🛒 Ingredients
- 500ml whole milk
- 4 egg yolks
- 100g sugar
- 20g cornstarch
- 1 cinnamon stick
- zest of 1 lemon
- zest of 1 orange
- sugar for caramelizing
👨🍳 Step-by-step instructions
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Infuse the milk with cinnamon and citrus zest over low heat for 10 min. Strain.
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Beat the egg yolks with sugar and cornstarch until a smooth cream is obtained.
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Pour the hot milk over the egg yolks slowly, without stopping beating.
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Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened.
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Distribute in small ceramic dishes. Chill for 2 hours. Sprinkle with sugar and caramelize with a blowtorch.
💡 Chef's tip
For a perfect crust, use brown cane sugar and move the blowtorch in a circular motion. If you don't have a blowtorch, the oven grill works.
📝 Our take
Catalan cream and French crème brûlée differ in one important detail: the Catalan version is thickened with cornstarch, not just egg yolks. The result is a firmer, silkier texture. The burnt sugar crust is the best part—that crack when you break through it with a spoon is one of the most satisfying moments in Spanish dessert cookery.
🍷 Wine & food pairing
A lightly chilled Valencian Moscatel is the classic Catalan pairing. A Brut Nature Cava also cuts through the sweetness of the crust nicely.
Suggested wine: Empordà Moscatel or Pedro Ximénez
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