Dessert is a very important part of any perfect meal. I know, I know, you are thinking, “Thanks, Karl! It’s January and we just made resolutions to get into better shape and eat better!”

Yes, yes we did; but, I also made a resolution to be happy. A good dessert is one road to happiness.

So eat healthy, eat well, but always remember to treat yourself.

One of my colleagues at The Post, Tami Cassidy, our director of advertising, actually eats dessert at the beginning of a meal when dining out. Her philosophy is you get to enjoy something like a “chocolate chip lava cookie” to begin a great night out, then you start into your entree. Eat maybe half of that and the entree makes for a great lunch or dinner the next day! I like this idea.

One of the great benefits of dining out are the fabulous dessert options. Each person can pick one that they love. For me, it is always, if available, crème brûlée. I am on a constant search for the perfect crème brûlée. Back when I lived in Cincinnati, there was a little deli that actually sold to-go crème brûlée for a very reasonable price. I bought it at least weekly.

So what exactly is crème brûlée? Well, for those who are not fanatics like me, it is simply a vanilla custard base with a caramel hard-crust top. The custard is usually served in a ceramic ramekin, individual portion size, and then the caramel is formed directly on top of the custard, often table side by sprinkling sugar on top of the custard and then caramelizing it with a butane torch. It is a French dessert that became trendy in the 1980s.

The perfect crème brûlée is judged by two factors: First, a great custard base. Second, a nice, thin, crunchy, caramelized layer of sugar on top that is not so thick that you have to use a lot of force with your spoon to break through, but thick enough that it is a solid layer and “cracks” apart when touched with the spoon.

I decided I was going to try and make crème brûlée at home this past weekend. We had the ramekins on hand (oven-safe ceramic dishes of various sizes). I ended up using assorted sizes, but mostly 5 oz. ramekins. I had the butane torch needed to caramelize the top. I found many recipes online and most were similar.

The recipe I went with took 15 minutes to make, was in the oven for 45 minutes and had a few hours in the fridge. It was actually very simple. Ingredients were 1 qt. heavy cream, 1 vanilla bean split and scraped, 1/2 cup sugar and 6 large egg yolks. First, preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Place the heavy cream, the vanilla bean and its seeds/pulp into a sauce pan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly so the cream does not scald. As soon as it boils, remove from heat, cover and set aside for 15 minutes or longer to allow the vanilla flavor to infuse into the cream. Remove the vanilla bean halves. Set up a baking pan with a dish towel on the bottom, the ramekins on top and hot water in the pan to about half way up the sides of the ramekins.

Next, whisk the egg yolks, whisk in the sugar, then slowly add the slightly-cooled cream, whisking briskly to keep eggs from cooking. Once it is thoroughly mixed, add the liquid to the ramekins, about 3/4 full. Put the pan with water and ramekins into the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes until crème brûlée sets up, while still jiggly in the center.

Remove, cool and refrigerate for at least 2 hours can keep refrigerated for up to three days.

Now, the fun part. When you are ready to serve, sprinkle a light layer, maybe a teaspoon, of Turbinado sugar on top, just enough to cover the top.

Grab your butane kitchen torch and apply its flame directly to center to melt the sugar to form the crispy burnt top. You need to circle the flame around, with the goal of having the sugar form a caramelized layer. Let this sit for 5 minutes before serving. Do this table side for a real show.

It’s all about presentation, right?