Breaking all the rules, this vegan crème brûlée is completely free of dairy and eggs. It’s even made without gluten and soy! Yet the recipe results in a creamy custard-like dessert with a crusty, sugary topping. It’s the perfect make-ahead dessert for special occasions.
Vegan Crème Brûlée made without Dairy, Eggs, Gluten, and Soy
We originally posted this recipe about a decade ago, when shared with us by So Delicious. They adapted it from Pure Ella. It uses a mix of coconut milk beverage, full fat coconut milk, and cashew butter for the creamy texture, and a combination of starch and agar flakes to help the custard set. The sweet blend of maple syrup and brown sugar add a wonderful caramelized flavor. We’ve updated the recipe a bit, and also have some notes, tips, and substitution options for the ingredients.
- Coconut Milk Beverage: This variety tends to be a bit richer than other types of milk beverages. But you can substitute another type, like almond milk, if needed. For lower sugar, feel free to use an unsweetened vanilla version.
- Arrowroot Starch: This is a pricier starch than most, but many cooks like its specific properties. If you don’t have any on hand, you can substitute tapioca starch or non-GMO cornstarch.
- Coconut Milk: This is canned coconut milk. It’s sold in the Asian section of most supermarkets, and can be purchased online. I recommend picking the “regular” full-fat variety and passing on the lite version for this recipe.
- Cashew Butter: This is a rich and creamy nut butter with a beautiful flavor for dessert recipes. It can be hard to find, but is so easy to make! Simply grind your own cashews until they start to turn into “butter.”
- Agar Flakes: This gelatinous seaweed replaces eggs and gelatin in recipes to keep them vegan. In this case, it helps the crème brulee to set-up for a thick custard consistency. If you opt to skip this ingredient, the results will be more like a rich pudding. Please note that this is agar flakes specifically. If using agar powder, reduce the amount to 2 teaspoons.
Special Diet Notes: Vegan Crème Brûlée
By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, gluten-free, peanut-free, soy-free, vegan, plant-based, and vegetarian. Just be sure to choose organic brown sugar for strict vegan needs.
For nut-free vegan crème brûlée, you can substitute sunflower seed butter for the cashew butter, but note that it will change the flavor profile a touch.
- ½ cup + 1½ cups cold vanilla coconut milk beverage, divided
- 2 tablespoons arrowroot starch (see sub options in post above)
- 1 (14-ounce) can full fat coconut milk
- 3 tablespoons cashew butter (see sub options in post above)
- ¼ cup packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons agar flakes (see notes in post above)
- 2 tablespoons sugar, for topping
- In a small dish, whisk together the ½ cup milk beverage and starch, until the starch is dissolved.
- Add the coconut milk, cashew butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, and agar to your blender, and blend until smooth.
- Pour the coconut milk mixture into a medium saucepan and whisk in the remaining 1½ cups milk beverage. Turn the heat on to medium and whisk continuously while bringing the mixture to nearly boiling.
- Give the starch-milk beverage mixture another quick whisk, and then slowly add it to your saucepan while whisking.
- Continue cooking while whisking for about 3 minutes being careful that the mixture doesn’t boil but stays very hot. It will thicken quickly.
- Pour the mixture into four crème brûlée dishes or ramekins; they will be quite full.
- Place the crème brûlées in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- Just before serving, remove the crème brûlées from the refrigerator and let them stand for 5 to 10 minutes to warm up the dishes slightly.
- Sprinkle the tops of each vegan crème brûlée with about ½ tablespoons sugar.
- Using a kitchen torch, melt the sugar to form a crispy layer on top. If you don't have a torch, position a rack on the top level in your oven. Turn the oven on to broil, and place the ramekins under the broiler for 2 minutes (this method may soften the vegan crème brûlée a touch).
More Impressive Vegan Desserts
Vegan Chai Tiramisu
New York Style Vegan Cheesecake
No Bake Vegan Candied Apple Flan
26 Comments
As someone very allergic to coconut, what would be a good substitute? I’m not allergic to any other tree nut or nut, but I am allergic to coconut/coconut oil and have recently been diagnosed as allergic to eggs, dairy, and wheat. It’s a very unfortunate combination considering how many vegan and wheat-free recipes contain coconut products.
I would either make a rich cashew cream or use silken tofu in place of the full fat coconut milk. You can use another type of milk beverage. It’s a different recipe, but in the same family of recipes, this almond milk panna cotta might provide inspiration if you aren’t vegan as well -> https://www.godairyfree.org/recipes/dairy-free-almond-milk-panna-cotta
Why do you need to use Raw organic light brown sugar instead of C & H pure light brown sugar?
I think that was the author’s choice to makes sure the sugar is vegan. You can definitely use C&H for a dairy-free and egg-free creme brulee, but I don’t believe it is strictly vegan due to processing.
Hello,
Could I use almond butter for this recipe instead?
Yes, but it will have a more pronounced flavor. Almond butter isn’t quite as creamy and is less neutral / sweet than cashew butter.
Leave in the refrigerator? Not the freezer?
Yes, refrigerate it. Enjoy!
This is divine. I sooo missed Crème Brulee after going vegan. I accidentally used a can of all coconut cream instead of canned coconut milk (which is probably only half cream), so for the 1/2 cup of coconut milk and starch I substituted 1/2 c water (instead of coconut milk) and starch. This seemed to thin down the full-cream tin and worked well. All I can say is this is so delicious I am in heaven. This will now be a go-to recipe for gatherings with friends and family. I am soooo happy!
Will agar agar work as the agar flakes? Are they the same thing ? Thank you!
I believe they are the same thing. Agar agar comes in powder or flakes.
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This is a simply amazing recipe. I finally went out tonight to buy a kitchen torch after making these a couple of nights ago and never getting around to finishing them. I ate a whole serving which is GIGANTIC, but SOOOOO good! Thank you for something that might have to go onto my hips regularly.
So glad you love the recipe Elke! Some desserts are definitely worth the hips 🙂 Those torches are useful, too!
Hi, we don’t have the coconut beverage in Holland, as far as I know. Can I substitute coconut flavored soy milk?
Thanks!
Love, Bo
You can actually just use soy milk – no coconut flavor required. Just make sure to use the full-fat coconut milk – no direct substitute for that unless you have a very thick heavy cream alternative (I know there are some options in Europe that we don’t have in the US).
Fantastic – I substituted Almond Milk for the So Delicious Vanilla Coconut Milk Beverage, and I made home made cashew butter from pre soaked and organic unpasteurized non-irradiated almonds and it was fantastic. Blessings…
Nice! Thanks for sharing your feedback and swaps Deb!
oops, just saw you can substitute for sunflower seed butter, what about coconut butter?
Hi Julie, Coconut butter is typically higher in fat (more oil content), so it may not work as well. Even the sunflower seed butter would be a little higher in fat than cashew butter. Also, I’m sure a gelatin egg would work quite well, I’m just not sure on the exact conversion.
Hi! Can I substitute gelatin egg for agar flakes? Also is there a none nut substitute for cashew butter? Thanks!
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I want to make this – but there’s no recipe anymore! 🙁
There was a problem with some of the recipe formats Esther, the recipe is back up now! Come on back 🙂
Can this be done subbing eggs back in for agar flakes? (Ovovegetarian here)
Hi Nick, yes, but it would really be a whole other recipe, as you likely wouldn’t need the starch either, and the liquid amounts may need adjusting. For a recipe of this size, usually 4 to 6 egg yolks would be used.