Vanilla Pastry Cream

By
Rebecca Franklin
Rebecca Franklin
Rebecca Franklin is a freelance lifestyle writer and recipe developer. Her expertise is in French cuisine, which she writes about and teaches.
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Updated on 08/9/19
Cream puffs

 

Matt Anderson Photography / Getty Images 

Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 10 mins
Chill: 60 mins
Total: 75 mins
Servings: 8 servings
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
118 Calories
4g Fat
16g Carbs
4g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount per serving
Calories 118
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 4g 5%
Saturated Fat 1g 6%
Cholesterol 79mg 26%
Sodium 210mg 9%
Total Carbohydrate 16g 6%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Protein 4g
Calcium 44mg 3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Vanilla pastry cream can be used in profiteroles, or cream puffs, napoleons, éclairs, tarts, and Génoise cake. The use of crème patisserie is limited only by your imagination; grace a simple or an elaborate French dessert recipe with it. The results will be equally delicious.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cups whole milk
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/8 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

  2. In a small saucepan, warm the milk over low heat until it is just hot enough to steam.

  3. While the milk is warming, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, flour, and cornstarch until the mixture is completely smooth.

  4. Once the milk is steaming, add half of it, whisking constantly, to the egg mixture.

  5. Add the milk and eggs back into the hot milk, continue stirring, and heat it for 1 to 2 minutes, until the custard reaches 170 F on a digital thermometer and is very thick.

  6. Remove from the heat, stir in the vanilla extract, and chill before filling pastry.

  7. Enjoy!