I like to take good-looking pears home, give them a spot on my counter to ripen slowly, and use my sharpest knife to split them down the middle, breathing in the image of their cello-like interior. I like to think that if Edward Bunyard were here to dine on pears with me, he would agree that I have paid considerable attention, and even homage, to the unattainable soul that is the pear, queen of fruits.

1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter
1 vanilla bean
1/4 cup sugar
3 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy whipping cream (not ultra-pasteurized)
8 large egg yolks
1/3 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
Splash of vanilla extract
Dash of Kosher salt

Melt the butter over low heat until dark in color and just beginning to smoke. Pour into a small bowl and set aside. Split the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds into a bowl with the white sugar and smush them in for even distribution.

Pour the milk, cream, and half of the browned butter into a non-reactive sauce pan. Add the vanilla bean and sugar mixture, and decrease the heat to low. When the mixture is hot to the touch, remove from the heat and whisk briefly. Let the custard mixture steep for 1 hour.
Separate the eggs, setting the whites aside for another use. Stir the egg yolks to just break the sacs and add the dark brown sugar. Whisk to incorporate thoroughly.

Make an ice bath in a large bowl and set another smaller bowl inside.

Bring the custard mixture up to a quick boil, and turn off the heat. Pour a small amount of the hot custard mixture into the bowl of egg yolks and brown sugar. Whisk to incorporate, and then pour into the saucepan with the custard mixture. Turn the heat to low.
Using a wooden spoon, stir the mixture until the custard coats the back of the spoon. This is called nappe. When you have reached nappe, pour the hot custard through a fine meshed sieve into the small bowl in the ice bath.

Whisk in the remaining browned butter, the splash of vanilla extract, the salt. Chill the custard completely and refrigerate, or keep warm, if serving immediately.

For a simple, elegant dessert, I like to serve Brown Butter Crème Anglaise around a poached pear, both components at a warm temperature. If I am feeling extra fancy, I might reduce the pear poaching liquid into a syrup and drip a bit of it over the stem and down the pear’s voluptuous curves.

Brown Butter Crème Anglaise may also be churned into ice cream, used as the base for a Bavarian, or finessed into a chocolate pot de crème! It will keep for one week refrigerated in a tightly sealed container.