Irish cream crème brûlée is stunning and is the perfect holiday dessert – luxuriously smooth and creamy custard, perfectly crunchy caramelized sugar on top, slightly delightfully boozy. What many don’t realize is it’s surprisingly simple to do too. Serve it at your next get-together and spend more time enjoying the party than being cooped up in the kitchen.
Disclosure: This Irish cream crème brûlée post is sponsored by The Egg Farmers of Canada but all photos, words and opinions are mine. Thank you for supporting the brands and organizations that support me!
I love this time of the year. It can get hectic though with all the parties and the baking and the shopping and did I mention the baking?
Which is why I love recipes that you can make ahead and finish up when you’re just about ready to serve. Because there’s really nothing sadder than being stuck in the kitchen away from all the fun and festivities (and wine).
This Irish cream crème brûlée is one of those recipes. It’s a very simple recipe which you can prep the day before. The best part? It looks and tastes like it took hours and hours to prepare. Ready to impress?
Fresh eggs and baking
I use a lot of eggs when I’m baking and using grade A, high quality ones are very important. The quality of your baking ingredients can spell the difference between an okay dessert and a remarkable one!
It’s great that eggs here in Canada travel from farm to kitchen in less than 5 days (impressive, eh?) so I’m sure they’re always fresh and high quality.
This Irish cream crème brûlée is an example of a recipe where high quality ingredients matter.
With only 5 ingredients – eggs, cream, vanilla, Irish cream and sugar – I’d suggest you get the best ingredients you can get your hands on! There is really nothing to hide behind.
Got extra egg yolks?
Some recipes don’t use the whole egg though. Some just need the whites, some just the yolks. And over time I’ve built a collection of recipes that only use one or the other (there is no egg wastage in our house!). And this Irish cream crème brûlée is a great way to use those extra egg yolks.
Some of my other egg yolks only recipes include:
- Mexican Chocolate Pudding
- Homemade Lemon Curd
- Homemade Orange Curd
- Filipino Leche Flan (or Creme Caramel)
And each one has the same kind of richness and decadence that egg yolks bring. Using only egg yolks in this crème brûlée results in a texture to-die for. It’s smooth and luxurious and melts in your mouth.
Irish cream crème brûlée
The Irish cream on the other hand gives this crème brûlée a nice subtle boozy kick and a delightful flavour. It’s sweet but not too sweet. It’s the perfect end to a great holiday meal.
(Try this crème brûlée sous vide if you want to take your sous vide machine for a spin!)
No blow torch? No problem
You can still make crème brûlée at home without a blow torch. Set your oven to broil (high) and put your well chilled custard in the oven (highest shelf) until the tops begin to caramelize (you have to watch carefully, don’t walk away!).
The caveat here is your caramelization may not be as even as you’d like. Regardless, it will taste delicious.
Enjoy the holiday season outside the kitchen
So go ahead. Serve this simple but exquisite Irish cream crème brûlée at your next get together and enjoy more of the holidays outside the kitchen.
Happy baking!
Did you make Irish cream crème brûlée? What are your favourite recipes that use extra egg yolks? Tell me about it in the comments section below. I’d love to hear all about it.
Got extra egg whites? Here are recipes that only use egg whites:
- Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- Meringue Cornflake Cookies with Chocolate Chips
- Lemon Pavlova with Toasted Almonds & Coconut
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Irish Cream Crème Brûlée
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups heavy cream
- 1 tsp vanilla paste see notes
- 5 pcs egg yolks from large eggs, room temperature
- ¼ cup granulated sugar + more for topping
- 3 tablespoons Irish cream I used Bailey's, see notes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F.
- Pour 2 ¼ cups heavy cream into a medium sized saucepan and put on low-medium heat for about 5 minutes without stirring. Do not allow the cream to boil.
- Once you see small bubbles appearing on the sides of the pan, take the pan off the heat and stir 1 teaspoon vanilla paste until well incorporated. Set this aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk 5 egg yolks and ¼ cup sugar until combined. Gradually add the hot cream and whisk continuously to avoid scrambling the eggs. Add 3 tablespoons Irish cream and whisk some more.
- Pour your mixture into 4 6-ounce ramekins (see notes). Put the ramekins into a deep baking dish or roasting pan. Pour hot water into the roasting pan until it covers about ¾ up the sides of the ramekins.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the custard is set – firm but still wobbly in the centre.
- Take out of the oven and cool slightly before refrigerating for at least 3 hours (and up to 3 days).
