The fact that no one has made a creme brulee with two iconic Valentine’s Day ingredients before now, is just amazing to me. Everywhere you can see everyday ingredients transformed into new delicious dishes. So the knowledge that these got a pass made me immediately crave making them myself.Champagne, Strawberries, Creme Brulee. They are the perfect romantic ingredients for a truly romantic Valentine’s Day. I made a few different versions of these before I finally found the right amount of each. There is the fizz of the champagne, the sweet strawberries sprinkled throughout and the perfect consistency of any creme brulee.

In order to get this recipe right for you all by today, I experimented over the weekend. I was nervous, but when everyone exclaimed over them, I knew that eventually I had gotten it right. It was originally Alton Brown’s creme brulee recipe. And, the key find was heart ramekins which makes this all the cuter. Mom, last year, used these to make Dad mini meatloaves on Valentine’s Day! They come in so handy for this month.

Strawberry Champagne Creme Brulee (adapted from here)
Serves: 6 (6 ramekins)
1 quart heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sugar, divided
6 egg yolks
3 tablespoons champagne
2 cups strawberries, hulled and diced + 6 strawberries for presentation

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Combine heavy whipping cream and vanilla extract in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Remove from the heat. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup sugar and the egg yolks until it just starts to lighten in color. Pour in the cream a little at a time, whisking constantly. Stir in champagne until well-blended. Evenly distribute strawberries into the ramekins. Pour the liquid over the strawberries into 6 (7 to 8-ounce) ramekins. Stir so the strawberries are mixed evenly. Place the ramekins into a pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake just until the creme brulee is set, but still trembling in the center, approximately 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the ramekins and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. Remove the creme brulee from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top. Divide the remaining 1/2 cup sugar equally among the top of the ramekins. Using a torch, melt the sugar and form a crispy top. Place a strawberry on each. Serve immediately.

Until the next time my oven is on…