Light Crema Catalana

📝 Ingredients

• 600 ml semi-skimmed milk (500 for infusing, 100 for mixing with the cornflour)
• 1 unwaxed lemon (zest only)
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 eggs (yolks only)
• 30 g cornflour (3 tbsp)
• 60 g caster sugar
• 4 tsp demerara sugar (about 20 g)

🍴 Utensils

• Heavy-bottomed saucepan
• Whisk
• Mixing bowl
• Peeler
• 4 ramekins or crème brûlée dishes
• Baking sheet

📖 Steps

1. Pare the lemon zest in wide strips with a vegetable peeler, avoiding the bitter white pith. Pour 500 ml of the milk into the saucepan with the zest and cinnamon stick, bring to a simmer over a medium heat, then turn off the heat, cover and leave to infuse for 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, separate the egg whites from the yolks (keep the whites for another recipe). In a mixing bowl, mix the cornflour into the 100 ml cold milk until there are no lumps left, then add the yolks and sugar and whisk for 1 minute.
3. Remove the zest and cinnamon from the milk with a fork and reheat the milk until it simmers. Pour it in a thin stream onto the yolk mixture, whisking constantly: the yolks warm up gently instead of cooking into lumps.
4. Pour everything back into the saucepan and cook over a medium-low heat for 4 to 6 minutes, whisking constantly and scraping the bottom and sides well, until the cream thickens noticeably. Then let it bubble gently for 1 minute to cook the cornflour, or the cream will taste floury.
5. Immediately divide the cream between the 4 ramekins and tap each one on the worktop to smooth the surface. Leave to cool for 20 minutes, then cover and chill for at least 3 hours: the cream must be well chilled and set before caramelising.
6. Just before serving, preheat the oven grill on its highest setting for 5 minutes, with the rack at the very top. Blot any condensation on the surface of the creams with kitchen paper, then sprinkle each one with 1 tsp demerara sugar in a thin, even layer, right to the edges.
7. Place the ramekins on the baking tray and slide them under the grill, about 5 cm from the element. Caramelise for 2 to 4 minutes, staying right by the oven, until the sugar melts, bubbles and turns amber. Take them out immediately: a few seconds too long and it burns.
8. Leave to rest for 2 minutes at room temperature: the caramel hardens and becomes brittle under the spoon. Serve straight away, as in the fridge the crust softens in less than an hour.