This pastry cream is an absolute delight! It’s rich, creamy, and surprisingly easy to make. Chances are, you already have all the ingredients in your kitchen right now. With just a few steps, you can create a luscious, velvety cream that’s perfect for filling tarts, eclairs, and cakes. It’s so delicious, I can’t believe I didn’t share this recipe sooner!
In fact, I wasn’t planning on posting this recipe at all until my friend Alana stopped by with a box of frozen mini-tart shells. Now, anyone who knows me knows I’m all about making pastries from scratch. But Alana made a great point—sometimes people want to enjoy a fancy dessert without getting covered in flour or spending hours in the kitchen. Not everyone has the time (or desire) to bake everything from scratch, and that’s okay!
With that in mind, I decided it was time to share this versatile pastry cream recipe that works for everyone—whether you’re making your own pastry shells or using store-bought ones. The creamy filling will taste amazing no matter what, and you’ll be able to enjoy a beautiful dessert in no time. So, if you’re looking for a simple but impressive treat, this is it!
Let’s get cooking and enjoy this dreamy pastry cream together! 🍰💛
NOTE: this will work with 12 mini tart shells. Alternatively, you can make a large tart shell from scratch (recipe for the shell could be found here.) Make sure your baked shells are fully cool before you fill them with your pastry cream (after it sat in the fridge for at least 2 hours.) Top with fruit of choice and brush with apple jelly, slightly heated up so it spreads better.
Split vanilla bean in half, if using, scoop out seeds with a butter knife and add to milk. Warm the milk in a sauce pan until steaming and small bubbles are just starting to form. It shouldn't boil.
In a bowl, whisk together sugar, flour and salt. Then add the egg yolks and eggs and whisk them into thick pale paste, for about 4-5 minutes. Make sure the ingredients are well combined.
Carefully ladle hot milk a bit a time into the egg mixture whisking constantly. It's important to add the milk slowly while whisking non-stop, otherwise your eggs will scramble; gradual heat tempering is key. Switch back between adding some more milk and whisking the custard.
Pour everything back into the saucepan you used to heat the milk in and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, being careful to scrape the bottom and the corners of the pan; this should take about 3-5 minutes. When large bubbles start to appear and the custard has thickened into thick pudding-like consistency, reduce the heat to low simmer for 30 seconds or so, then remove the pan from heat.
Strain the pastry cream into a bowl with a fine mesh sieve. Add butter and vanilla and stir aggressively until melted and combined.
Allow to cool for about 5 minutes. Then cover the pastry cream with plastic wrap directly against its surface, this is to prevent a skin from forming on top. Refrigerate for at least a couple of hours and up to a couple of days.
Before using, whisk aggressively (or even beat with a mixer) into smooth luscious custard and proceed with filling your pastries of choice.
Ingredients
Directions
Split vanilla bean in half, if using, scoop out seeds with a butter knife and add to milk. Warm the milk in a sauce pan until steaming and small bubbles are just starting to form. It shouldn't boil.
In a bowl, whisk together sugar, flour and salt. Then add the egg yolks and eggs and whisk them into thick pale paste, for about 4-5 minutes. Make sure the ingredients are well combined.
Carefully ladle hot milk a bit a time into the egg mixture whisking constantly. It's important to add the milk slowly while whisking non-stop, otherwise your eggs will scramble; gradual heat tempering is key. Switch back between adding some more milk and whisking the custard.
Pour everything back into the saucepan you used to heat the milk in and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, being careful to scrape the bottom and the corners of the pan; this should take about 3-5 minutes. When large bubbles start to appear and the custard has thickened into thick pudding-like consistency, reduce the heat to low simmer for 30 seconds or so, then remove the pan from heat.
Strain the pastry cream into a bowl with a fine mesh sieve. Add butter and vanilla and stir aggressively until melted and combined.
Allow to cool for about 5 minutes. Then cover the pastry cream with plastic wrap directly against its surface, this is to prevent a skin from forming on top. Refrigerate for at least a couple of hours and up to a couple of days.
Before using, whisk aggressively (or even beat with a mixer) into smooth luscious custard and proceed with filling your pastries of choice.
Notes
Make it Gluten-Free: replace flour with 1/4 cup cornstarch. If using corn starch, place your pan over medium-low heat and continue to whisk until the mixture just begins to thicken but don’t go much longer and remove as soon as it gets thick, 3 to 5 minutes. Be sure to use inside Gluten-Free pastries.
