Crema Catalana

Crema catalana is the Catalan counterpart of crème brûlée: a velvety, citrus- and cinnamon-spiced custard made with milk, topped with a thin, crisp layer of caramelised sugar. A classic Spanish dessert that is ideal to prepare in advance; just before serving, only the sugar layer is caramelised.

Serves: 4
Preparation: approx. 15 minutes
Cooking: approx. 15 minutes
Total time: approx. 2 hours and 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 800 ml full-fat milk
• 150 g caster sugar (for the custard)
• 6 egg yolks
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 vanilla pod
• peel of ½ lemon (yellow part only)
• peel of ½ orange (orange part only)
• 2 tbsp cornflour
• extra caster sugar for the caramel layer (approx. 1–2 tbsp per dish)

Preparation

• Prepare the vanilla and citrus
  Split the vanilla pod lengthways and scrape out the seeds. Peel the half lemon and orange with a vegetable peeler; take only the coloured part of the peel, without any white pith.
• Dissolve the cornflour
  Stir the cornflour smooth with a splash of cold milk (taken from the 800 ml), to make a lump-free slurry.

Method

1. Infuse the milk
   Put 700 ml of the milk in a heavy-based saucepan. Add the lemon and orange peel, the cinnamon stick, the vanilla seeds and the empty pod. Slowly bring the milk almost to the boil and let it infuse gently for a few minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and leave for a few minutes so the flavours can infuse into the milk.
2. Whisk the egg yolks with sugar
   Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks with the 150 g caster sugar in a bowl until light and creamy.
3. Add the cornflour and milk
   Add the cornflour slurry and the remaining milk (what you have left to make up a total of 800 ml) to the yolk-and-sugar mixture and whisk well.
4. Remove the aromatics
   Remove the lemon and orange peel, the cinnamon stick and the vanilla pod from the warm milk.
5. Thicken the custard
   Slowly pour the egg mixture into the warm milk in the pan, whisking as you go. Put the pan over a low heat and warm the custard, stirring constantly (preferably with a wooden spoon or spatula), without letting it boil, until it thickens noticeably and coats the back of the spoon in a thin layer. Remove the pan from the heat immediately.
6. Strain and cool
   Pour the warm custard through a fine sieve into a jug or bowl to remove any lumps. Then divide the custard between 4 shallow, heatproof dishes. Leave to cool at room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours to set completely.
7. Add the sugar layer
   Take the dishes out of the fridge just before serving. Sprinkle the surface of each custard with a thin, even layer of caster sugar (approx. 1–2 tablespoons per dish, depending on the size).
8. Caramelise the sugar
   Place the dishes briefly under a hot grill or use a blowtorch to caramelise the sugar. Heat until the sugar is golden brown and bubbling and forms a thin, crisp layer. Leave for a few minutes so the caramel layer can harden.
9. Serve the crema catalana
   Serve the crema catalana cold, with the sugar layer still crisp. If you like, you can place a thin strip of lemon or orange peel alongside as a subtle garnish, but otherwise this classic dessert needs nothing extra.