With only six ingredients and this step-by-step guide, you too can make crème brûlée in your home kitchen — no torch or special equipment required! This Bourbon Vanilla Crème Brûlée is a fun twist on the classic that’s just the right balance creamy and boozy, with that glass-like sugar crust that we all love. And to top it off — this recipe can easily be made dairy-free! Jump to recipe.

It’s no secret that this silky smooth, luscious custard topped with crunchy caramel is the absolute dreamiest dessert. Maybe that’s why restaurants can charge $10-$12 for a dollar’s worth of ingredients? There’s something about crème brûlée that feels inherently complicated. After all, it must be difficult to achieve the perfect creamy custard and sugary crust — right? Nope!

Crème brûlée really is one of the simplest desserts to make at home. There’s minimal ingredients, no constant stovetop stirring, and no specialty tools needed. It’s as simple as mixing up a few egg yolks with sugar, warm cream, and a little vanilla. Bake, then chill and broil with sugar on top. You’ve got this, friend.

A couple notes for the home chef before getting started:

Creme brûlée takes less than an hour to bake, but will need to chill for at least an hour before being brûléed. Ideally, chill for 4 hours prior to serving.
The custard will firm up considerably in the refrigerator, so take it out of the oven when the center is barely set. It should be jiggly but not liquid-y.

Step-by Step: how to make crème brûlée at home

Make the custard filling: The custard filling is a three part process process. First, you’ll gently warm the heavy cream [or coconut milk if you’re going for the dairy-free version] with the split vanilla bean until the mixture starts to steam and bubble around the edges. Set the mixture aside and let it steep while you prepare the rest of the custard. Second, you’ll beat egg yolks and sugar until light in color — about a minute — and whisk in the bourbon. Lastly, you’ll pour about 1/4 of the cream mixture into the eggs + sugar and whisk. Then slowly pour in the rest of the cream mixture, whisking as you pour.
Strain your custard: After you finish the custard filling, strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a large glass measuring cup with a pour spout. The pour spout will make filling the ramekins much easier!
Gently bake the custard in a water bath: Heat a kettle of water while you preheat the oven. Then place the filled ramekins in a baking or roasting pan and fill the pan with the warm water carefully, as not to splash water into the ramekins.
Chill the custard before you brûlée + serve: Once baked, chill the custards for 3-4 hours. The baked and set custard must be chilled before caramelizing the sugar on top to ensure the perfect texture.
Brûléeing + serving: You can definitely use a torch to caramelize the sugar on top of the custard, I picked up this one from my local hardware store, but it’s definitely not needed. If you don’t have use for a torch, the oven broiler does a wonderful job! I recommend putting the ramekins in a cold oven, then turning on the broiler. This helps keep the custard cool while getting the top crisp.

The moral of the story? Don’t shy away from making some gorgeous creme brûlée at home. This Bourbon Vanilla Creme Brûlée is one of my favorite ultra-fancy desserts that always impresses and are so easy to make ahead. Hellooooooo easy entertaining! Plus — whisking egg yolks and sugar, tempering the mixture with warm cream or coconut milk is seriously as romantic as is sounds.

Bourbon Vanilla Crème Brûlée

SERVES: 4 | PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES | COOK TIME: 40 MINUTES | TOTAL TIME: 4 hours, 40 minutes

With only six ingredients and this step-by-step guide, you too can make crème brûlée in your home kitchen — no torch or special equipment required! This Bourbon Vanilla Crème Brûlée is a fun twist on the classic that has just the right balance of boozy and creamy, with that glass-like sugar crust that we all love. And to top it off — this recipe can easily be made dairy-free!

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups heavy cream or full fat coconut milk
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
5 egg yolks
2 tablespoons bourbon
1/2 cup sugar, plus 4 teaspoons for topping

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat oven to 325°F. Place four 6-ounce ramekins in a baking dish. In a saucepan, combine cream, vanilla bean, and salt. Cook over medium heat until mixture is bubbling around the edges and steaming. Set aside to steep for a few minutes.
In a medium bowl, beat egg yolks, sugar, until light. Whisk in the bourbon. Discard vanilla bean from cream mixture. Stir about 1/2 cup of the cream into the egg yolk mixture. Gradually whisk in remaining cream.
Strain mixture with a fine mesh sieve into a large measuring cup. Pour custard into ramekins, dividing equally. Fill baking dish with boiling water until it reaches half way up ramekins.
Bake for 30-50 minutes, or until center is barely set. The cook time here will depend on your oven, convection ovens will take less time than a standard oven. Remove ramekins from water and let cool completely on a wire rack. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours.
When ready to serve, top each custard with about a teaspoon of sugar in a thin layer. Caramelize the sugar with a kitchen torch. If you don't have a kitchen torch, you can caramelize the sugar using your oven. Simply place ramekins in a cold oven 2 to 3 inches from heat source and turn on the broiler. Cook until sugar melts and browns or even blackens a bit, about 5 minutes. Allow the creme brûlée to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving. Serve within two hours of brûléeing.

NOTES:

Make Ahead: You can make and store in the fridge for up to 4 days ahead. At the last minute, just sprinkle the sugar on top and brûlée as directed above!

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