Surprise your favorite people with this extra special crème brûlée tart! A base of buttery crisp pastry filled to the brim with silky vanilla custard and finished off with that signature crunchy caramelized sugar top layer.
A fun and unique way to enjoy crème brûlée without the mess of baking in a water bath.
How to make a Crème Brûlée Tart
Let’s break this down into a few simple steps:
- Make the sweet short crust pastry & blind bake
- Prepare the custard filling while the pastry blind bakes (bakes with no filling inside)
- Pour filling into the partially baked crust and finish baking
- Thoroughly cool and chill the baked tart
- Sprinkle sugar on top of the tart and use a kitchen torch to brûlée!
I promise everything here is totally doable and pretty simple when you break it all down. The results are definitely worth the effort and you just may pick up a new baking skill along the way. Plus we get to use a kitchen torch!! Heck yeah!
Preparing the tart dough
Start by having all the dough ingredients prepped and ready. Mix together the dry ingredients first in a large bowl. Next, add in the SUPER COLD diced butter. (Like with most pastries/pie dough the key to a successful dough is using very cold ingredients and not overworking them.) Work the butter into the dry mixture by rubbing the flour and butter between your fingers and the palms of your hands, breaking down the butter into smaller pieces. Continue mixing with your hands until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Use a fork to mix in the whisked egg yolk. Then add in 2 tbsp of ice water. Again, use your hands to gently mix the dough until it can be formed into a smooth ball. Add in a few drops more water at a time if needed. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Once chilled, roll out the dough to about an 11-12 inch round. It doesn’t have to be perfect, just large enough to line the bottom and sides of your tart pan. Transfer the dough into the tart pan and gently press it into place, making sure to fit it in snugly into the corners and fluted sides. Trim away the excess dough.
Freeze the dough for at least 30 minutes. Prior to baking, prick the bottom of the tart all over with a fork. Line with crumpled up parchment paper and add pie weights. Freezing the dough will help prevent shrinkage and help it to retain its shape. While weighing down the tart with weights will ensure the bottom of the tart doesn’t puff up too much during baking.
Making the crème brûlée filling
While the crust is baking, we’ll prepare the custard filling. You’ll need a saucepan, 2 clean bowls, and a fine mesh sieve.
In one bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, cornstarch and salt. In the saucepan heat the milk and cream over medium heat until just simmering.
Before adding the sugar/egg mixture to the hot milk we’ll need to temper the eggs. Tempering is essentially bringing the eggs up to a higher temperature gradually so we don’t end up with a bowl of scrambled eggs! Yuck! To do this, very slowly add in about 1 cup of the hot milk to the sugar/egg mixture. Keep whisking the entire time you’re adding the hot liquid. After tempering you can add the sugar/egg mixture directly into the saucepan with the remaining hot milk.
Keep whisking and cooking until the custard begins to bubble and the texture has thickened. The texture should be similar to pudding. For more precise measurement of when the custard is ready, it should reach 180°F on a thermometer.
Strain the custard into the second clean large bowl and mix in the vanilla extract. Straining is important here to catch any bits of egg that may have curdled or scrambled while making the custard. This is totally normal and don’t worry if you have some small bits of egg, this is what the strainer is for!
Pour the strained custard into the warm, partially baked tart shell, filling to just slightly below the top. Continue baking until the filling has set around the edges but the center still has some jiggle. It will set up fully as it cools.
Final touches
After baking we must allow plenty of time to cool and chill! One cooled off from the oven, place the tart in the fridge for several hours or overnight. It’s best to make this tart the day before you plan to serve it.
When ready to serve, remove from the fridge and gently dab off any condensation that may have formed. Any excess moisture on top of the tart could prevent the sugar from caramelizing properly. Sprinkle a few tablespoons of granulated sugar evenly across the top.
You can use superfine sugar if you have it, but do not use confectioner’s sugar, it will melt into the tart and does not caramelize.
Now for my favorite part! It’s time to brûlée baby! Using a kitchen torch, slowly and evenly guide the flame across the top of the tart. The sugar will bubble, melt, and caramelize. Continue to brûlée until you’ve reached your desired level of caramelization. The darker the color the more intense, slightly burnt taste will develop.
