Crema catalana

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Today I'd like to share a recipe for an outstanding egg yolk dessert: velvety crema catalana under a crunchy layer of caramelised sugar.


It's a simple dessert that goes perfectly with summer fruit. Easily noticeable cinnamon is complemented by the citrus flavour and comes together perfectly with crunchy caramel and naturally sweet fruit.

You'll find the list of ingredients, method and approximate nutritional value below.

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List of ingredients

  • Three 5 cm strips of orange peel
  • Three 5 cm strips of lemon peel
  • 600 ml full fat milk
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 5 egg yolks
  • 1/4 cup (50 g) fine sugar + 8 tsp (~40 g) for caramelisaton
  • 1 tbsp (15 g) cornstarch
  • Fruit for decoration

Method

  1. Rinse and pat dry one medium orange and one large lemon to get rid of any pesticides or wax that may be on the surface of the fruit. Cut three large, 5 cm strips of peel from each fruit and scrape off the white pith. This will ensure that the bitterness from the pith doesn't enter the dessert.
  2. Pour 600 ml whole milk into a large pot. Add one cinnamon stick and citrus peels. Heat up the contents of the bowl, stirring, until the milk almost reaches the boiling point. Take pot off heat then and set it aside for 5 minutes to cool slightly.
  3. Put 5 large egg yolks and 50 g caster sugar into a bowl. Mix them together with a whisk until sugar dissolves and egg yolks become light and fluffy. Once they reach desired consistency, add 15 g cornflour and mix t in shortly until fully incorporated.
  4. Pass milk through a fine sieve to discard citrus peel and cinnamon. Add milk into the egg mixture. Do it slowly at first, stirring constantly, bit by bit, to temper egg yolks. Once half of milk is in, start pouring it in a slow trickle while stirring to combine the contents of the bowl completely.
  5. Pour milk and egg yolks back into a pot and cook it until thick but fluid custard forms, stirring. Divide custard equally between 4 ramekins or bowls and leave them on the countertop for 20 minute to cool slightly. After this time, cover each bowl tightly with plastic wrap and put them into a fridge for at least 4 hours, or ideally overnight, for the custard to set and the cinnamon and citrus flavour to develop further.
  6. Immediately before serving, scatter 2 tsp sugar on top of each dessert and caramelise it with a kitchen torch until crunchy. Decorate each dessert with seasonal fruit - I'm choosing raspberries and blueberries this time.
  7. Enjoy!

Approximate nutritional value

1 serving (recipe makes 4 servings)

  • 260 kcal
  • Carbs: 33 g 
  • Fat: 11 g
  • Protein: 9 g
  • Fibre: 0 g

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