Vegan Crème Brûlée
Vegan cuisine is often said to be complicated and complex. In some respects, this is certainly true, but by no means all. This crème brûlée, for example, proves the opposite! Unlike a crème brûlée made with milk, eggs, and cream, you don't have to boil the vegan version or bake it in a double-boiler. We skip the latter as our mixture becomes firm with the help of cornstarch instead of eggs. This happens as soon as it comes to a boil in the saucepan. Just as we promised, this crème brûlée is super simple!
Instead of milk and eggs, our vanilla cream is made of a mixture of silken tofu and plant-based cream, which we sweeten with cane sugar and season with nutritional yeast, vanilla, and kala namak salt. Cornstarch helps with binding the mixture and white sugar, of course, provides the crunchy layer on top. We flambéed the sugar with a butane gas burner, which is the fun part of this recipe. If you don't have a flambé burner, you should also get the caramelized top layer with your oven's grill function (but it's best to stay close so nothing burns).
Simple Vegan Crème Brûlée
Ingredients
For the crème brûlée:
- 400 g (14 oz) silken tofu
- 100 ml (0.5 cup) vegan whipping cream
- 100 g (0.5 cup) brown sugar
- 2 tbsp (0.5 oz) nutritional yeast
- 1 vanilla bean
- 3 tbsp (1.5 oz) cornstarch
- 2 tbsp (1 oz) water
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch turmeric
- 1 pinch kala namak
- 3–4 tbsp white sugar
For serving:
- fresh mint
Instructions
Mix silken tofu, vegan cream, brown sugar, nutritional yeast, and the seeds from a vanilla bean in a pot and heat while stirring constantly. Mix starch smoothly with water and add while stirring. Bring the mixture to a brief boil until it thickens.
Season the crème with salt, turmeric, and kala namak to taste, and simmer gently for approx. 5 minutes until the consistency is almost pudding-like. Then pour the mixture into four heat-resistant ramekins and let cool at room temperature.
After the mixture has cooled completely, refrigerate for at least 2–3 hours (or overnight).
Just before serving, add approx. 1 tablespoon of white sugar to each ramekin and distribute evenly so an even layer of sugar forms on the crème. Caramelize the sugar layer with a butane torch until a brown caramel layer forms. Serve immediately and optionally top with fresh mint.
