Strawberry Baked Custard Cups
Silky baked custards with fresh strawberries folded through, set gently in the oven until barely trembling. A light, fruit-forward dessert that lets the berries do the talking.
- Total
- 88 min
- Prep 15 · Cook 43 · Rest 30
- Serves
- 1
- Difficulty
- Easy
You'll practice: Tempering eggs · Whisking
- Sweet
- Oven
Instructions
-
Heat the oven to 160°C. Grease 8 ramekins with the 20 g butter and set them in a baking dish.
~5 min
Greasing prevents sticking, and the water bath insulates the custard so it sets gently without curdling.
-
Hull the 300 g strawberries and cut them into 1 cm pieces. Set aside 8 small pieces for topping and divide the rest among the ramekins.
~8 min
-
Whisk the 4 eggs with the 100 g sugar, 30 g flour, 1 tsp vanilla and a pinch of salt in a bowl until smooth. Pour in the 400 ml cream and whisk just until combined.
~5 min
Whisking eggs and sugar first dissolves the sugar and disperses the eggs so the custard sets evenly.
Tempering eggs Whisk the eggs with sugar before adding cream, and pour the custard through a sieve; if you add hot liquid too fast the eggs scramble.
Whisking Whisk just until smooth and combined; over-whisking incorporates air that bakes into bubbles and makes the custard grainy.
-
Pour the custard through a fine sieve over the strawberries, filling each ramekin three-quarters full. Pour 500 ml hot water into the baking dish to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
~5 min
Sieve the base to remove chalazae and bubbles, and the water bath keeps the custard below boiling so it sets silky.
Sieve the custard base to catch any stray egg white, which is what makes baked custards grainy.
Tempering eggs Whisk the eggs with sugar before adding cream, and pour the custard through a sieve; if you add hot liquid too fast the eggs scramble.
-
Bake until the custards are set at the edges but still wobble slightly in the centre, 30 to 35 minutes.
~35 min
The custard is set when the proteins have coagulated just enough; a wobble means it will finish setting as it cools.
The custards are ready when a gentle nudge makes the centre ripple like set jelly; if they crack, the oven was too hot or they baked too long.
-
Lift the ramekins from the water bath and let them cool at room temperature for 30 minutes. Top each with a reserved strawberry piece before serving.
~30 min
Cooling at room temperature lets the custard finish setting gently, avoiding the sudden contraction that causes cracking.