Pastry Cream

Pastry cream is one of those things that is simple to make, but also very easy to screw up.  The most common issues are not cooking it enough, or cooking it too much so the eggs scramble.  Pastry cream is very versatile and you can flavor it however you want.  This is a recipe for basic vanilla pastry cream that I made with vanilla beans I bought from a farmer while walking along the rice paddies in Ubud, Bali (sounds romantic doesn't it?).



Pastry Cream Ingredients:
2 cups milk
1/2 vanilla bean scraped
pinch of salt
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs plus one yolk
1/4 cup corn starch

Pastry Cream Instructions:

1) In a medium saucepan combine the milk, scraped vanilla beans and pod,  and salt.  Stir, then add the sugar and heat over medium-low heat.
2) Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, have your eggs ready with the corn starch standing by.
3) When the milk just starts to make little bubbles along the edges, whisk the cornstarch into the eggs until there are no lumps.
4) While constantly stirring, ladle some of the hot milk into the egg mixture.  Repeat 2-3 times and then add the rest of the milk mixture to the egg mixture.  This step allows the eggs to temper, or come up to a hotter temperature without scrambling them.
5) Return everything to the saucepan and whisk CONSTANTLY over medium heat.  It should start to thicken.  You want to regulate the temperature by removing from the heat every so often to avoid scrambling the eggs.  It should take about 10-15 minutes for the pastry cream to be finished.  You are looking for the pastry cream to pull away from the sides of the pan slightly when you stir it.

6) Strain the pastry cream with a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl and cover immediately with plastic wrap.  This will prevent a skin from forming.  Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour.  You can make the pastry cream up to two days ahead.

7) When you are ready to use the pastry cream simply whip it up with an electric mixer until it's smooth and creamy.

*I used the pastry cream in a simple dessert where I layered crushed almond butter cookies, pastry cream, and fresh berries in alternating layers in a bowl.  This recipe made enough for two layers of pastry cream or enough to fill a 9" tart shell
**When using the pastry cream in a dessert, remember that any cream that is exposed to the air will form a skin if it sits around too long.  To remedy this, either serve immediately or cover it with berries or whatever is in your dessert as a topping.