Don’t be intimidated by this pumpkin spice crème brûlée! It’s surprisingly easy to make with just a handful of common kitchen ingredients. The fresh pumpkin spice flavor makes it an impressive seasonal treat!

small white ramekin of pumpkin creme brulee, the burnt sugar crust has been cracked by a spoon and the pumpkin custard is just visible underneath. this recipe

Making the custard

All the usual things with a few extras. Egg yolks, heavy cream, sugar, salt and vanilla. I had half of a can of pumpkin in my fridge, leftover from other recipe testing and baking. Also to that end, there was exactly one teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice in my pantry.

ingredients to make pumpkin creme brulee, including pumpkin, eggs, vanilla, sugar, salt and cream.

I did the first test with just that. And guess what?? It was WAY better than I ever thought it would be. The pumpkin flavor was just right, and the spice wasn’t overwhelming while still being nice and bold. I tested it a few more times to make sure it wasn’t a fluke, and I’m happy to report it wasn’t!

No thickening on the stovetop required! I love being able to skip that and just add the custard directly to the ramekins. It gets a little technical with tempering the eggs, but that’s it. You only need to whisk in about a cup of the hot pumpkin cream into the eggs before you add it all back to the pan.

Setting the custard

A low heat oven and water bath slowly cooks the custard through without curdling it. This recipe makes 4 cups of custard. Using 12 oz ramekins makes 4 portions of 1 cup (8 oz) each, with nice headspace at the top. Use smaller ramekins for more servings or larger ones for fewer servings.

three white ramekins of pumpkin custard in a square metal pan.
three white ramekins of pumpkin custard in a boiling water bath.
three white ramekins of just baked creme brulee custard. They do not have a sugar topping yet.

When adjusting the size of the servings, be mindful that smaller sizes will take less time in the oven, and larger sizes will take longer to set. The times in the recipe card below reflect that. However, rather than going strictly by times, I’d encourage you to just look at them and see how they move. The edges of the custard will be slightly set, and the middle will jiggle just barely, kind of like Jello that’s almost ready to eat.

Once the ramekins come out of the oven, let them sit in the water bath for another 10 minutes before removing them to a cooling rack. Let them come down to room temperature before chilling them overnight in the fridge. Once they’ve been chilled all the way through, they will be completely set firm and ready for the sugar crust!

Torch vs. Broiler

photo of a white kitchen torch and a can of butane for refilling.

My love of kitchen tools and perfectionism means that I grab my kitchen torch for stuff like this. With this pumpkin spice crème brûlée, It allows for a little more control and a quicker burn on the sugar. However, if you don’t want to buy a torch (because let’s be honest, a lot of us won’t use it after making this), you can use your broiler element to get a good crust with the sugar.

small white ramekin of pumpkin creme brulee, the burnt sugar crust has been cracked by a spoon and the pumpkin custard is just visible underneath.

If you do use the broiler, follow these tips to make sure you get good results:

  • Make sure that the ramekins you’re using are broiler safe. Oven safe and broiler safe are different things.
  • Put the ramekins on a baking sheet to make it easier to slide them in and out from under the broiler.
  • Once the ramekins are under the broiler, don’t move from the oven door. Keep a close eye on them, especially once the sugar begins to melt.
  • Once the sugar does start to melt and change color, things will happen quickly. It won’t take long for the sugar to form a deep dark crust. Be ready to pull the tray of ramekins out before the sugar becomes black.

Carefully remove the ramekins from under the broiler and allow the sugar to finish hardening.

If you use a torch, carefully follow the manufacturer’s instructions when you use it. Including controlling the flame, fueling, safety usage, etc…all that good stuff. I use this kitchen torch and refill it with Bernzomatic cans of butane from the grocery store.

Three white ramekins of creme brulee arranged on a cooling rack. One of the ramekins has a burnt sugar crust, while the other two have not.
Three white ramekins of creme brulee arranged on a cooling rack. There is a white kitchen torch being used to burn the sugar on top of one of the ramekins.
Three white ramekins of creme brulee arranged on a cooling rack. There is a white kitchen torch being used to burn the sugar on top of one of the ramekins.

