------ make caramel ------ heat water and sugar in high heat turn to low heat after bubbling till the bottom turns to amber, turn off heat and add in the 2nd batch of water
pour caramel to the bottom of the ramekin
--- pudding ---- in a saucepan, heat up heavy cream and milk till it boils * heavy cream helps the pudding solidify
beat up egg and sugar w/a whisk add in boiled milk mixture slowly to temper the eggs optional: sift the mixture (could also remove bubble on top after pouring in the ramekins; it doesn't affect the smoothness in the end)
pour in ramekin and remove bubbles at top; cover w/ aluminum foil
bake in hot waterbath at 300F for 40mins the pudding should be set but still jiggly. (it will solidify more while cooling) *** I used more cream than milk this time, and baked for 1.5 hour and turned off oven and let the custard sit in the waterbath while the oven is cooling down. it still didn't set much until after the time in the fridge
* alternatively, in the steamer, after water is boiling, put in ramekins and steam for 10 mins, then turn off heat and rest with the lid on for another 5 mins it should still be soft with the top formed --- with la fermiere jars, steam 15 mins, then rest with lid on for 10 mins
after cooled in room temp, put in fridge for at least 1 hour before serve
when serving, go across the edges with a knife and flip onto a plate. Give it a few shakes and let it fall onto the plate
**** used more than 1 cup heavy cream but it ends up with a fat layer on top :/ **** 2nd time: 1+1/4 cup milk, 3/4 cup heavy cream; baked for 65 mins -- still has a layer on top **** if use cold milk to make pudding, it takes an extra 10 mins in the oven, but will also result in some bubbles around the edge because water will be evaporating during long bake in the end and form bubbles when leaving the pudding **** could also steam the pudding for 10 mins. Don't over steam it; it is really easy to have big bubbles for steaming b/c of the high temp