Lemon Brûlée Muffins

Disclaimer. This recipe for Lemon Brûlée Muffins has been paid for by Ultramel Custard.

The inspiration for this recipe comes from the first post I ever saved on Instagram, all the way back in 2017. I love the save functionality and all the saved posts have become a treasure trove of inspiration.  I also use it as a tool when planning a trip as I am able to save all the interesting spots at a destination.

So when Ultramel Custard asked me to be part of their festive campaign I finally had a chance to make these Lemon Brûlée Muffins which I adapted from a recipe by Alan Disavia, who is not only a handsome doctor but he can bake as well. The premise of the recipe is to hollow out a muffin, fill it with a creme patisserie, sprinkle sugar on top and brûlée it with a kitchen blow torch. It is a delicious combination of soft cake exterior, creamy lemony custard and a crunchy caramel topping. And to maximise on festive holiday time, I made some time-saving shortcuts to the recipe without compromising on flavour, and Ultramel Custard is the perfect fit.

And can you believe Ultramel Custard has been around for almost 50 years! I have to admit, I can eat it out of the box as is. No pudding required. Although my favourite way to eat it this time of year is doused over my mom’s fruitcake. Especially as a late-night emergency treat.

The good doctor made the muffins and creme patisserie from scratch but I used shop-bought muffins. You can choose any flavour that you prefer and play with the flavouring of the custard as you please. I had vanilla muffins so decided to add loads of lemon zest to the custard. You could always use a chocolate muffin, spoon in a teaspoon of hazelnut spread before adding the custard.  Or any filling of your choice really, small pieces of chocolate or small berries will work perfectly as well. You will need to thicken the custard first with a cornflour slurry and chill it. And make sure you don’t hollow out the muffing too much,  if the “walls” are too thin, the thick custard will break it. And don’t throw away the hollowed out bits of muffin, use it for trifle (it is Christmas after all) or toast them on a baking sheet and use it as a topping for ice cream.

I hope you enjoy this recipe for Lemon Brûlée Muffins. If you’ve made the recipe share it with me by tagging @heinstirred and @ultramelsa on Instagram or Facebook with the hashtag #heinstirred #ultramelsa #ultrafestive

Lemon Brûlée Muffins

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Ingredients

  

• 12 vanilla muffins
• 600 ml Ultramel Custard
• 30 ml milk
• 35 ml cornflour
• pinch of salt
• finely grated zest of two lemons
• 60 ml caster sugar

Instructions

 

• Hollow out the muffins making sure the edges are not too thin
• Place the custard in a saucepan
• Mix the milk and cornflour to make a slurry and add to the custard with a pinch of salt
• Mix well and bring the custard to the boil while stirring constantly
• Keep stirring until the custard is thick and remove the custard from the heat
• Stir in the zest and let the custard cool down in the fridge
• (place plastic wrap on the custard so it does not form a skin)
• Once the custard has cooled down spoon it in the hollowed out muffins
• Sprinkle a teaspoon of sugar on each muffin, spreading it out with the back of a teaspoon
• Use a kitchen blowtorch to caramelise the sugar
• Let the caramel cool for a minute or so to harden, then serve immediately