Thanksgiving Dessert

Thanksgiving Spiced Apple Crème Brûlée

A rich, silky custard infused with real apple and warm fall spices, baked right inside hollowed-out apples and finished with a shatteringly crisp caramelized sugar top. It’s a showpiece dessert that can be made days ahead and torched just before serving, and the apple shells keep the custard impossibly moist.

Serves 8 · 30 min active · 35–45 min bake · 4 hrs chill

Made by Youth Sweets

Shopping List

Ingredients:

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Shopping List

•   6 Apples
•   1 Lemon
•   1 carton Heavy cream
•   1 bottle vanilla extract
•   1 carton Eggs
•   1 bag Granulated sugar
•   Ground cinnamon
•   Ground ginger
•   Ground nutmeg
•   Ground cloves

Ingredients are subject to availability at local stores. Unavailable items will be automatically substituted at best-effort.

Fuji apples are the sweetest and hold their shape best in the oven, but Honeycrisp or Gala will work. You’ll need 5 egg yolks — save the whites for another use. Vanilla bean paste gives the most authentic flavour, but an equal amount of vanilla extract is a fine substitute.

Directions

Prep the apples and the pan

1. Hollow the apples: Wash 6–8 medium Fuji apples, cut the tops off, and hollow them out using a round cookie cutter, sharp apple corer, and paring knife. Reserve all the apple innards you scoop out — they’re the flavour base for the custard. Set the hollowed apples aside with their lids.
2. Preheat and build the collars: Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Tear off sheets of foil, scrunch them into rods, and form them into rings that the apples can sit on. Place these on a large baking sheet with a lip, spaced 3 inches apart.

Make the apple puree

1. Blend: Add the reserved apple innards to a blender or food processor with ¼ cup of water (add more as needed) and blend until completely smooth.
2. Reduce: Pour the apple puree into a small saucepan along with 1 Tbsp of lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Cook on medium for 10 minutes, or until the mixture has reduced by half. Set aside to cool completely.

Make the custard

1. Warm the cream: Add 2 cups (460g) heavy cream and 2 tsp vanilla bean paste to a clean medium saucepan. Cook until simmering (185°F–205°F), then remove from the heat.
2. Beat the yolks: In a large heat-proof bowl, beat 5 egg yolks and ⅓ cup (67g) granulated sugar together with a whisk or beaters until the mixture lightens in colour and leaves a trail when the whisk is pulled up.
3. Add the flavourings: Add ⅔ cup (160g) of the reduced apple puree, ¼ tsp kosher salt, ½ tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger, ¼ tsp ground nutmeg, and a tiny pinch of ground cloves. Whisk to combine.
4. Temper and combine: Slowly dribble some of the warmed cream mixture into the egg yolk mixture while whisking constantly. Continue until all of the cream is incorporated and the custard is thoroughly combined and smooth.

Fill and bake

1. Fill the apples: Divide the custard evenly between the hollowed-out apples. Don’t overfill them — the custard needs a little room to puff and set.
2. Set up the water bath: Place the apples on the prepared foil collars on the baking sheet. Fill the baking sheet with boiling or very hot water up to the top of the foil collars, but not touching the apples themselves.
3. Bake: Bake for 35–45 minutes, until the centres are barely set and still jiggly. The apples insulate the custard so it bakes more slowly than crème brûlée in ramekins — if you’re using ramekins instead, bake for about 30 minutes.
4. Cool and chill: Cool completely, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or up to a couple of days.

Brûlée and serve

1. First sugar layer: When ready to serve, sprinkle a very thin layer of granulated or caster sugar on top of each custard. Torch until melted and lightly caramelized.
2. Build the layers: Sprinkle another even, thin layer of sugar on top and torch again. Repeat for a total of 2–3 thin layers — this is what gives you an even, properly crackable caramel shell rather than a patchy one.
3. Serve immediately: Serve right away, while the sugar is still crisp.

Make-ahead: The custard can be baked and refrigerated, without the caramelized sugar, for 3–4 days. Wait to torch the tops until just before serving — the caramel shell only stays crunchy for a few hours. If you fill the pan with water, it’s easier to do it once the pan is already on the oven rack, just before closing the door.