A custard with three ingredients, a sugar lid, and one thing that separates the good ones from the rest.
Cream, yolk, sugar, vanilla. There is nothing to hide behind, which is why it is the dessert to judge a French kitchen by.
The two mistakes
The first is heat. A custard baked too hot goes grainy and weeps, and no amount of sugar on top rescues it. It wants a low oven, a water bath and patience.
The second is timing. The sugar goes under the flame at the last possible moment. Brûlée the tops early to save time in service and by the time they reach the table the caramel has drawn moisture from the custard and gone soft. The crack is the dish. Lose the crack and you are serving cold custard with a sweet lid.
How to eat it
Break the whole surface with the back of the spoon first, in one go, rather than picking at the edge. You want caramel and custard in every mouthful.
A glass of Sauternes with it, if you are staying.
Written at L'Étoile, the historic Snouder's Building, Oyster Bay.
