The Easiest Homemade Crème Brûlée Recipe Features Ice Cream

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As much as we love following in grandma’s footsteps and whipping up from-scratch recipes when our schedules allow, we’re not shy to admit that we fully embrace a culinary shortcut. (Hey, even Ina Garten and Kristen Kish do it.)

Whether it’s rotisserie chicken, boxed cake mix, or frozen puff pastry, we adore getting a head start on a recipe with a store-bought staple—and then giving it a glow-up into something new. 

It's hard to go wrong when remixing store-bought staples, and Sunny Anderson's “Nunya Business Crème Brûlée,” a recipe she shared on a recent episode of The Kitchen, proves that.

Anderson's crème brûlée is part of the Food Network star’s “nunya business” recipe collection: dozens of dishes that center around hidden store-bought secrets. When friends ask her for the secret that makes the dish so delicious, Anderson casually replies that it’s none of their business. (Other delicious examples include Nunya Business Meatloaf with French onion soup mix, Nunya Business Class of '93 Square Cheese Pizza built atop bakery focaccia bread, and Nunya Business Tropical Baked Beans jazzed up with fresh mango salsa.)

Anderson’s sweet and simple crème brûlée might just be her most brilliant semi-homemade recipe yet, if you ask us… and our Test Kitchen. The secret: Melted ice cream.

“I love a good shortcut, and even more, I love to share them,” Anderson explained, introducing the recipe. “This is a quick home cook's remedy to crème brûlée that is making its rounds online. I add my own twist for flavor and curb appeal, and voilà, no one knows just how easy this dessert is unless you tell them!”

To follow her lead, you just need vanilla ice cream, egg yolks (use the whites for meringue, angel food