Mulled Wine Creme Brulee
A decadent twist on a classic French, this mulled wine creme brulee is silky, rich and delicious. Made with gingerbread cookie crust, silky smooth mulled wine creamy filling and boozy fruit. Decorated in a festive fashion with snowflake royal icing cookies.
Ingredients
Gingerbread Crust
- 120 g unsalted butter, softened
- 60 g dark brown sugar
- 100 g unsulphured molasses
- 400 g all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon mixed spice (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves)
- 1 orange zest
- 1 egg, large
Mulled fruit
- 150 g dried fruit (raisins / sour cherries)
- 30 g red wine
- 30 g sugar
- 1 orange zest
Mulled wine crème brûlée
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 egg, large
- 60 g soft brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bead paste
- 300 g heavy (double) cream
- 100 g milk
- 60 g red wine
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon cloves
Extra
- 50 g icing sugar
Instructions
Gingerbread tart crust
- Combine the softened butter with molasses and sugar. Beat with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix in properly. Scrape down the sides to get everything evenly incorporated.
- In a separate bowl add the flour, spices and orange zest. Mix all the ingredients until thoroughly combined. Finally, add the dry ingredients into the wet. Mix well to combine, until you get a slightly sticky dough.
- Place the dough into cling film and press with palms to flatten. Chill dough in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour (or overnight).
- Preheat oven to 190°C (370°F). Take the dough out from the fridge and divide into two pieces: one ⅔ and the smaller ⅓. Place the smaller piece back into the fridge (this will be used for the snowflake cookies).
- Sprinkle a generous helping of flour onto the work surface. Roll out the larger piece of dough up to 3-4mm thickness. Cut out a circle larger than your tart shell, roughly 5-6cm bigger than needed. Carefully lift the cookie dough and place it into the shell. Gently press with your fingers to mould into shape and ensure a snug fit. Trim off any excess with a sharp knife. Pierce the bottom of the tart with a fork a few times.
- Place baking paper inside the tart and fill crust with baking beads or rice. Bake sure they are spread evenly across the surface, to prevent the crust from lifting. Bake for 10 minutes. Afterwards, reduce the heat of the oven to 150°C (300°F). Remove the baking beads and brush the inside with egg wash to create a seal. Bake for a further 5 minutes.
Mulled wine crème brûlée
- Pre-heat oven to 140°C (280°F). Place all the ingredients for the mulled fruit into a saucepan over medium-low heat. Toss a few times to evenly coat all the fruit in the liquid. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the liquid gets soaked up by the fruit.
- In a separate bowl whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, sugar and red wine until combined.
- Mix the cream, milk, and spices in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat up until steaming (but do not allow it to boil). Gradually add the milky mixture over the eggs, constantly stirring. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened slightly. Remove from heat and add in the mulled fruit.
- Pour the crème brûlée over the tart shell halfway through. To avoid spillage, pour the rest of the crème in the oven, up to the brim of the tart. If there are any air bubbles on the surface, remove them by using a blowtorch. Bake the tart for 25-30 minutes or until the tart has a slight jiggle in the middle.
- Allow tart to cool, then place in the fridge to set for a minimum of 3 hours.
Caramelised topping
- To create the caramelised sugar topping, dust the surface of the tart (including crust edge) with icing sugar. Gently use a blowtorch over the sugar, going over the entire surface. Do not dwell on one surface for too long, to avoid burning.
- Repeat the process two or three more times until you get a nicely caramelised top. It’s best to do this before serving the tart, as the layer of sugar can dissolve and lose its crunch.
- Decorate the tart with gingerbread cookies or other ornaments (rosemary sprigs, candied peels etc).
Notes
- I recommend using a kitchen scale in grams for more accuracy. The cups used for the conversion are standard US customary cups (1 cup flour = 136g). There are many different types of cups across the globe, which is why I strongly recommend using grams instead.
- Mulled wine - can be replaced with any other type of alcohol, such as rum or fruit liqueur.
- Molasses - can be replaced with maple syrup or honey.
- Storing - store in an airtight container in the fridge. The sugar should only be added and torched before serving, as the caramelised layer can become soft in the fridge.
Nutrition
Calories: 499kcal
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