Pastry Cream - Great Chefs

Creme patissiere is the silky custard filling that goes inside eclairs, tarts, fruit flans, and Napoleon layers. This version from the Great Chefs series adds hazelnut paste and folded whipped cream for something richer and more luxurious than a standard pastry cream.

Beating the sugar and eggs until thick and lemon-yellow before adding flour creates a smooth base that won’t lump when you pour in the hot milk. Adding the egg mixture to scalded milk and heating just to the boiling point is the critical moment. That brief boil activates the flour’s thickening power and cooks out the raw starch taste.

Cooling the custard over ice water stops the cooking instantly and prevents a skin from forming. The hazelnut paste goes in while it’s still warm so it melts and distributes evenly.

Chef Tips

• Scald the milk (heat until tiny bubbles form at the edges) but don’t boil it. Boiled milk develops a skin and off flavors.
• Stir constantly while heating the custard to the boiling point. Walk away for 10 seconds and you’ll have scrambled eggs.
• Cool completely over ice water before folding in the whipped cream. Warm custard melts the cream and you lose the lightness.
• Hazelnut paste is optional but transforms this from good to remarkable.

Variations

• Skip the hazelnut paste and add a tablespoon of vanilla extract for a classic vanilla pastry cream.
• Use almond paste or pistachio paste instead of hazelnut.
• Pipe into choux pastry shells for cream puffs or layer between puff pastry sheets for a mille-feuille.