Which French dessert is a caramel-topped custard whose name means burnt cream?

Which French dessert is a caramel-topped custard whose name means burnt cream? It is crème brûlée.

The dessert consists of a rich custard, commonly flavored with vanilla, covered by a thin layer of sugar that is caramelized into a brittle shell. A spoon cracks the hard topping before reaching the cool, soft custard beneath. The sugar may be browned with a culinary torch, a salamander, or another intense heat source.

The name literally means “burnt cream” in French. The dessert’s ultimate origin is debated: related browned custards appear in older Spanish and English traditions, while the earliest known recipe specifically called crème brûlée is associated with François Massialot’s 1691 cookbook. Trinity College, Cambridge, later popularized a related version called Trinity cream or Cambridge burnt cream.

Crème brûlée is often confused with crème caramel. Both are custards, but crème brûlée has a hard caramelized sugar crust formed on top, whereas crème caramel is turned out with a softer caramel sauce. The custard itself is often baked in a bain-marie so it cooks gently and remains smooth.