Keto Crème Brûlée
Keto Crème Brûlée
Keto Crème Brûlée with Monk Fruit: A Guilt-Free Indulgence
Crème brûlée is a classic French dessert known for its rich, creamy custard and a crisp caramelised sugar topping. Traditionally made with cream, egg yolks, and sugar, it has been enjoyed for centuries as a luxurious sweet treat. With the rise of low-carb and keto-friendly diets, this beloved dessert has been adapted using sugar alternatives like monk fruit sweetener, making it suitable for those avoiding sugar but still craving indulgence. (https://www.keto.com.au/).
Origins of Crème Brûlée
The origins of crème brûlée date back to 17th-century France, where it became a staple in fine dining and patisseries. The name means “burnt cream”, referring to the crispy caramelised top layer, which is traditionally achieved by sprinkling sugar over the custard and caramelising it with a blowtorch or broiler. Over time, crème brûlée has been reinterpreted in many cuisines, with variations including flavoured creams, different toppings, and sugar substitutes. (https://kookssecrets.com/2023/12/31/creme-brulee/).
Monk Fruit: A Natural Sugar Replacement
In Keto, crème brûlée, monk fruit sweetener is used instead of sugar. Monk fruit, also known as Luo Han Guo, is a small melon-like fruit from China, prized for its intensely sweet natural compounds called mogrosides. Unlike regular sugar, monk fruit sweetener has zero calories and zero carbohydrates, making it perfect for keto-friendly desserts. It provides a clean, natural sweetness without raising blood sugar levels, making it a favourite among low-carb and diabetic-friendly recipes.
How Keto Crème Brûlée is Made
The process of making keto crème brûlée remains similar to the traditional version. Heavy cream is gently heated, then whisked with egg yolks and monk fruit sweetener to create a smooth, silky custard. The mixture is then baked in a water bath (bain-marie) at a low temperature until just set. For the topping, a granular or powdered monk fruit sweetener can be used and caramelised carefully with a blowtorch or under a grill to create the signature crispy layer.
Keto Vanilla Creme Brulee
Equipment
- 4 Brulee dishes I use little terracotta pots, but you can use ramekins or small oven-proof dishes – there is no harm is using one large baking dish.
- 1 deep roasting tray We will use this to create a water bath to gently cook the Brulee's make sure it is large enough to fit all the dishes in well worth checking first.
- 1 Pot
- 1 Large bowl
- 1 whisk
- 1 Paring knife
- 1 Kitchen Blow Torch
Ingredients
For the Brulee custard
- 50 g Monk Fruit Sugar replacement
- 2 each Vanilla beans split and seeds scraped
- 600 ml Cream
- 8 each Egg yolks
Instructions
Preparing the Brulee custard
- The first step is to turn the oven temperature required is 160°C / 320°F.
- Pour the cream into your pot
- If using a vanilla pod, split the pod lengthways down the middle to expose the vanilla beans NB: IF USING ESSENCE OR EXTRACTS, READ THE INGREDIENTS LABEL CAREFULLY AS THEY OFTEN CONTAIN SUGAR.
- Scrape out the seeds, add them to the cream and give the cream a quick whisk just to disperse the beans.
- Add the empty pod to the cream, as it still has flavour to give.
Next, deal with the eggs.
- Get your large bowl and a second container I use a takeaway container, then separate the egg yolks from the egg whites.
- What we need is the Egg yolks in our bowl and the whites in the container (we can freeze the whites for later use, e.g. meringue's etc).
- Add to the egg yolks the 50g of Monk Fruit Sugar replacement together with the whisk the egg and sugar just need to be well blended, no need to make them fluffy or anything.
Final steps for the custard
- Place the pot with the cream and vanilla on medium heat, and gently heat the cream to a simmer.
- Warming the cream will help the vanilla infuse all its flavour for an aromatic result.
- Add all cream contents to the egg yolk and Monk Fruit Sugar replacement and whisk to combine.
- Leave the vanilla in the mix for as long as possible and will keep on infusing flavour into our custard.
Prepare the water bath
- Prepare this as close to your oven as possible. Once we have our tray, brulees, and water together, it can be a little tricky to move.
- Get your deep tray and place the oven-proof dish, dishes or ramekins into the tray.
- Remove the whole pod from our cream and egg mix and carefully pour it into a jug.
- Fill the brulee dishes about three-quarters full.
- Divide the cream and egg mix equally between your dishes, or if using one large dish, fill to the level of about three-quarters.
- So far, we should have our roasting with our brulee dishes, and the cream and egg mix equally divided between those dishes aiming to have each one at three-quaters full, if it is a little less or a little more don't worry.
- The last step before we bake. The little pots of cream mixture need to be sat in water this slows down the cooking, so the mixture simply sets to a delicious smooth custard.
- Slowly add to the roasting tray enough water so that it rises just over halfway up the brulee dishes, be careful not to splash any water into our cream mix.
- With a steady hand, carefully place our tray into the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
The final touches
- When cooked, the brulee's should feel firm with a slight wobble. Remove from the oven very carefully and allow to stand for 10 minutes.
- Next remove the brulee's from the water bath, they should be cool enough to handle but still a little warm. With a cloth, dry the bottoms of the dishes
- Allow to cool completely – the brulee's can be refrigerated for later use if you are preparing them in advance, just remove them from the fridge about an hour before serving.
To serve your creations.
- To caramelise the top of your cooled brulee's, take each of the brulee's and sprinkle liberally with Monk Fruit Sugar replacement.
- Make sure there is an even coating of Monk Fruit Sugar replacement covering the top of the brulee.
- With a blow torch very carefully caramelise the Monk Fruit Sugar replacement to golden brown, as the heat hits the sugar , the sugar will melt and bubble –NB: the Monk Fruit Sugar replacement does caramalise and colour achieving that crisp 'glass' type crunch may take a couple of layers to achieve. This means layer with Monk Fruit Sugar caramelise – add a second Monk Fruit Sugar layer and caramelise again.
- Once the Monk Fruit Sugar has cooled it sets and you have that nice golden crisp covering
- Simply serve on its own or with some fresh seasonal berries.
KOOK’S SECRETS
Nutrition
A Delicious and Healthy Dessert Option
Keto crème brûlée with monk fruit allows those on a low-carb or sugar-free diet to enjoy a decadent dessert without guilt. It retains the richness and creamy texture of traditional crème brûlée while offering a healthier alternative. Whether served at a dinner party or as a personal treat, this keto-friendly version proves that indulgence doesn’t have to come with sugar and carbs.
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