Here’s a little-known fact: August 27 is national pots de crème day. What is pots de crème? It’s essentially French pudding, and it’s one of god’s greatest creations.
So here, below, for your baking pleasure, is a vanilla pots de crème recipe from Chef Cedric Lamouille at Versailles (or “Bistro V,” as it’s affectionately called) in Greenwich.
Vanilla Pots de Crème by Chef Cedric at Versailles
Ingredients:
4 1/4 cups of milk
10 egg yolks
1 cup of granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean
Directions:
Heat the oven to 300°F. Place milk in a saucepan on a stove. Split the vanilla bean in half and scrape seeds into the milk. Bring the milk to a boil. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, slowly whisk the sugar into the egg yolks. Pour the hot milk into the sugar/yolk mixture.
Arrange eight 6-oz. ramekins in a baking dish with deep sides. Pour the mixture into the ramekins. Fill the baking dish with boiling water halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover the dish with foil.
Bake until just set, about 20 minutes. Be sure to start checking early; baking time will depend on the thickness and depth of your ramekins and baking dish. Carefully remove the baking dish from the oven and let the ramekins cool in the water bath. Remove, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least two hours or for up to two days. Serve pots de crème directly from ramekins.