Et voilá! Now you have a beautiful crème brûlée tart, filled with silky smooth custard and that oh so fun hard sugar topping! Look at you go!
Looking for more Valentine’s Day desserts? Check these out!
- Chocolate Raspberry Sweetheart Cake
- Conversation Heart Chocolate Sugar Cookies
- Decadent Homemade Fudge Brownies
- Strawberry Rhubarb Donuts
- Cookie Butter Cups
Crème Brûlée Tart
- Prep Time: 1 hour (+ chilling time)
- Cook Time: 18 min
- Total Time: 3 hours 30 min (+ cooling time)
- Yield: 1 9-inch round tart 1x
Description
Buttery sweet short crust pastry filled with silky crème brûlée custard and finished off with the signiture caramelized sugar topping.
Ingredients
Tart Dough
- 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, diced
- 1 large egg yolk, whisked
- 2–3 tbsp ice cold water
Filling
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 tbsp granulated sugar (for topping)
Instructions
Tart Dough
- In a large bowl whisk together flour, sugar, and salt. Add in the cold diced butter and rub the butter and flour together between your hands until the butter is broken down into smaller pieces and the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center in the center of the flour and pour in the whisked egg yolk. Use a fork to mix the egg yold into the flour. Add in 2 tbsp cold water and use your hands to bring the dough together. Add in a few more drops of water at a time, if needed, to allow the dough to come together.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and gently gather together to form a smooth ball. Flatten the ball into the shape of a disc and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Let the chilled dough sit at room temperature for 10-15 minutes to soften slightly. On a floured surface, roll dough into an 11-12 inch circle. Place the dough into a 9-inch round fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Gently lift the dough and press it into the bottom and fluted sides of the pan. Use a sharp knife to cut away any excess dough. (Alternatively, run the rolling pin over the top of the pan to trim away the excess dough.) Loosely wrap in plastic wrap and freeze the tart dough for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Prick the bottom of the chilled tart all over with a fork. Line the tart with crumpled up parchment paper and fill evenly with pie weights. Place tart on a baking sheet and bake for 18-20 minutes, until the shell is golden and set. Remove from the oven and set aside on a wire rack. Allow to cool for a few minutes before carefully removing the parchment paper and pie weights. (Tart shell must be warm when adding in the filling).
Filling
- While the crust bakes, whisk together sugar, eggs, cornstarch and salt in a bowl. In a saucepan, bring the milk and cream to a simmer over medium heat. Slowly whisk about 1 cup of the hot milk into the egg mixture to temper the eggs. Add the tempered egg mixture into the remaining hot milk in the large saucepan. Cook over a medium heat, whisking continuously, until the custard has thickened, begins to bubble, and reaches 180°F (it should be the texture of pudding).
- Remove from the heat and use a fine mesh sieve to strain into a clean large bowl. Stir in the vanilla extract. Pour filling into the warm tart shell until it is slightly below the top. (You may have extra filling left over.*) Smooth the top of the custard with a clean spatula into an even layer.
- Lower the oven temperature to 350°F and bake the filled tart for 15-18 minutes. The edges of the filling should begin to set but the center will still be wobbly. The tart will continue to set up fully as it cools.
- Allow to cool completely on a wire rack for several hours. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a few more hours, or overnight, until thoroughly chilled. If needed, blot the surface of the chilled tart gently with paper towels to remove any excess moisture. Sprinkle 3 tbsp granulated sugar evenly across the top of the tart. Use a kitchen torch to caramelize the sugar until it turns a golden brown color. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Portion out any extra filling into oven safe ramekins. Place ramekins on a baking sheet and set oven temperature to 325°F. For ramekins with about 1 inch thick of filling, bake for about 15 min, until the edges of custard are set but center is still a bit jiggly. If you have shallower ramekins, begin checking the custard for doneness around 10 min.
- Allow to cool at room temperature for at least 1 hour, then transfer to a fridge to chill for several more hours or overnight, covering with plastic wrap.
- Sprinkle granulated sugar evenly across top of chilled custard and use a kitchen torch to caramelize the sugar. Serve immediately.
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