Green Tea Crème Brûlée

I've had a packet of matcha (powdered green tea) sitting in my cabinet for awhile now, just asking to be used for something tasty.  I'd been considering a few things, but finally settled on a crème brûlée for a friend's birthday.  She liked it so much, she went out and bought a torch so she could make her own!

If you're not familiar with matcha, it's a fine-ground, high-quality green tea powder that is used in the Japanese tea ceremony, but has many other culinary uses.  It also has health benefits due to its high antioxidant content.  Bonus!

The original recipe called for only 2 egg yolks, but the result was too runny for my preference.  Although it tasted great, I didn't love the texture, so we tweaked it, and 3 eggs was perfect!

Now, I know you readers have seen plenty photos of the various crème brûlée I've made in the past, so I didn't exactly feel the need to photojournal every step!

This dessert was tasty, and pleasantly not too sweet.  It would pair perfectly with any Asian-inspired meal!

Green Tea Crème Brûlée
(adapted from Amy's Food Adventures)
Make 4 four-ounce servings

3 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp matcha powder
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
white sugar for top


Preheat oven to 325 degrees F with the rack in the middle position.
In a bowl, cream the yolks using a hand whisk. Gradually add in the sugar and whisk until well-incorporated. The mixture should be pale and creamy.
Heat the cream and milk in a pan on the stove. Be careful not to boil it.  After it's warm, mix in the matcha powder until the matcha has fully dissolved (and try to break up the little chunks)
Temper the cream/milk into the yolk/matcha mixture. Ensure that you whisk continuously as you add the cream, and add only a little at a time to slowly bring up the temperature. If you add the cream all at once, it’ll cook the yolks and scrambled eggs with matcha is not the goal.
Pour the mixture into ramekins evenly and remove the bubbles on top.
Place the ramekins into a roasting pan and pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
Bake just until the crème brûlée is set, but still trembling in the center, approximately 40 to 45 minutes.
Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan, let cool on a rack for 10-15 minutes, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
When the crème brûlée has been cooled, sprinkle white sugar on top and caramelize the sugar using a blow torch.

Enjoy!