Homemade Catalan Cream Recipe

Catalan cream is one of the most traditional and popular desserts of the gastronomy of Catalonia. Its popularity is such that today it has spread throughout the country and even other regions of the world, which is why we find different versions almost all over the planet. This rich dessert consists of a finer custard than usual, covered in burnt sugar that provides the crunchy and sweet touch that characterizes it so much.

Although we currently find many versions of the original Catalan cream recipe, in this article we are going to share the traditional way of making it, the one of a lifetime, so that you can enjoy all its flavor whenever you want. Thus, the basic ingredients of the Catalan cream and that can never be missing from the original recipe are: milk, eggs, cornstarch and sugar. The rest of the ingredients, such as lemon, orange or vanilla essence, are optional because they are only used to add flavor. In addition to the ingredients, the point of cooking is another key to take into account when making a good Catalan cream. With that said, read on and find out how to make homemade Catalan cream.

Ingredients to make homemade Catalan Cream:

• 750 milliliters of whole milk
• 6 units of egg yolks
• 30 grams of cornstarch
• 6 tablespoons of sugar for the cream
• 4 tablespoons of sugar to burn
• 1 piece of lemon peel or a stick of cinnamon

How to make homemade Catalan Cream:

1. Heat the milk in a saucepan with 4 tablespoons of sugar and the lemon peel.
2. Let the sugar dissolve and the milk infuse over medium heat.
3. Remember that the lemon is optional and you can replace it with orange or a cinnamon stick.
4. While the milk is heating, place the egg yolks in a bowl with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and the cornstarch, stir until these ingredients are well mixed and the cornstarch well dissolved without lumps.
5.  If you prefer to make Catalan cream without cornstarch, check out this other recipe.
6. Take a ladle of milk from the hot saucepan and add it little by little to the mixture of yolks and cornstarch.
7. Immediately, stir, add another ladle and continue mixing. We recommend making the Catalan cream with manual rods at this point.
8. Add the previous mixture to the milk that you still have on the fire, now stir with a wooden spoon without stopping.
9. Lower the heat and cook the Catalan cream gently for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
10. At the last minute, turn the heat up a bit and let it start to bubble around it, as if it were about to boil but not quite, as the cream could curdle.
11. When you see that it is ready, with the consistency shown in the image, thick and creamy at the same time, turn off the heat.
12. Strain the creamor pass it through a Chinese so that it is even finer and without lumps.
13. You could skip this step if you want to make your homemade catalan cream faster, but keep in mind that one of the characteristics of this dessert is that it has a much finer texture than the traditional custard.
14. Fill some earthenware bowls with the Catalan cream and let it cool in the fridge for at least an hour.
15. The burnt sugar that covers the surface of the crema catalana should be made just before consuming, as it could melt the cream if done too far in advance.
16. Having said this, distribute a tablespoon of sugar over each bowl of cream.
17. There are two ways to burn off the sugar in your homemade crema catalana. Traditionally, that is, in the original Catalan cream recipe, a round iron plate was used that was heated directly on the stove and left on top of the sugar for a few seconds, enough to caramelize and burn it without sticking.
18. If you wonder how to make catalan cream without a blowtorch, this is the way. Now, if you don’t have an iron, the second way is with a blowtorch.
19. You simply have to burn the sugar with the torch until it is caramelized and toasted.
20. Trick: If you don’t have a blowtorch or iron, there is a third way but it is more complicated to get it right.
21.  It consists of baking the Catalan cream with the sugar on top as close as possible to the grill, with this function active and with the oven hot at 220ºC. You can add a tray with water to c
22. Ready to eat! Now that you know how to make Catalan cream and how to burn sugar in different ways, go ahead and prepare the recipe and tell us how it turned out.
23. In some places they serve the recipe for crema catalana with whipped cream on top or vanilla ice cream.