Fully submerge an unopened can of sweetened condensed milk on its side, label removed, in a large pot of water. Bring water to a boil, then simmer for 2 1/2  hours  - maintaining 2 inches of water above the can at all times. Cool completely - I’m serious, completely - before opening. 

Two things about cookie crusts are absolutely true: they are good, and they are good. I tried making this pie with a standard flaky pie crust, and while it was delicious, the crunchy crumbly je-ne-sais-quoi this crust brings to the pie takes it to the next level. You can use any crunchy cookie your heart desires, but I used biscoff cookies for their more unique flavor. Note: depending on the type of cookie it may affect the proportions of ingredients, see note on heavy cream within the recipe below. 

Ingredients:

2 cups of crushed cookie crumbs

4 tbsp unsalted butter (melted)

¼ cup heavy cream

1 Tbsp sugar 

½ tsp salt 

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Method: 

• A food processor will make this a quick and easy job, so pulse your cookies into a fine sand until no large pieces remain and crumb size is uniform. 

• If you aren’t using a food processor you can place your cookies into a ziploc bag and crush them into fine crumbs using a rolling pin. This will take more time and elbow grease but it’ll get the job done. Take care to check your crumbs to ensure you crush any large pieces you may have missed, any large leftover pieces in the mix may lead to the creme seeping through the crust while baking, and we don’t want that! 

• Transfer cookie sand to a large bowl and add melted butter, salt, and sugar. Mix with hands until butter has saturated all of the cookies. 

• Next slowly add your heavy cream tablespoon by tablespoon. You just need enough to bind your sand together so when pressed into a ball in your hand it holds its shape, but NOT so it gets sticky. So if you find your crust has reached this stage, don’t add any more cream. 

• Remove about 2 tablespoons of your crust from the bowl and set aside. This is your emergency crust fund, if you end up with any gaps or holes when pressing your crust into the dish, you’ll be glad you set aside a little bit to seal them up. 

• Transfer the rest of your crust to your dish and begin to press the crumbs into an even layer along the bottom and sides of the dish. I find it’s easiest to get the basic shape of the crust in with my hands, then use the back of a measuring cup to really press it down and create those crisp edges. Make sure to bring your crust all the way to the top edge of your dish. 

• If you’ve made your crust right it should be sticky enough to hold its shape in the dish without being hard to handle. If using an oven safe glass pie dish like I do, I like to hold my pressed-in crust up to the light to make sure there are no holes where the light peaks through (if light comes through, so too will the custard). Use your emergency crust fund to seal, if any holes appear. 

• Place the crust, uncovered, in the fridge while you preheat your oven to 350f.

• Once preheated, bake for 15 - 20 minutes, until crust has slightly puffed and surface looks dry.

• Remove from oven and cool to room temperature before using. I like to take the back of a spoon and press the crust into the walls and bottom of the dish while it’s still hot to smooth it out, and help combat any slumping that may have happened in the oven. 

• Crust can be made several days ahead of time, stored well wrapped in the fridge. 

Coffee Crème:

I tried making this by steeping coffee grounds in the heavy cream, I tried steeping whole coffee beans in the custard overnight, I tried running down the street back home with a fresh espresso shot right from the coffee shop – and hands down the best coffee flavor I could get was with instant espresso. Somehow the cream and yolks elevate this humble ingredient and by the end you would swear it was the freshest coffee you’ve ever tasted. 

Ingredients:

2 cups heavy cream 

¾ cup sugar 

9 egg yolks

2 Tbsp instant coffee 

2 tsp water

1 tsp vanilla extract

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Method:

• Preheat the oven to 325f.

• Separate your egg yolks from egg whites, adding the yolks to a large bowl and reserving the whites for a future use (I like to make meringues with my leftovers.) 

• In the same bowl that holds the yolks, add the sugar. Whisk everything together until sugar is fully saturated by the yolks and no dry spots remain. Then, continue to whisk vigorously for 30 or so seconds, you want the yolks to lighten a bit and easily stream off your whisk when lifted from the bowl. Set bowl aside. 

