Passionfruit Crème Brûlée Recipe

Preheat and prepare ramekins

Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C). Place six 6-oz (175 ml) ramekins in a large roasting pan.

Infuse cream

Split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds into a medium saucepan; add the pod as well. Pour in heavy cream and whole milk. Warm over medium heat until just simmering (small bubbles form at the edge), then remove from heat. Cover and let steep 15 minutes to infuse vanilla.

Mix yolks and sugar

While cream is infusing, whisk the egg yolks, granulated sugar, and fine sea salt in a bowl until the mixture is paler and slightly thickened (about 1–2 minutes).

Temper eggs

Remove the vanilla pod from the cream. Slowly pour about one-quarter of the hot cream into the yolk mixture in a thin stream, whisking constantly to temper. Continue adding the remaining cream slowly while whisking until fully combined.

Strain and portion

Strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup or bowl to remove any coagulated bits and vanilla pod pieces. Divide the custard evenly among the six prepared ramekins.

Bake in a water bath

Pour hot water into the roasting pan around the ramekins until it reaches halfway up their sides (be careful not to get water into the custard). Carefully transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 30–40 minutes, or until the custards are set at the edges but still slightly wobbly in the center. Start checking at 25 minutes if your ramekins are smaller or oven runs hot.

Cool

Remove ramekins from the water bath and let cool to room temperature on a wire rack. Once cooled, refrigerate uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to 2 days to fully set.

Prepare pulp

If using whole passionfruit, cut fruits in half and scoop pulp into a small sieve set over a bowl. Press with a spoon to extract juice; reserve seeds if desired for garnish or strain fully for smooth glaze. You should end up with about 3 fl oz (90 ml) pulp/juice.

Make glaze

In a small saucepan, combine the passionfruit pulp, caster sugar, and water. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Simmer for 2–3 minutes to slightly reduce and thicken. Stir in the butter and optional lemon juice, then remove from heat. Allow to cool to room temperature (it will thicken slightly more as it cools).

Chill glaze

Place glaze in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes if you prefer a firmer glaze. For a looser glaze to spoon over the brûlée after torching, use at room temperature.

Top with glaze

If you prefer the passionfruit flavor under the caramelized sugar, spoon about 1 to 1½ tsp of the cooled passionfruit glaze evenly onto the surface of each chilled custard and gently spread into a thin layer. If you prefer glaze only as a garnish, skip this step and reserve glaze to spoon over after brûléeing.

Add demerara and torch

Evenly sprinkle about 1 tablespoon of demerara sugar over each custard (or more for thicker caramel). Using a kitchen torch, hold the flame 2–3 inches from the sugar and move it in a slow circular motion until the sugar melts, bubbles, and turns a deep amber (about 30–60 seconds). If you don’t have a torch, place ramekins under a very hot broiler on a baker’s sheet for 2–4 minutes, watching constantly to avoid burning.

Rest and serve

Let the caramelized sugar cool and harden for 2–3 minutes. If you did not add glaze under the sugar, spoon about 1 tsp of passionfruit glaze on top or alongside each brûlée just before serving. Optionally garnish with a small spoonful of reserved seeds or a thin slice of passionfruit. Serve immediately.