Fun With My Kitchen Torch: Crème brûlée and Lemon Meringue Cupcakes

By: Jill

I received my kitchen torch as a gift a few years ago and I actually use it much more than I originally thought! Two things that I've made using the kitchen torch are crème brûlée and lemon meringue cupcakes.

The first time I made crème brûlée, I wanted a recipe that didn't require special ingredients that I did not have in my pantry and was also simple enough that it couldn't go terribly wrong! I decided to use this recipe from Ina Garten because I've really liked her recipes in the past and find that her instructions are easy to follow.

Crème brûlée starts with egg yolks (and one whole egg) and sugar that is beaten until just combined.

Meanwhile, 3 cups of heavy cream are scoured on the stove (I actually used one cup of half an half and 2 cups of heavy cream).

This recipe called for a tablespoon of Gran Marnier to add a slight orange flavor.

The recipe made enough for 6 portions.

They were cooked in water bath for 40 minutes, cooled to room temperature, and then refrigerated.

Right before I served them, I sprinkled them with sugar and then used my kitchen torch to caramelize the sugar.

It was delicious!

My dad loves lemon meringue, so for his birthday I decided to make lemon meringue cupcakes using this recipe from Martha Stewart.

I used freshly grated lemon zest for the cupcake base.

I've made my own lemon curd in the past, but I've found that the right brand can taste just as good and save you time!

Each cupcake was topped with lemon curd.

The meringue frosting was made over the stove top and was easier to make than I thought!

After piping the frosting onto each cupcake, I used my kitchen torch to toast the meringue for an authentic lemon meringue pie flavor.

I use my kitchen torch for numerous other recipe including s'more cupcakes and to create cheese crusts on savory dips. It is a worthwhile kitchen tool for me.