Pastry Cream

“Viens voir!” (Come take a look!) Mom told me when I asked about the silky pastry cream in the Strawberry Tart. In one pot, she mixed all the ingredients, placed it on the stove, heated slowly the mixture, whisking continuously. Once it thickened enough, she removed the cream from the stove, added a splash of Grand Marnier and voila! “Voila?! You mean that’s it? You just made pastry cream?” HAHAHA You bet she did!

This is exactly how I have been preparing pastry cream. Always!

You can imagine my reaction, 15 years later, when I was in Pastry School, listening to our chef instructor describing the very important steps of pastry cream making. I was shocked to learn the intricacies of the “Traditional Crème Pâtissière” and how carefully you have to temper the eggs, avoid ending up with confettis of cooked egg yolks, and lumps. Oh my…. Why? Why!? I know an easier way: all in! Mix. No worries. I am sharing this little gem of a recipe with you. I use it as a base for many desserts and I hope it gives you the courage to try to make your own pastry cream.

Depending on its final use, I modify the thickness of the pastry cream. The longer I cook it, the thicker it gets. Remember not to over cook it,… it is still a CREAM. I keep it more on the liquid side if I know I need to include it in a Crème Frangipane because it will be baked again and I don’t want to end up with a dry Galette des Rois. If I am making a Fruit Tart, and intend to mix the pastry cream with some Crème Chantilly, I will prepare a thick pastry cream to avoid a runny tart filling. For the Choux, Eclairs, and Religieuses; I would make a regular pastry cream, silky and thick enough to hold and “stay in”. No one wants to have pastry cream running down the elbow when they bite into an eclair!

You can use Pastry Cream for your fruit tarts, pies, cakes, eclairs, choux, or part of more elaborate creams like frangipane (in Galette de Rois etc…) or Crème Diplomate (mix of pastry cream and Chantilly)…

Let’s indulge!

Check the “important notes” at the end of the recipe.

Pastry Cream
Crème Pâtissière

Recipe credits: Rafaella Sargi

Ingredients
2 cups of milk*
3 egg yolks
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste** (or vanilla extract)
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier

Directions
Prep all the ingredients.
You will need one medium pot, a whisk, a glass container, and food safe plastic wrap. (You might need a sieve for emergencies.)

In a medium pot, put the milk, egg yolks, sugar, flour and vanilla bean paste. Mix well.

Place the pot on the stove, turn on the burner to medium heat and whisk constantly until the mixture thickens (about 5 to 7 minutes). You will start seeing small “boiling bubbles”. It is important to let the cream cook. Continue whisking and stop every few seconds to check on the “boiling bubbles”. The boiling stage will allow the flour to cook and avoid raw starchy flavors. You have to keep whisking to prevent the cream from sticking to the bottom of the pot and burning. Observe your cream. Your pastry cream is ready once it is silky, with a thick consistency. (5 minutes approximately.) You are looking for a thick custard (or Labneh. I must use the references I have! Hahaha) Remove it from the stove, add the Grand Marnier, mix well and place in a glass container immediately.***

Cover the cream with plastic wrap, DIRECTLY on (touching) the whole surface of the pastry cream. It will prevent it from forming a crust. Place directly in the fridge and let it sit for a few hours, until completely chilled.

You can use the Pastry Cream once it is completely cold.

Make desserts and have fun!

Bon appétit!

Important notes:

*About milk: I have made the pastry cream with whole milk and 2% milk. Both render good results. Use whatever you have on hand. The whole milk makes a richer pastry cream but you’ll be absolutely fine with a 2% milk. (I did not try with zero fat or 1%…)

**About Vanilla Bean Paste: I like the intensity of the vanilla bean paste for pastry creams. If you bake often, you might want to consider buying a small jar. It will come handy when you are looking for the black vanilla bean granules and an intense vanilla flavor in your desserts. This is the brand I use: https://nielsenmassey.com/products/madagascar-bourbon-pure-vanilla-bean-paste/ You can also find it at Williams-Sonoma, and some supermarkets… also on amazon. (this is not a sponsored post. Just a product I like)

***If, you end up with lumps, do not panic and use a fine mesh sieve to the rescue. Press the cream through the sieve into the glass container. The lumps should be captured by the sieve … and you saved your pastry cream! We’re all humans, and lumps in the pastry cream can happen to the best of us, specially the first few times preparing the recipe.