I spent a lot of time in restaurants as a kid. My parents were major foodies back when it was called being a “gourmet.” Creme brulee is one of my dad’s favorite desserts, so I’ve had more than my share of it even though it’s just not a favorite on my own list. He orders it a lot in restaurants. It was everywhere back in the 70s and 80s and seems to be everywhere yet again. The textures are great – crunchy top with cool creamy pudding, but I am a chocolate girl through and through.
Martha to rescue. Martha recently whipped up chocolate creme brulee on her show (this is also in February Living) and I was hooked. Had to try it! And I rationalized, it could be my Valentine’s present to myself since Mr. MarthaAndMe and I don’t really go overboard for this holiday.
The pudding was easy to whip up and it cooked nicely in the water bath. So 
far so good. I was nervous about making the top though. I don’t have a torch, so I had to broil it. The sugar sort of melted and then hardened. It had the right texture, but not the right color. And a lot of the pudding itself got kind of warm – it only stayed cold down at the bottom.
Despite that, this was good and if you have a torch, it would really be a snap to make. I liked it, but I think I’ve just had too much creme brulee in my life maybe. I would rather just have chocolate pudding!
Martha and Me 
I have yet to make creme brulee, but I’m not a big pudding or custard fan! Love chocolate though! This might be worth the try!
One can NEVER have too much creme brulee! I just had it tonight, well, a version of it. As fondue. I love the crunchy topping! I borrow my neighbor’s full size blowtorch to do creme brulee. It’s cheaper than buying my own torch. I don’t have to store it. And it caramelizes the sugar on top in an instant.
I’ve had regular brulee, but never a choccie one. I love chocolate, but I’m not sure how I feel about the idea of a chocolate brulee, which is odd of me.