Pastry cream
Silky vanilla custard, thick enough to pipe and hold its shape. This is the filling inside eclairs, napoleons, fruit tarts, and half the French pastry case. Make it once and a dozen desserts get easier.
Formula
- 1000 g whole milk (about 4 1/4 cups)
- 8 large egg yolks (about 160 g)
- 200 g granulated sugar (1 cup), divided
- 80 g cornstarch (about 2/3 cup)
- 2 g fine salt (1/4 tsp)
- 10 g vanilla extract (2 tsp)
- 60 g cold unsalted butter, cubed (4 tbsp)
You'll need: a heavy-bottomed 3-quart saucepan, a whisk, and a bowl for chilling.
Method
- Warm the milk. Pour the milk into the saucepan with half the sugar (100 g). Warm over medium heat until steaming and small bubbles form at the edges. Do not boil.
- Whisk the base. In a large bowl, whisk the yolks with the remaining 100 g sugar, the cornstarch, and the salt until pale and smooth, about 1 minute.
- Temper. Pour about a third of the hot milk into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Pour the warmed yolk mixture back into the saucepan.
- Thicken. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly and scraping the corners, until the cream boils and turns thick and glossy, 2 to 3 minutes. Let it bubble for a full minute to cook out the starch.Watch for: Undercooked starch tastes chalky and thins as it sits. The full minute at a boil is what makes it stable.
- Finish. Off the heat, whisk in the cold butter and vanilla until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl.
- Chill. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface and refrigerate at least 2 hours, until cold and set. Whisk smooth before using.