided use
• 3 large egg yolks
• Hot water

Directions:
Place the cream into a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat and heat until a film forms on the top of the cream.
Remove from the heat, add the vanilla extract, cover and allow to sit for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup sugar and the egg yolks until well blended and starting to lighten in color.
Add the cream a little at a time, stirring continually.
Pour the liquid into 4 6-ounce ramekins or similar.
Place the ramekins into a large cake pan or roasting pan and pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
Bake just until the creme brulee is set, but still trembling in the center, anywhere from 35 to 45 minutes, depending on the depth of your ramekins.
Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan and let cool for 5 minutes or so, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days.
To prepare, remove the creme brulee from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top.
Divide the remaining 1/4 cup sugar equally among the 4 dishes and spread evenly on top.
Using a torch, melt the sugar and form a crispy top. Allow the creme brulee to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving.