This Spanish dish is a favorite in my family, therefore I generally prepare 8 parts so we may enjoy it twice. Of course, you can easily cut the ingredients in half.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 20 mins |
| Additional Time: | 4 hrs 30 mins |
| Total Time: | 5 hrs 5 mins |
| Servings: | 8 |
| Yield: | 8 crema catalana portions |
Ingredients
- 8 large egg yolks
- 1 ΒΌ cups white sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 organic lemon
- 4 cups whole milk
- 1 (2 inch) piece cinnamon stick
- 1 (3 inch) vanilla bean, split and scraped
- 8 tablespoons turbinado sugar
Instructions
- Combine egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until creamy. Mix in cornstarch.
- Peel lemon in one piece. Combine milk, lemon peel, cinnamon stick, and vanilla seeds in a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat, cover, and allow the milk to get infused with the flavorings for 30 minutes and cool. Whisk egg yolk-sugar mixture into the lukewarm milk.
- Return to heat and simmer, stirring constantly, over low heat until cream thickens, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove lemon peel and cinnamon stick. Spoon cream into 8 ovenproof ramikens and allow to cool completely, at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Set an oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven’s broiler.
- Sprinkle 1 tablespoon turbinado sugar onto each ramiken and set under the broiler until sugar caramelizes, 1 to 2 minutes. Pay close attention so sugar does not burn.
- Alternatively you can use a Bunsen burner to caramelize the sugar. In that case allow the crema catalana portions to come to room temperature first.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 311 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 54 g |
| Cholesterol | 217 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 0 g |
| Protein | 7 g |
| Saturated Fat | 4 g |
| Sodium | 62 mg |
| Sugars | 50 g |
| Fat | 8 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |