Hey hey, everyone! Or should I say Ho Ho Ho? It is getting to be that time of year. But first we must get through Thanksgiving. I love Thanksgiving, although not as much as Christmas, because of the food, of course. Not just the eating of the food but the cooking and baking as well.
We normally host the Thanksgiving feast for my family and will be doing so again this year. I am not gonna tell a big whopping fib (Santa is watching you know) and say that I really enjoy hosting the big family meal. I enjoy it once the food is all prepared and everyone is there having a good time. But, the weeks leading up to the event are a royal pain in the butt. I always over-prepare. I stress about how clean the house is and worry too much about the tiniest details that no one notices anyway but that is how I roll. I should be home right now doing some of that cobweb busting and carpet cleaning. However, I am writing this while sitting in Union Station in Chicago waiting for our train to take us back home. My husband had a school board conference in Chicago and asked me to come along. I shouldn’t have because of all the work waiting for me at home but I decided to live a little. So, I have been shopping and eating and walking my way up and down Michigan Avenue for 3 ½ days. Oh my gosh, the walking. I kind of wish that I had a Fitbit so I could see how many millions of steps I have made this weekend. I doubt that I lost any pounds because we have not dieted by any means but I probably came out about even. I know that I burned some serious calories but I also indulged in some pretty good food. Right now, I have a bag of “Nuts on Clark” caramel corn/popcorn mix and some fantastic Red Velvet Cherries to munch on while we wait. Sooooo good. I wasn’t going to buy anything to eat here at the station even though we are going to be here for about 3 hours waiting for our train but, dang, that popcorn place smelled too good to pass up. And speaking of too good to pass up, I have a doozy of a dessert recipe to share with you today. I am hoping to get this posted by Thanksgiving but no promises.
I want to share a recipe for Creme Brulee Caramel Pie. My niece, Amber, has a serious addiction to Creme Brulee apparently. She asked me last summer to bring Creme Brulee to some family gathering. Well now, I have a large family and had to figure out a way to make a large batch rather than mess around with those little ramekins for everyone but I accomplished it. My sons also love Creme Brulee but I don’t make it often, although I should. They also love caramel pie. So, when I saw a recipe for this pie, I had to try it. I tweaked the recipe a bit to suit my family’s tastes and this is the result.
This pie has a simple graham cracker crust. Then comes a luscious layer of Dulce de Leche topped with a homemade cooked vanilla custard. Add a bit of sugar to the top and burn it to a nice crispy and golden glorious finish. Wow! The velvety smooth texture between layers of buttery crunch and sugary crunch is unbelievable. You are sure to impress with this pie and it is so very simple to make.
You will need a graham cracker crust. I suggest using a premade crust because the fillings are the stars of this show. Give yourself a break. I used the larger crust but you can get away with the regular size easily. You will also need 1 can of Dulce de Leche (about 13.4 oz. depending on brand). 1 ⅔ cup heavy cream, 3 Tablespoons of cornstarch, 1 can of sweetened condensed milk (14 oz.), 3 eggs yolks, 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter and 1 Tablespoon of vanilla. For the topping you will need about ¼ cup or more sugar. You can use regular granulated sugar or Turbinado sugar. I used a combination.
Open up your can of Dulce de Leche and stir it a bit to loosen it up. Then, carefully spread the entire can on the bottom only of your graham cracker crust. Set this aside.
In a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom (to prevent scalding), whisk the cornstarch into the heavy cream. Try to get the cornstarch completely dissolved with no lumps remaining.
Whisk in the sweetened condensed milk and then the egg yolks until completely combined
Turn the heat on medium and cook this mixture until bubbling and thickened, stirring constantly. The thickening process will sneak up on you so be prepared. It seems like you are stirring forever with no result and then, BAM, all of the sudden you have custard.
Remove the pot from the heat immediately and add in the butter and vanilla. Stir until the butter has melted and everything is nice and smooth.
Pour the still warm custard into the prepared crust right on top of the Dulce de Leche but don’t mix them. Just layer them and spread the custard out to cover the caramel.
Let the pie sit on the counter for a few minutes until the custard cools a bit then chill the pie in the refrigerator overnight or at least 4 hours. Leave it uncovered for the first hour or so, at least, to prevent condensation making puddles on your pie.
Right before you want to serve this pie, remove it from the refrigerator and cover the exposed edges of the crust with a little strip of aluminum foil or a pie crust shield if you have one. Sprinkle the sugar over the top of the custard. It does not need to be a thick layer but it should cover the custard completely. Use a kitchen torch to very lightly burn the sugar. Or, you can alternatively place the pie under the broiler for a couple of minutes. Watch it carefully. You don’t want black sugar just burnt a little.
Slice and serve this beautiful pie! It looks so elegant and special. Share the recipe (you will be asked for it) or keep it a secret that it is super easy to make. I hope that you enjoy it and I hope that you enjoy your Thanksgiving. Just don’t be like me and stress too much….sigh.
Creme Brulee & Caramel Pie
Ingredients
- 1 Premade or homemade graham cracker pie crust
- 1 can Dulce de Leche approximately 13.4 oz. or 1 cup
- 1 2/3 cups heavy cream
- 3 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk 14 oz.
- 3 egg yolks
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla or vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup granulated or Turbinado sugar can use more
Instructions
- Open up your can of Dulce de Leche and stir it a bit to loosen it up. Then, carefully spread the entire can on the bottom only of your graham cracker crust. Set this aside.
- In a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom (to prevent scalding), whisk the cornstarch into the heavy cream. Try to get the cornstarch completely dissolved with no lumps remaining.
- Whisk in the sweetened condensed milk and then the egg yolks until completely combined.
- Turn the heat on medium and cook this mixture until bubbling and thickened, stirring constantly. The thickening process will sneak up on you so be prepared.
- Remove the pot from the heat immediately and add in the butter and vanilla. Stir until the butter has melted and everything is nice and smooth.
- Pour the still warm custard into the prepared crust right on top of the Dulce de Leche but don’t mix them. Just layer them and spread the custard out to cover the caramel.
- Let the pie sit on the counter for a few minutes until the custard cools a bit then chill the pie in the refrigerator overnight or at least 4 hours. Leave it uncovered for the first hour or so, at least, to prevent condensation making puddles on your pie.
- Right before you want to serve this pie, remove it from the refrigerator and cover the exposed edges of the crust with a little strip of aluminum foil or a pie crust shield if you have one. Sprinkle the sugar over the top of the custard. It does not need to be a thick layer but it should cover the custard completely. Use a kitchen torch to very lightly burn the sugar. Or, you can alternatively place the pie under the broiler for a couple of minutes. Watch it carefully. You don’t want black sugar just burnt a little.
- Slice and serve this beautiful pie!
- Note: Keep any leftover pie in the refrigerator, covered. I have found that this pie does not keep well after about 2 days.