You only need about a teaspoon of sugar to cover each serving of crème brûlée. Less sugar won’t get you that satisfying crack on top and using more sugar can leave a few granules un-melted and grainy underneath.

Three white ramekins of creme brulee arranged on a cooling rack. There is a white kitchen torch being used to burn the sugar on top of one of the ramekins.
Three white ramekins of creme brulee arranged on a cooling rack. There is a white kitchen torch being used to burn the sugar on top of one of the ramekins.
Three white ramekins of creme brulee arranged on a cooling rack. There is a white kitchen torch being used to burn the sugar on top of one of the ramekins.

Leftovers

If you’re not planning on serving all of the portions at once, only do a sugar crust on the ones you plan on serving/eating right away. Without the sugar crust, the custard keeps really well in the fridge for 3 days. But once the crust is on there, it only stays nice and crunchy for about 30 minutes.

It’s not like you can’t store them with the crust, it just won’t be as crunchy as time goes on.

small white ramekin of pumpkin creme brulee, the burnt sugar crust has not been cracked yet, and there is a small orange pumpkin to the left hand side.
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small white ramekin of pumpkin creme brulee, the burnt sugar crust has been cracked by a spoon and the pumpkin custard is just visible underneath.

Pumpkin Spice Crème Brûlée

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  • Author: Megan
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Chilling Time: 4 hours (min)
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 4 hours + 45 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings (can vary) 1x
  • Category: Dessert, Pies & Pastry
  • Method: Stovetop, Oven
  • Cuisine: French/American
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Description

This pumpkin spice crème brûlée is a simple and elegant fall dessert.

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 6 large egg yolks
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (make your own homemade blend!)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
  • 4 tsp granulated sugar (for the burnt sugar topping)

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and place the ramekins in a baking dish that fits them comfortably. The dish must be deep enough to allow for the water bath to come halfway up the ramekins. I used a 9 x 13 cake pan for four 12 ounce ramekins and a square 9 x 9 for three 12 ounce ramekins (pictured). Set the pan of ramekins aside.
  2. Add the egg yolks, sugar and salt to a small, heatproof bowl and whisk vigorously until pale and slightly thicker. Set aside.
  3. Add the cream, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract and pumpkin puree to a saucepan or saucier and gently whisk over medium heat until scalded. There should be wisps of steam coming off of the surface, but it won’t be simmering yet.
  4. Temper the egg yolk/sugar mixture by whisking 1 cup of the hot pumpkin cream into the egg yolks. Pour the tempered egg mixture back into the saucepan with the rest of the cream and stir gently over medium low heat for another 30 seconds.
  5. Divide the custard equally among the ramekins and add boiling water to the pan so that it rises halfway up the ramekins. Carefully place the pan of ramekins into the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes, depending on the size of the ramekins. The custard is ready when the center jiggles slightly, like Jell-O that’s just about set.
  6. Remove the ramekins from the oven and let them rest in the water bath for another 10 minutes before carefully removing them to a cooling rack. Let them cool down to room temperature before chilling completely in the fridge. It will take at least 4 hours or overnight.
  7. Once the custard has completely set and chilled, evenly sprinkle a teaspoon of granulated sugar on top of each ramekin. Use a kitchen torch according to manufacturer’s instructions to carefully create a deep, dark golden crust from the sugar on top of each ramekin. Alternatively, use the broiler element of your oven on the “high” setting with the ramekins on a baking sheet, placed about 6 inches from the element. Keep a close eye on the ramekins as they spend time under the broiler and be ready to pull them out quickly once the sugar begins to crust and burn.
  8. Serve the crème brûlée within 30 minutes of creating the sugar crust. Ramekins that have a finished sugar crust won’t store well, so be sure to consume them the same day. Ramekins without the crust can be covered and stored for up to 3 more days in the fridge before serving.

Equipment

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: One 12 oz ramekin (1 cup custard with sugar topping)
  • Calories: 393
  • Sugar: 27.9 g
  • Sodium: 175.6 mg
  • Fat: 28.5 g
  • Saturated Fat: 16.3 g
  • Trans Fat: 0.7 g
  • Carbohydrates: 30 g
  • Fiber: 0.9 g
  • Protein: 6.1 g
  • Cholesterol: 344.5 mg

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