Creme Brulee

Several years ago, Mike and I went to Washington, D.C. for a Project Management conference. We stayed in the luxurious Capital Hilton Hotel. The meals in the hotel restaurants were so delicious, we ate there every day. Each meal was topped off with the best Creme Brulee I every had the good fortune to taste.

On the second to last day of the trip, I talked to Mike about how wonderful it would be to have the recipe for that Creme Brulee recipe. So, I told the waitress how much I've enjoyed their meals, how I had eaten there every day for a week because the food was so delicious - especially that Creme Brulee. Would the chef be willing to share the recipe with me? That evening, the recipe to make that fantastic Brulee for a crowd of 16 was slipped under my hotel room door!

At home, I converted the recipe to make a smaller batch and bought ramekins. Mentioning this recipe is will bring a sparkle to your husband's eye. However, the lighter version I'd like to create will take more work. I'm not sure how much egg substitute to use to replace six egg yolks, so I'll start with 3/4 c (figuring half the volume I'd use to replace six eggs). I will replace all the sugar with Splenda. That's all I'll change this time, but that heavy cream is SO full of fat, I'll eventually need to replace some of it.

I goofed this time and added the egg substitute to the milk mixture before boiling. The original recipe said to add the yolks to the cooked milk before pouring the mixture into the ramekins. Moreover, I would decrease the amount of egg substitute next time. This version tasted too eggy.

Creme Brulee (first attempt)

3/4 c egg substitute

1 c Splenda

1 3/4 c Heavy cream

1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped

4 Tbsp white sugar

Stir together the heavy cream, egg substitute, Splenda, and vanilla bean's contents over medium heat. Continue stirring until the mixture comes to a soft boil, then pour into ramekins. Place the ramekins in a water bath and bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes. Either cool and store the custards at this point, or transfer to an ice bath. Sprinkle the custards with white sugar and broil for a few minutes in the ice bath just before serving. This serves 4.