Description
Delight in these Creme Brûlée Cookies, featuring chewy and buttery sugar cookies topped with rich, creamy vanilla pastry cream and a crispy caramelized sugar crust. Perfect for those who love the classic custard dessert transformed into a handheld treat.
Ingredients
Scale
Vanilla Pastry Cream
- 2 1/4 cups whole milk
- 6 egg yolks
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp granulated white sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tbsp vanilla bean paste
- 3 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter, cut in cubes
Sugar Cookies
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste
- 1/2 cup granulated white sugar (for rolling the dough in)
- 1/2 cup granulated white sugar (for the brûlée topping)
Instructions
- Heat the milk: In a medium saucepan, heat the milk over medium-low heat just until it’s steaming, then reduce heat to low and keep warm until ready to use.
- Prepare egg mixture: In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, salt, vanilla bean paste, and cornstarch until smooth and pale yellow.
- Temper the eggs: Gradually whisk in 1/4 of the hot milk mixture to the egg yolk mixture, stirring vigorously, then whisk in the remaining milk.
- Cook pastry cream: Transfer mixture back to the saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, whisking continuously for 8 to 12 minutes until thick and soft peaks form.
- Add butter and chill: Remove from heat, stir in cubed butter until smooth, then cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until completely chilled.
- Preheat oven and prep pans: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Mix dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar: Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat softened butter and granulated sugar until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Add egg and vanilla: Mix in the egg and vanilla bean paste on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes.
- Incorporate dry ingredients: Slowly add the flour mixture, stirring on low speed just until dough comes together.
- Form and sugar coat cookies: Scoop dough into balls with a cookie scoop, roll each ball in granulated sugar, then place on parchment-lined sheets. Slightly flatten each ball.
- Bake cookies: Bake for 9 to 10 minutes until set. Allow to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Assemble cookies: Using a piping bag fitted with a small round tip, pipe chilled pastry cream onto each cookie once fully cooled.
- Caramelize sugar topping: Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar on the pastry cream topping of each cookie. Using a kitchen torch, carefully brûlée the sugar until golden brown and caramelized.
- Final cooling and serving: Let the caramelized sugar cool and harden for 10 minutes before serving. Serve immediately for best texture as cookies may become soggy if left too long.
Notes
- For best texture, add pastry cream topping only before serving to prevent sogginess.
- If you don’t have vanilla bean paste, use pure vanilla extract as a substitute but reduce quantity to 1 teaspoon.
- You can prepare the pastry cream a day in advance and keep it refrigerated.
- Use superfine sugar for the brûlée topping for a more even caramelization.
- If you don't have a kitchen torch, place the sugared cookies under a high broiler for a minute or two, watching carefully to avoid burning.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 180 kcal
- Sugar: 15 g
- Sodium: 80 mg
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 24 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 60 mg
