Creme Brulee again

I made creme brulee for the first time a few months ago. Hubby loved it. I hate using water baths and I wanted to try Dorie’s recipe. We both agreed that we like this recipe much better than the other one. And it’s so nice not having to use a water bath! This treat really is too easy to make. It’s dangerous. Especially when I have leftover egg yolks from making Swiss meringue buttercream… Next, I’d like to experiment with some different flavors of creme brulee.

I converted Dorie’s recipe (seen here from when the TWD group did it) to make 4 servings instead of 6. Here are the measurements I used:
13 Tbsp + 1 tsp heavy cream
1/3 cup whole milk
2 egg yolks
3 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1 1/3 tsp vanilla
4 Tbsp sugar for topping

The link above is broken, so here is the recipe from Dorie:
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup whole milk
3 large egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract

About 6 tbsp sugar or sifted light brown sugar for topping

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 200F. Put the baking dishes on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.
Bring the cream and milk just to a boil.
In a 1-2 quart glass measuring cup or in a medium bowl, whisk th egg yolks, sugar and vanilla together until well blended but not airy. Still whisking, drizzle in about one quarter or the hot liquid – this will temper, or warm, the yolks so they won’t curdle. Whisking all the while, slowly pour in the remainder of the cream and milk. Give the bowl a good rap against the counter to de-bubble the custard, then strain it into the baking dishes.

Bake the custards for 50-60 minutes, or until the custards are set – tap the sides of the dishes, and the custards should hold firm. Lift the dishes onto a cooling rack and let the custards cool until they reach room temperature.

Cover each custard with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, preferably longer. (The custards can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.) For the sugar to be successfully caramelized, the custards need to be thoroughly chilled.

To caramelize the sugar topping with a blowtorch, work on one dish at a time. Sprinkle the top of each custard evenly with sugar – about 1 tablespoon for each dish – then brown the sugar, cooking until it bubbles and colors. Wait until the bubbles subside before serving the crèmes.

To caramelize the sugar in a broiler, preaheat the broiler and fill a shallow roasting pan with the ice cubes. Sprinkle the custards with the sugar, put the baking dishes on the bed of ice and run the custards under the broiler. Don’t move away from your oven – depending on your broiler, it can take seconds or minutes to caramelize the sugar, and you don’t want to miss the moment and ruin the topping. When the sugar bubbles and browns, pull the custards out, remove them from their ice bed and let them settle down before serving.