Use a spoon to shatter the caramel crackle top of this Vegan Meyer Lemon Crème Brûlée to reveal the custardy and lemony dessert underneath!
Ingredients
1½ cups full-fat coconut milk
3 Tablespoons sugar (or sweetener of choice)
¼ teaspoon agar powder
half of a vanilla bean, split and scraped
pinch of turmeric
pinch of black salt
2 Tablespoons water
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
zest of one large Meyer lemon (1 heaping teaspoon)
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
5 teaspoons of turbinado sugar (or regular sugar)
Instructions
In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the coconut milk, sugar, agar, vanilla bean, turmeric, and black salt. Stir it until it comes to a boil, then reduce heat to low-medium and simmer for 2 minutes. Watch it during this time or else it may boil over.
In a small cup or bowl, whisk together the water and the cornstarch then add it to the saucepan and stir to combine. Let it come back up to a boil for about 30 seconds to 1 minute (to activate the cornstarch) then remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the lemon juice, zest, and vanilla extract.
Pour the custard into 5 crème brûlée ramekins (or any other shallow ramekins) and let them come to almost room temperature on the counter (15 minutes) before putting in the refrigerator to chill completely (at least 2 hours).
When you are ready to serve, sprinkle one teaspoon of the turbinado sugar evenly over the surface of each one of the custards. Then use a blowtorch to melt, brown, and caramelize the sugar. You can also make them in the oven by putting all of the sugared custards onto a baking sheet. Then put the broiler on for a few minutes before placing the baking sheet with the custards on the highest shelf of the oven. You will have to watch them very carefully. This method is not my favorite because it can be uneven in browning and it can overheat the custards to a consistency that is too soft. That's why I like using a blowtorch, quick and controllable. Serve right after torching because the crackle may dissolve if it sits too long afterward.
Notes
-This recipe makes 5 typical crème brûlée servings.
-The black salt (kala namak) brings a very slight eggy-ness to make it reminiscent of traditional crème brûlée. If you can't get it, just substitute with a pinch of regular salt.
-If you don't have a vanilla bean, just bump up the amount of vanilla extract to 1 teaspoon.
-You can use one the specialized blowtorches for making this but I most often use a regular blowtorch (the kind you buy at a hardware store).
Recipe by Lands & Flavors at https://www.landsandflavors.com/vegan-meyer-lemon-creme-brulee/