King of Custards
Populist, adaptable creme brulee rules on dessert menus
By Laura Yee, Special to R&I -- Restaurants & Institutions, 4/1/2004
Classic crème brûlée has unshakable staying power. Trendy desserts come and go but the classic velvety custard endures. It is found on 35% of fine-dining restaurant menus, according to Reed Research Group/R&I's Menu Census. Operators attribute its popularity to unpretentious ingredients—eggs, cream, vanilla and a touch of sugar—and the delicate, decadent act of breaking through a thin crackle of caramelized sugar to reach the smooth texture and subtle flavors beneath.
While pastry chefs approach the classic dessert according to personal preferences, all subscribe to the common belief that the highest-quality ingredients lead to superior results. Yolks from the freshest eggs, the best vanilla beans and heavy cream that is not ultra-pasteurized are essential, says David Guas, executive pastry chef for Ceiba, DC Coast and TenPenh restaurants in Washington, D.C. (all owned by multiconcept operator Passion Food LLC).
|
Crème brûlée, says Guas, is ideal for tailoring to a concept, highlighting seasonal fruit or including in a dessert sampler. At Asian-inspired TenPenh, a crème brûlée trio features the flavors of Sumatra coffee, toasted macadamia nuts and ginger vanilla. At DC Coast, a modern-American restaurant influenced by coastal cuisines, Guas introduced a signature recipe inspired by his culinary experiences in New Orleans: warm buttermilk beignets and café au lait crème brûlée.
Emily Luchetti, executive pastry chef at Farallon in San Francisco, replaces the traditional caramelized sugar top with a thick layer of bittersweet chocolate that also must be cracked to spoon up the custard. At Verbena in New York City, Chef-owner Diane Forley accents crème brûlée with lemon verbena. The dessert is topped with a tuile cookie cut to fit the surface.
Crème brûlée also is amenable to company. At Wave in Chicago, cardamom crème brûlée shares the spotlight with orange flan and chocolate-ginger semifreddo as part of a dessert sampler. The Encounter Restaurant, a Delaware North Companies account at Los Angeles International Airport, serves passion-fruit-and-Tahitian-vanilla-bean crème brûlée with crispy plantains and ginger-snap cookies.
"Three elements are essential for dessert," says Roland Henin, corporate chef for Buffalo, N.Y.-based Delaware North Companies; "a fleshy, meaty texture like fruit, something creamy and soft and something that adds crunch."
Crème brûlée is not exempt from the adage that the best results are born of solid technique. Chefs agree that the custard must be cooked slowly to avoid curdling. But they differ on the types and amounts of ingredients: white versus brown sugar for the caramelized top; the ratio of yolks to cream; and whether to bake in a water bath or cook the mixture on a stovetop until it coats the back of a wooden spoon.
Cracking the Code
A review of foodservice recipes shows that techniques and approaches
to the classic dessert come down to personal preference. A higher
ratio of yolks to cream and baking in a water bath yields stiffer
custard. Sherry Yard, executive pastry chef for Beverly Hills,
Calif.-based Spago restaurants, advocates six to eight egg yolks
per 32 ounces of cream and 6 to 8 ounces of sugar.
Lissa Doumani, co-owner of Terra in St. Helena, Calif., who also directs the restaurant's pastry team, includes nine yolks, a whole egg, 30 ounces of heavy cream and a scant cup of sugar. To cut the sweetness, zest of two lemons and six ounces of lemon juice are added, essentially creating lemon crème brûlée.
Frozen Mascarpone Brûlée
With Pineapple and Passion Fruit
Pastry Chef Marika Shimamoto Doob,
Hawthorne Lane, San Francisco
Yield: 6 servings
| Sugar | as needed |
| Water | 1/4 cup |
| Egg whites | 4 |
| Cream of tartar | pinch |
| Mascarpone cheese | 1 2/3 cups |
| Pineapple, diced, divided use | 1/2 |
| Passion fruit, seeds only | 1 |
- Mix 1 cup sugar with water in a small pot. Bring to boil and cook to 242F.
- Beat egg whites and cream of tartar to soft peaks. While beating, slowly add hot syrup to egg whites to form meringue.
- Add meringue to mascarpone in 4 batches, mixing well between each addition. Mix 1/2 cup pineapple with 2 tsp. sugar and fold into mixture; spread mixture 1-in. deep in lightly greased 8x10-in. cake pan; freeze overnight.
- Using a 3-in. round cookie cutter dipped in warm water, cut frozen mixture into circles and place on cookie sheet lined with parchment; freeze immediately.
- To serve, sprinkle each circle with sugar and caramelize with propane torch. Garnish with remaining pineapple and passion fruit seeds
The Road to Richness
Crème brûlée tips from leading pastry chefs:
- Steep vanilla beans, zests, herbs and other flavor enhancers in cream for maximum flavor.
- Add vanilla extract at the end to avoid cooking off the flavor.
- Gentle heat is best. Cover tops of crème brûlée baking in a water bath to avoid over-cooking.
- Always strain custard before baking.
- Whisk eggs in a small amount of cream; stir gently to avoid froth that can prevent custard from cooking properly.
- Liqueurs, citrus and other concentrated flavors work well as variations.
- A sprinkling of salt in the egg/cream mixture brings out flavors.
View All Blogs
