Rich, decadent, and bursting with tropical flavors, this No Bake Banana Rum Crème Brûlée tastes like a Caribbean holiday. Inspired by the French’s love for individual potted desserts, and the heady, summery flavors of ripe bananas and rum, rich homemade banana custard is flecked with vanilla bean and a splash of dark spiced rum, then topped with a glassy, broiled turbinado sugar crust.
No Bake Crème Brûlée Custard
What I love the most about this recipe is that it doesn’t require baking! A lot of crème brûlée recipes require baking or steaming the custards in a water bath then chilling to firm up.
I don’t know about you, but something about trying to lift a heavy baking sheet full of jiggly custards and hot water sloshing around the sides of the ramekins just gives me so much kitchen anxiety!
This recipe utilizes a custard ratio that’s often seen in pastry cream (think Boston cream donuts and eclairs) and then simply chilled until ready to serve!
There’s no baking or water baths involved in this method, and the texture is still dense and rich like the labor of love from a traditional crème brûlée custard!
Common Creme Brulee FAQ
- Are creme brulee and flan the same? They are similar in some ways, but they’re not the same dessert. Creme brulee is a French dessert, while flan is of Spanish origin. The biggest difference is that the sugar topping is inverted and melted in flan. Meaning, the sugar is on the bottom of the custard and is a syrup rather than a crunchy topping.
- Can creme brulee be made in advance? Yes! Simply make the custard and keep chilled until ready to divide and serve. Remember to place plastic wrap on the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming.
- Why did my creme brulee curdle? Most likely, your eggs did not temper correctly. When tempering the egg yolks, keep your whisk moving while you slowly pour in the hot milk mixture. Remember to add the hot liquid very gradually. You can also push the custard through a fine mesh sieve at the end of the cooking process to remove any cooked eggs bits.
- How do I know when my creme brulee is set? When the custard is set, it will coat the back of a wooden spoon and have the texture of pudding. If your custard is too thick, thin it out with a little milk or cream, and if too runny, continue cooking over the lowest heat until some of the moisture has evaporated.
Tips To Ensure Your Creme Brulee Is Curdle Free
For Extra Banana Flavor
Add 1/4 tsp (1.25 ml) of banana liqueur to the cream mixture while heating and layer sliced bananas on the bottom of the ramekins before spooning the custard into each one.
Banana Rum Crème Brûlée Recipe
INGREDIENTS
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 large banana, mashed
- ½ cup (99 grams) sugar
- ⅓ cup (37 grams) cornstarch
- pinch of salt
- 1⅓ cups (315 ml) whole milk
- ⅓ (80 ml) heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) dark rum, or 1 teaspoon (5 ml) of rum extract
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla bean paste, or vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons (29 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 8 tablespoons (96 grams) turbinado sugar or brown sugar
INSTRUCTIONS
Make The Banana Custard
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, banana puree, sugar, cornstarch and salt until smooth and thoroughly combined.
- In a medium saucepan heat the milk, cream, rum and vanilla over medium-high heat until steaming but not bubbling. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting.
- While whisking the egg yolk mixture, gradually pour in about half of the hot milk mixture to temper the egg yolks. (I like to start with 2-3 tablespoons of hot milk first and whisking vigorously to prevent the eggs from curdling).
- Pour the tempered egg mixture into the saucepan with the remaining milk mixture and cook over medium-low heat for 5-7 minutes until the mixture becomes thick and has a custard like texture (coats the back of a wooden spoon and drops off easily but isn’t runny).
- Remove the saucepan from heat and beat in the cold butter.
- Pour the custard into a large bowl and allow to cool for a few minutes.
- Cover the surface of the custard with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming, and chill in the refrigerator for 4 hours or up to two days (any longer and the bananas will turn the custard brown).
- Divide mixture into four ramekins. Smooth the tops with the back of a spoon for an even surface.
- Cover the surface of the custards with a generous layer of turbinado sugar. Lightly pat the sugar down with the back of a spoon.
- Using a kitchen torch, broil the sugar for 30 seconds – 1 minute until the sugar is fully caramelized and resembles glass. Alternatively, you can set your oven to 500F (260 C) and broil the custards on the top rack for 2 minutes until caramelized and bubbly.
- Serve immediately, or if making in advance, wait to add the sugar and broil until right before serving.
Banana Rum Crème Brûlée
Rich and dense cream custards are given the tropical treatment with banana, spiced rum, and a glassy turbinado sugar brûlée. Vanilla bean paste is preferred here, so you can see those lovely specks of vanilla bean in the custard. For another tropical variation, swap out the banana for passionfruit puree and use white rum instead.
Ingredients
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 large banana, mashed
- ½ cup sugar (99 grams)
- ⅓ cup cornstarch (37 grams)
- pinch of salt
- 1⅓ cups whole milk (315 m)
- ⅓ heavy cream (80 ml)
- 1 tbsp dark rum, or 1 teaspoon of rum extract (15 ml dark rum) or (5 ml rum extract)
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste, or vanilla extract (5 ml)
- 2 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cubed (29 grams)
- 8 tbsp turbinado sugar or brown sugar (96 grams)
Instructions
Make The Banana Custard
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, banana puree, sugar, cornstarch and salt until smooth and thoroughly combined.
- In a medium saucepan heat the milk, cream, rum and vanilla over medium-high heat until steaming but not bubbling. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting.
- While whisking the egg yolk mixture, gradually pour in about half of the hot milk mixture to temper the egg yolks. (I like to start with 2-3 tablespoons of hot milk first and whisking vigorously to prevent the eggs from curdling).
- Pour the tempered egg mixture into the saucepan with the remaining milk mixture and cook over medium-low heat for 5-7 minutes until the mixture becomes thick and has a custard like texture (coats the back of a wooden spoon and drops off easily but isn't runny).
- Remove the saucepan from heat and beat in the cold butter.
- Pour the custard into a large bowl and allow to cool for a few minutes.
- Cover the surface of the custard with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming, and chill in the refrigerator for 4 hours or up to two days (any longer and the bananas will turn the custard brown).
- Divide mixture into four ramekins. Smooth the tops with the back of a spoon for an even surface.
- Cover the surface of the custards with a generous layer of turbinado sugar. Lightly pat the sugar down with the back of a spoon.
- Using a kitchen torch, broil the sugar for 30 seconds – 1 minute until the sugar is fully caramelized and resembles glass. Alternatively, you can set your oven to 500F (260 C) and broil the custards on the top rack for 2 minutes until caramelized and bubbly.
- Serve immediately, or if making in advance, wait to add the sugar and broil until right before serving.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