- When you’re ready to caramelize, take the ramekins out of the fridge and wipe off any condensation that may have accumulated. Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar on top and tap around gently to make sure that the sugar is evenly distributed and that you have an even layer.
- If using a blow torch, melt the sugar until you get a nice crispy layer on top. Cool slightly before serving. If using the broiler, put your ramekins on a baking sheet and the baking sheet on the highest shelf of your oven. Broil on high until the sugar has caramelized. You may need to refrigerate again to cool the custard before serving.
Video
Notes
- You can use smaller-sized ramekins if you plan to serve more people. Just watch your baking time.
- You can use the same amount of vanilla extract – you just won’t get those nice specks of vanilla beans in the custard. You can also opt to use 1 vanilla bean – cut in half, put in with the cream while you’re heating it, then scoop out before you mix the hot cream with the eggs.
- If you want a boozier dessert, add a few more teaspoons of Baileys.
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only.
Liz
I love a good make-ahead holiday recipe! And what a great idea to track your egg yolks vs. egg whites recipes – I’m always storing one or the other for a few days before tossing them because I can’t remember what I need them for…I’m a bad egg user. Next time I have yolks, creme brulee it is!
Jolina
Hi Liz! I always find myself planning ahead because I’m not quite sure how to store extra whites or yolks haha. And yes, this creme brûlée is the bomb if I say so myself. Happy weekend!
Carole
I made this recipe, but was disappointed in the lack of Irish Cream flavor … and color. Second time around, I added a little dark baking chocolate to the hot cream for the right coloring and an extra Tbsp of Bailey’s. Better.
Jolina
Sounds delicious Carole!
Maria
Fancy, yet easy, yet absolutely delicious and serve-worthy at any dinner parties! Love it!
Farrah
I would have never thought of adding Irish cream! YUM! I’ll share this with my mother in law since she’s doing our holiday dinner.
Jolina
Awesome! Hope you guys like it. Have a wonderful holiday season!
Rebecca
Thank you for this recipe! I 100% agree about the eggs – there’s nothing better than fresh eggs. And, if you need something to do with the extra egg whites, there’s always macarons!
Jolina
Yes, fresh eggs make or break a recipe! And macarons have been on my to-do list forever 🙂
Tiffany VanSickle
This looks delicious! I love trying new recipes when they’re supposed to be easy. haha
Jolina
Haha yes those are the best recipes 🙂
Marian Mitchell
This sounds amazing!! I wish I could have dairy but I’m sending this to my mom. I love that you don’t waste food. I don’t either!
Jolina
Hi Marian! Thanks for sharing the recipe. And yes, I’ve become quite an expert on looking for recipes to use up “extra” ingredients. It’s quite fun actually 🙂 Hope you’re having a happy holiday season!
Aish Das-Padihari
The texture and the color of the creme brulee looks delish. I want a big spoon.
Amanda
Creme Brulee is so elegant. I order it in restaurants, but I haven’t tried it myself. I am going to need a torch to try it. It doesn’t sound impossible. Quality ingredients is the key for any recipe.
Jolina
Hi Amanda! No, not impossible at all 🙂 You don’t even need a blow torch…a broiler will do.
Dan
So now I have an answer to that age old question… how do you make creme brulee better? Add Irish Cream!
Jolina
Haha yes, that is the answer to a lot of questions! 🙂
Catherine
The bit of Bailey’s is a wonderful idea for creme brulee…this looks perfect!
Jolina
Thank you Catherine! And I agree, a little bit goes a long way 🙂
Suchi
Fear of scrambled egg has kept me away from creme brulee! with irish cream these look beyond perfect! That crackling sugar top is my favorite part.
Jolina
Hi Suchi! You should definitely try this. First, coz blow torch haha. And yes, tapping and cracking that top is so much fun 🙂
Joanna
Over the weekend I had my first taste of Irish Cream. It was wonderfully delicious, and goes perfect with the holidays. I bet it’s amazing in this dessert!
Jolina
I’m excited for you! I love putting Irish cream in all sorts of desserts. Have fun 🙂
Lori Vachon
What a glorious dessert! Looks perfect for entertaining!
Sarah Jean Althouse
I have never made my own creme brule but I sure take advantage of it in restaurants 😉
Jolina
After you’ve tried making it at home, I bet you won’t order it when you’re out anymore 🙂
Michele
I doubt I would attempt to make this–for one thing I can’t separate eggs to save my life! BUT–just let me at it–I’ll eat it all up very quickly and beg for more!
Jolina
LOL still sounds like a great plan to me 🙂