Preheat the oven to 325 Fahrenheit.

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil while you perform the next steps.

Separate the egg whites from the yolks. Discard of or save the whites. You will only use the yolks.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and ½ cup of sugar. Set aside.

Use your knife to slice a line down the vanilla bean lengthwise, opening it up so you can see the seeds inside. Turn the knife over, and use the back of it to scrape the inside of the bean out until you have all of your vanilla seeds on the back of your knife. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, heat the heavy whipping cream and salt over medium heat until it begins to bubble. As soon as it begins to bubble, remove it from the heat and stir in the vanilla seeds.

Once the vanilla seeds are incorporated, pour about ¼ cup of the hot cream into the egg yolks, whisking the egg yolks continually while doing so. Once incorporated, add another ½ cup of cream, stirring continuously. Then add more. Continue doing this until all cream is incorporated into the egg. This is now your custard mixture.

Fill 6, 6 oz ramekins to the top with the custard mixture.

Put the ramekins in a 9x13 baking dish. At this point, your water on the stove should be boiling. Add the water into the pan, bringing it about ½” up the side of the ramekins. Make sure not to get any water in the custard.

Bake until the edges are set and the centers are a little jiggly. Mine took about 40 minutes, but you can start checking them around 35 or so. They should be 170 degrees Fahrenheit internally when done.

Remove from the oven and then remove the ramekins from the water. Allow them to cool on a cooling rack for about an hour, then place in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Right before serving, sprinkle a thin layer of granulated sugar on top of each ramekin.

Use a kitchen torch to caramelize the sugar on top until it forms a crust (but does not burn)

Serve and enjoy!