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Creme Brûlée Pie
A silky smooth vanilla custard in a buttery crust topped with a crisp sugar topping. It is a creamy sweet pie with a touch of tang and will be everyone’s favorite pie!
Pie season is officially upon us! I love this time of year when everyone is gearing up for the holidays. The holidays mean family time and I am definitely the happiest when I am surrounded by my loved ones. I am also the happiest when my plate is full of pie. We are talking a dinner-sized plate with an assortments of the best homemade pies!
Every year on Thanksgiving, I bring two to three brand new pies in an attempt to impress the fam. I always want to mix it up so they are surprised. As I was thinking about some of my favorite desserts…I dreamt about creme brûlée and how I could turn that classic dessert into a pie. Everyone loves creme brûlée so why not pair it with a buttery, flaky homemade pie crust and you end up with one heavenly pie.
This Creme Brûlée Pie took some experimenting in the kitchen. I ended up making FIVE pies to get it just right! I employed a lot of taste testers to figure out which one provided the creamiest texture with the right amount of sweetness and the signature crisp topping. The end result reminds me of a chess pie or buttermilk pie but that much better.
I made all sorts of variations — I used heavy cream and egg yolks, buttermilk and eggs, heavy cream with a mix of heavy cream and a touch of buttermilk, and more. I think experimenting in the kitchen is my absolute favorite!
I found if I did a traditional creme brûlée recipe made with egg yolks, sugar, and heavy cream, it was a tad too sweet since a pie is much thicker than traditional creme brûlée. I needed something to cut the sweetness. A simple way to balance out sweetness is to add some type of acid. Hello, buttermilk. The buttermilk still adds the creamy element I was searching for but also adds a nice tang to the pie. I also wanted to use whole eggs instead of just egg yolks because it was too rich.
I used my favorite type of sugar to make this Creme Brûlée Buttermilk Pie — C&H® Organic Raw Cane Sugar. I have been using C&H sugar for as long as I can remember and it is my go to for all of my baking needs. Since the sugared crust is the star of the show, I wanted to use the highest quality sugar I can find. You can find the sugar HERE or at your local grocery store.
Since this is a baked pie, I needed to add a little thickener to make sure the pie will set up. This recipe calls for 4 Tablespoons of flour to help thicken the filling. Also, after it is baked it is important to place it in the refrigerator to chill and allow time to set up.
Since we are making this creamy chess pie from scratch, we need to accompany it with a homemade buttery pie crust. This is my favorite butter pie crust recipe and it has rave reviews. You won’t believe how easy it is to throw together a pie crust. This recipe calls for only 4 ingredients and it is tender every single time.
How to make the Best Creme Brûlée Pie:
- Start by making a pie crust using flour, salt, cold butter, and buttermilk or cold water (mixed with a splash of vinegar). Chill until ready to use.
- In a large mixing bowl, whip eggs and C&H white sugar until smooth. Slowly add in melted butter. The reason it is important to add it slowly is that you are adding a hot liquid to eggs and you don’t want them to curdle.
- Stir in heavy cream, buttermilk, and vanilla. I love using vanilla paste or vanilla beans for their pronounced vanilla flavor.
- Fold in the flour and avoid over mixing.
- Roll out pie crust dough into a circle. Place in a 9-inch pie plate and flute the edges. Pour creme brûlée pie batter into pie pan. Sprinkle with some C&H sugar all over the top.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Carefully open the oven and lightly cover the pie with aluminum foil to ensure it is doesn’t become too brown. You want the filling to cook though without the top of crust becoming too golden. Continue to bake for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through. Since it is a sugar crust, you may see cracks form. That’s okay…it is part of the look of the creme brûlée pie.
- Remove from oven and let set for at least 15 minutes. Then place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 2 hours.
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Creme Brûlée Pie
Ingredients
- 3 large Eggs
- 1 1/2 cups Sugar
- 1/2 cup Salted Butter (melted)
- 1/2 cup Heavy Cream
- 1/2 cup Buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract, Vanilla Bean Paste, or Vanilla Beans
- 4 Tablespoons Flour (preferably cake flour)
- Sugar (for sprinkling on top of the pie)
Butter Pie Crust:
- 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter
- 1 1/4 cups Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 2 Tablespoons to 1/4 cup Buttermilk or Cold Water/Vinegar Mixture
- 1/2 teaspoon Vinegar (if not using buttermilk)
Fresh Whipped Cream:
- 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
- 2 Tablespoons Confectioners Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, whip together eggs and white sugar for 2-3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Slowly add melted butter, a little at a time, to temper the eggs. Mix for 2 minutes longer.
- Stir in heavy cream, buttermilk, and vanilla extract. Fold in the flour.
Butter Pie Crust:
- In a bowl, add flour, salt, and cubes of cold butter. With a fork or pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour until coarse crumbs form.
- Add 1 Tablespoon of buttermilk or cold water at a time, mixing after each Tablespoon, until the pie dough comes together.
- Roll out pie crust dough into a circle. Place in a 9-inch pie plate and flute the edges. Pour creme brûlée pie batter into pie pan. Sprinkle with some sugar all over the top.
- Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, place a large piece of foil loosely over the top of the pie to make sure it doesn’t become too brown. Continue to bake for 15-20 minutes or until pie is a light golden brown color on the top. The pie will still jiggle slightly but will set up in the refrigerator.
- Let cool for about 15 minutes and then place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 2-3 hours.
Fresh Whipped Cream:
- In a mixing bowl, whip heavy cream until soft peaks form. Stir in powdered sugar. Add more powdered sugar to taste. Serve with creme brûlée pie.
Notes
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This is a sponsored post from C&H sugar. All views and opinions are my own.
Still seems pretty jiggly after the allotted time but I didn’t want to over bake. I even cooked for an extra 5 min. Hopefully it will solidify like it’s supposed to in fridge ???
If you want to look super fancy without all the work then make this pie! It is so delicious and so easy to make. I love this recipe so much.
I doubled then followed the recipe exactly and the pies are AMAZING! I topped with sliced strawberries and my family is in heaven. The extra little pieces of crust made great pie crust cookies too! The only issue I had was that when I put the tinfoil “lightly” on the pies after the 30 minutes of baking, some of the top of the pies came off with the tinfoil. Next time I think I’ll put the tinfoil on the top rack instead of on the actual pies. Anyway, excellent recipe, thank you! -lv
Tent your foil so it won’t stick.
Who makes the dessert plate that you use in the photos? They are beautiful and exactly what I envisioned on my table! I can’t wait to try the recipe.
Made this for Thanksgiving. Absolutely delicious. Don’t skip the fresh whipped cream.