Equipment
Ingredients
Maple Caramel
- 100 g maple sugar
- 30 ml water
Custard Base
- 480 ml whole milk
- 3 eggs, room temperature
- 2 egg yolks, room temperature
- 70 g maple sugar
- 2 g kosher salt
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 204 kcal
- Protein
- 7 g
- Carbohydrates
- 30 g
- Fat
- 7 g
- Fiber
- 0 g
- Sugar
- 28 g
- Sodium
- 205 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 3 g
- Trans Fat
- 0 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 2 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 1 g
- Cholesterol
- 166 mg
- Potassium
- 224 mg
- Calcium
- 138 mg
- Iron
- 1.1 mg
- Magnesium
- 17 mg
- Phosphorus
- 141 mg
- Zinc
- 2.5 mg
- Vitamin A
- 100 mcg
- Vitamin D
- 1.9 mcg
- Vitamin E
- 0.5 mg
- Vitamin K
- 0 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.1 mg
- Vitamin B12
- 0.7 mcg
- Thiamin
- 0.06 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.29 mg
- Niacin
- 0.1 mg
- Folate
- 25 mcg
- Water
- 100 g
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F. Arrange six ramekins in a large roasting pan. Bring a kettle of water to a boil for the water bath.
Combine 100g maple sugar and 30ml water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Stir gently until the sugar dissolves, then cook without stirring until the mixture becomes a deep amber syrup. Immediately pour a thin layer of the caramel into the bottom of each ramekin, tilting them to coat the bottoms evenly.
In the same (unwashed) saucepan, add the whole milk. Heat over medium until it begins to steam and small bubbles form around the edges. Do not let it boil.
In a mixing bowl, gently whisk the whole eggs, egg yolks, remaining 70g maple sugar, and kosher salt until just combined. Avoid whisking vigorously to prevent incorporating too much air, which causes bubbles in the final custard.
Slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture in a thin, steady stream while whisking constantly to temper the eggs without scrambling them.
Pass the custard mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a pouring jug to remove any accidental cooked egg bits and ensure a perfectly silky texture. Skim off any foam resting on the surface.
Divide the strained custard evenly among the caramel-lined ramekins.
Pour the boiling water from the kettle into the roasting pan until it reaches halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Carefully transfer to the oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the edges are set but the centers still jiggle slightly like gelatin. The internal temperature must reach 74°C/165°F to ensure the eggs are safely cooked and the custard is set.
Remove the ramekins from the water bath and let them cool to room temperature on a wire rack. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator overnight to allow the caramel to soften and the custard to fully set.
To serve, run a sharp paring knife completely around the inside edge of each ramekin. Place a serving plate on top of the ramekin, invert quickly, and gently lift the ramekin away so the dark maple caramel cascades over the custard.
Chef's Notes
- Placing a folded paper towel or a silicone baking mat at the bottom of your roasting pan prevents the ramekins from sliding around and insulates them from the harsh direct heat of the pan bottom.
- Do not skip skimming the foam off the top of the unbaked custard; foam baked onto the surface acts as an insulator, altering the baking time and creating an unappealing texture on the bottom of the inverted dessert.
- Using pure maple sugar rather than maple syrup is crucial for this recipe. Liquid syrup introduces extra water that compromises the delicate ratio of eggs to dairy, which would result in a weeping, unstable custard.
- The residual heat of the custard will continue to cook the eggs even after removal from the oven. Pull them out exactly when the edges are set but the center still jiggles; otherwise, they will overbake as they cool.
Storage
Refrigerator: 3 days — Store in the ramekins, tightly wrapped. Do not unmold until immediately before serving.
Troubleshooting
Porous, sponge-like texture with bubbles on the sides of the custard
Cause: The water bath boiled, causing the egg proteins to overcook and separate
Fix: Cannot be fixed
Prevention: Ensure the oven temperature is accurate and the water bath never reaches a rolling boil. Use warm, not fiercely boiling, water if your oven runs hot.
Custard has lumps or pieces of cooked egg
Cause: The hot milk was added too quickly during tempering, scrambling the eggs
Fix: Straining the mixture through a fine mesh sieve before baking will catch most small pieces. If heavily scrambled, the base must be remade.
Prevention: Pour the hot milk in a very slow, thin stream while whisking constantly.
Caramel is hard and stuck to the bottom of the ramekin after inverting
Cause: The custard did not rest long enough in the refrigerator for the moisture to dissolve the hard caramel
Fix: Warm the bottom of the ramekin briefly in hot water before unmolding to help release stubborn caramel.
Prevention: Chill the baked custards for a minimum of 12 hours, preferably 24 hours, before unmolding.
Cultural Context
While creme caramel is universally recognized as a classic French brasserie staple, substituting pure maple sugar firmly roots this variation in North American culinary traditions. Maple sugar, historically crafted by Indigenous peoples of the Northeast by boiling sap until crystalline, imparts complex notes of smoke, toffee, and vanilla that elevate the simple milk and egg custard into a quintessential autumnal centerpiece.
