Passion fruit and coconut crème brûlée

Method

1. Heat the oven to 150°C/130°C fan/gas 2. Tip the coconut into a dry frying pan set over a medium heat. Cook, stirring, until it turns a deep golden brown (about 5 minutes) – but be careful not to burn it. Turn the heat to low, add the coconut milk and double cream, then stir until it comes back to a simmer. Remove from the heat.
2. Halve the passion fruit and scoop the insides into a heatproof bowl. Whisk in the sugar and egg yolks. Start pouring in the coconut cream mixture a little at a time, whisking constantly, until it’s all combined. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into the ovenproof dish, squeezing the solids with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid (and flavour) as possible.
3. Put the filled dish in a deep roasting tray, then pour enough just-boiled water from a kettle into the tray to come halfway up the sides of the dish. Bake for 45 minutes until just set but with a slight wobble in the middle.
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4. Carefully remove the tray from the oven, leave the brûlée to sit in the hot water for a few minutes, then carefully lift it out and allow to cool completely. Chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours (preferably overnight).
5. To serve, sprinkle thin layers of sugar over the top of the set custard, then use a blowtorch to caramelise the sugar layer by layer (see know-how). As this is a large, wide brûlée (instead of a smaller individual one), it will take more time to get a thick enough layer to set solid – 3-4 layers of caramelised sugar should do it. Bring it to the table for everyone to dig in.