Preheat the oven 300 degrees. Prepare around 2 to 3 cups of boiling water.

Combine 1/4 cups sugar and 1 tbsp of water for caramel in a saucepan. Do not stir, just place on a stove over high heat. About 4 to 5 minutes later, the sugar mixture should start boiling. Let the mixture keep boiling over high heat, then it will start turning into brown Amber color. Swirl the pot slowly as needed to even it out. The whole process will take from 8 to 10 minutes.

Immediately pour the caramel into ramekins equally. Swirl ramekins immediately as soon as you pour the caramel to spread evenly as you go. You need to move quickly, otherwise the caramel will harden. Set the ramekins aside.

Into another saucepan, pour half and half and 1/2 cup sugar. Stir and place on a stove over medium heat. Make sure it’s not boil just hot and steamy. Stir occasionally as needed. Set aside.

Crack eggs into a medium size mixing bowl. Cut vanilla beans (am using vanilla extract). Add into the eggs and beat the eggs with vanilla gently so the eggs won’t create too much foam.

Slowly add still warm milk mixture into eggs while you are whisking the eggs. Strain the custard mixture through a fine strainer, just to ensure that it doesn’t have any clumps.

Pour the custard mixture into the ramekins equally. Cover each ramekins with foil and place in baking dish. Pour boiling water into the baking dish, it should come to about 1/3 to 1/2 way up of the ramekins and cook for 40 minutes.

Remove from the oven and remove the ramekins from the baking dish. Let it cool for 30 minutes to 1 hour the place into a refrigerator for at least 3 hour or overnight.

When you are ready to serve, place a ramekin in a shallow dish with boiling water, this way the caramel will melt so it will come out from the ramekin easily. Run a butter knife or any thin knife around the edge and invert onto a large rimmed serving plate.

Enjoy!