->Creme Brulee 13 <-

2 cups heavy cream

1 vanilla bean

4 egg yolks, lightly beaten and strained

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

12 (3 inch) Pate Brisee tartlets shells, prebaked and cooled

Put the cream and the vanilla bean in a heavy saucepan and bring

to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the mixture for 5 minutes,

stirring occasionally. Set aside. Combine the egg yolks and 1/4

cup of the sugar and whisk together in a bowl over simmering water

until pale and fluffy.

The mixture should become dense but it must not scramble; be sure

that the heat is not too high. Whisking constantly, strain the

cream into the egg sugar mixture. Continue cooking over simmering

water for approximately 10 minutes, or until the mixture thickens

and coats the back of the spoon.

Take care not to over cook, or the mixture will separate. Remove

from the heat and quickly whisk in the butter. Cover with plastic

wrap placed directly on the custard and let cool to room temperature.

Spoon the custard evenly into the baked tartlet shells and refrigerate

for at least 4 hours, until the custard is set. Immediately before

serving, sprinkle a small amount of sugar on top of each custard

tartlet and caramelize.

Slide tartlets under the broiler to caramelize the sugar. To avoid

burning the crust, place thin strips of foil on the edges of the

pastry. Remove the foil immediately after caramelizing