• In a small bowl, add 2 tsp of water, then the instant coffee. Mix together until coffee is dissolved and no lumps remain, set this coffee concentrate aside.

• Tip: this next part requires some multitasking, so make sure the bowl the sugar/yolk mixture is in is secure. On the counter, coil a damp kitchen towel into a ring about the circumference of the base of your mixing bowl, then, nestle the bowl into the towel ring. The bowl shouldn’t touch the counter, but should be secured inside the ring. Now, your bowl should be much more stable and should allow you to whisk vigorously without having to stabilize the bowl with your other hand. 

• Add heavy cream to a small saucepan and set over medium heat. Bring to a boil, mixing with a spatula regularly to prevent cream scorching on the bottom of the pan. 

• Once the cream reaches a boil, turn off the heat and carry your saucepan over to the sugar/yolk bowl.

• Temper the egg yolks: Slooooowly stream your hot cream into your egg yolk mixture while whisking constantly and vigorously. Start by adding it tablespoon by tablespoon to slowly raise the temperature of the yolks without scrambling them. As you add more cream you can increase the speed at which you stream it in, but don’t rush it. 

• Once all of your cream has been added and the mixture is fully homogenous, add your coffee concentrate and vanilla. Whisk to combine. 

• Strain coffee crème through a fine mesh strainer so if there are any lumps they don’t make it into your pie. 

• Proceed to assembly and baking. 

Assemble and bake:

• Place cooled blind baked crust in its tin onto a baking sheet for ease of transfer to the oven. 

• Spread ½ cup of dulce de leche along the bottom of your blind baked cookie crust, then, using a measuring cup to transfer (or pouring carefully from the bowl) pour your coffee crème over the top of the dulce, filling your crust to the brim. 

• Since you’ve filled your crust to the tippy top the transfer to the oven may be tricky, so take your time. 

• Place sheet and pie in oven to bake at 325 for 40 - 50 minutes, but, since ovens can vary wildly in their true temperature, don’t be scared if you end up baking your pie for closer to an hour. 

• You will know your pie is done when the edges of your crème are barely set, but the middle still has some jiggle to it when you shake the pan. It’s a veeerryy specific jiggle we’re looking for, it shouldn’t look like there’s a molten lake of custard just beneath the surface of the creme, but it should still have some wobble. Think jello, not water balloon. 

• Remove from oven once ideal jiggle is reached. 

• Allow to cool on wire rack until totally room temperature (if you rush the cooling at this stage the creme may crack.)

• Then, cover entire pie well with plastic wrap and transfer to fridge to fully set, at least 6 hours but ideally overnight.

• Here comes the fun part!

• Remove your well-chilled pie from the fridge, then sprinkle 2 tbsp of sugar evenly over the surface of the pie, avoiding the crust, where possible. 

• Fire up that kitchen torch and begin to melt the sugar. Hold the torch 2 - 3 inches away from surface to get a sense for how strong the flame is, then move it closer to begin melting the sugar evenly across the surface. 

• I like to melt the first 2 Tbsp of sugar but not let it take on a super dark color, then sprinkle an additional 2 Tbsp over top of that melted sugar, then let it rip and begin to caramelize the sugar all over until a uniform deep golden brown color is reached. 

• Alternatively, you can use your broiler to caramelize the top: Sprinkle 3 Tbsp of sugar evenly over the top of your pie. Broilers are tricky and can vary in levels of heat, so to prevent scorching the crust cover the edges of the pie with tin foil, leaving the center creme exposed to the heat of your broiler. Turn your broiler on and ensure the rack is positioned so your pie will be at least 3 inches away from the heat. Place foil-ed pie onto rack and broil for 4 - 5 minutes, until sugar has caramelized all over. 

• After brûlée-ing, the top layer of your crème may have melted a little bit, so return pie to the fridge for 15 - 20 minutes before slicing and serving.