Mini Trifles
These Mini Trifles layer silky vanilla bean creme brulee custard with crushed shortbread cookies and raspberry jam in individual glasses, each one finished with a crackly torched sugar top.
Servings 16 servings
Calories 507kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
For the creme brulee:
- 1 vanilla bean
- 8 large egg yolks
- 1 quart heavy cream
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar plus more for topping
For assembly:
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F, and place the oven rack in the center of the oven.
- Place a stockpot with water on the stove and bring to a boil while you prepare the cream.
- Cut the vanilla bean pod in half, and with the back of the knife, scrape out the seeds.1 vanilla bean
- Add the egg yolks to a large bowl and whisk until smooth for 1 minute and set aside.8 large egg yolks
- In a large saucepan, add the heavy cream over medium heat.1 quart heavy cream
- Add the sugar to the pan and whisk it in.1/2 cup granulated sugar
- Add the scraped vanilla beans and the vanilla bean pod.
- Bring mixture just to a simmer, whisking constantly so it doesn’t burn on the bottom. The mixture is ready when it reaches 205°F. Take off the heat.
- Very, very gradually, add some of the cream mixture to the beaten egg yolks while whisking the egg yolks constantly. Do this until all of the cream is added.
- Using a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl, strain the cream mixture into the bowl to catch the vanilla pod and any solids.
- Pour the cream into a 9×9 baking dish. Place the baking dish into a large pan, like a roasting pan.
- Place the whole thing in the oven. Very carefully pour the boiling water into the roasting pan until the water goes up the side of the 9×9 baking dish halfway. Make sure not to get any water into the cream mixture
- Bake for 40 minutes. Cover with foil and bake for an additional 20 minutes. The cream will still be jiggly in the center.
- Allow to cool for 2 hours at room temperature on a wire rack. Then, cover it with plastic wrap and place it in for at least 4 hours to set, or overnight is best.
- When you are ready to assemble the trifles, take the cream out of the fridge and stir or whisk until smooth. Make sure to get all those vanilla bean specks on the bottom of the baking dish!
- To your serving glasses, add some of the crushed cookies, followed by some of the cream, about 2 tablespoons of the raspberry jam, then more cookies, and lastly, more cream.60 shortbread cookies, 1 cup seedless raspberry jam
- Add a generous amount of granulated sugar on top of each trifle, making sure it goes all the way to the edge and fully covers the cream.
- Using a handheld torch, torch the tops until browned.
- Allow to sit for a couple of minutes to allow the sugar to set and serve.
Notes
- Work in batches to keep everything cool and prevent the layers from melting into each other.
- Use a rubber spatula to cleanly layer the cream and jam without smudging the sides of the cups.
- For an added crunch, sprinkle a layer of crushed biscuits or cookies on top just before serving.
- Make sure to torch just before serving for a crunchy topping.
- The number of servings depend how large your glasses are.
Nutrition
Calories: 507kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 164mg | Sodium: 160mg | Potassium: 115mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 26g | Vitamin A: 1031IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 60mg | Iron: 2mg