“What Happens in Vegas stays in Vegas”….Is no longer true for me! My decedent indulgence when I visit sin city is the amazing Creme Brulee that I eat for “breakfast” at Treasure Island. There are times when I’ve even thought about jumping on a plane just to experience the thick, rich, creamy goodness with a crackle top. That’s until I found a perfect recipe that completely feeds my addiction. This is my own personal “ancient Chinese secret”, but I will share it with you my beloved friends. Follow the directions precisely and you will call to thank me.

Fantastic Creme Brulee

4 – cups chilled heavy cream

2/3 – cup granulated sugar

Pinch of salt

1 - vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise and seeds scraped out

12 – large egg yolks

8-12 - teaspoons turbinado sugar

1. Adjust oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 300 degrees.
2. Combine 2 cups of the cream, the sugar, and salt in a medium sauce pan. Add the vanilla seeds to the pan, submerge the pod in the cream, and bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally to ensure the sugar dissolves. Remove the pan from the heat and let steep 15 minutes to infuse the flavors.
3. Meanwhile, place a kitchen towel in the bottom of a large baking dish or roasting pan and arrange eight 4 or 5 ounce ramekins (or shallow fluted dishes) on the towel. Bring a kettle or large sauce pan of water to a boil over high heat.
4. After cream has steeped, stir in remaining 2 cups cream to cool down mixture. Whisk yolks in large bowl until broken up and combined. Whisk about 1 cup cream mixture into yolks until loosened and combined; repeat with another 1 cup cream. Add remaining cream and whisk until evenly colored and thoroughly combined. Strain through fine-mesh strainer into 2-quart measuring cup or pitcher (or clean medium bowl); discard solids in strainer. Pour or ladle mixture into ramekins, dividing it evenly among them.
5. Carefully place baking dish with ramekins on oven rack; pour boiling water into dish, taking care not to splash water into ramekins, until water reaches two-thirds height of ramekins. Bake until centers of custards are just barely set and are no longer sloshy and digital instant-read thermometer inserted in centers registers 170 to 175 degrees, 30 to 35 minutes (25 to 30 minutes for shallow fluted dishes). Begin checking temperature about 5 minutes before recommended time.
6. Transfer ramekins to wire rack; cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. Set ramekins on rimmed baking sheet, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until cold, at least 4 hours or up to 4 days.
7. Uncover ramekins; if condensation has collected on custards, place paper towel on surface to soak up moisture. Sprinkle each with about 1 teaspoon turbinado sugar (1 1/2 teaspoons for shallow fluted dishes); tilt and tap ramekin for even coverage. Ignite torch and caramelize sugar. Refrigerate ramekins, uncovered, to re-chill, 30 to 45 minutes (but no longer); serve. Recipe compliments of Cooks Illustrated

Please let me know how it goes. I love to hear from you!!!!

Tobi Roberts

I can’t think of an easier year to predict the direction of interest rates than 2010. It is safe to say that mortgage rates will be higher this year than they were in 2009. Unfortunately for homeowners and the real estate markets, the days of 4.5% 30 year fixed rate mortgage cannot last forever.

In November of 2008, the Federal Reserve allocated $1.25 trillion towards the purchase of Mortgage Backed Securities. As of January 15, 2010, $1.137 trillion of this budgeted amount has been spent. By March 31, 2010, the entire $1.25 trillion is schedule to be depleted. Once the Fed steps out of the market, the likelihood of higher rates is probable.

Mortgage rates would have been about 1% higher had the Fed not intervened and purchased Mortgage Backed Securities. On a $200,000 mortgage, it would cost approximately $8,000 to buy down the interest rate by 1%. Essentially, the Fed has paid to buy down the interest rate by 1% for each person who closed a mortgage since the program began. For those who also qualify for the Federal tax credit offered for purchasing a home, a homebuyer borrowing $200,000 will have a total gain of $13,500-$16,000.

While inflation does not appear to be a major concern right now, the fear is that the massive amount of money the government is injecting into the economy will eventually lead to higher rates of inflation. Inflation is the arch enemy to bonds, and leads to higher mortgage rates. Given that the government has spent literally trillions of dollars stimulating our economy, they may be slow to increase the Fed Funds Rate to counter the growth of inflation. Once inflation takes hold, it can be difficult to contain. This would lead to aggressive interest rate hikes by the Fed to attempt to keep it at bay.

As interest rates move higher in 2010, there will be times when rates are more favorable than others. Mortgage interest rates do not move in a straight line. Therefore, although the trend will be for higher rates, there will still be opportunities to secure lower rates along the way. Given that extremely low rates are still available, right now is an excellent time for a mortgage review. Call my office to arrange a fifteen minute phone call so that we can review your situation and see if there are opportunities to save money. If you are considering purchasing a home, you may want to act soon before the tax incentives expire and mortgage rates increase much higher.