Five simple ingredients – cream, vanilla, salt, eggs and sugar – make for an exquisitely rich and elegant dessert. Most Crème Brûlée recipes require the use of a small propane torch to achieve the crackly sugar top, but this version offers a simpler (and safer) solution: your oven's broiler.

Ingredients

• 2 cups heavy or light cream (or half-and-half)
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• 5 egg yolks
• ½ cup granulated sugar, plus more for topping

Instructions

• Heat oven to 325 degrees. In a saucepan, combine cream, vanilla bean and salt; cook over low heat just until hot. Let sit for a few minutes, then discard vanilla bean. (If using vanilla extract, add it now.)
• In a bowl, beat yolks and sugar together until light. Stir about a quarter of the vanilla cream into this mixture, then pour sugar-egg mixture into cream and stir. Pour into four 6-ounce ramekins and place ramekins in a baking dish; fill dish with boiling water halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
• Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until centers are barely set. Cool completely. Refrigerate for several hours and up to a couple of days.
• When ready to serve, top each custard with about a teaspoon of sugar in a thin layer.
• Place ramekins in a broiler 2 to 3 inches from heat source. Turn on broiler. Cook until sugar melts and browns or even blackens a bit, about 5 minutes. Serve within 2 hours.

Recipe from NYT cooking