This was originally a pastry cream recipe from Katrina and Chef Paige, but I started having problems with it recently and reverted back to an old favorite from Shirley Corriher. This one's a little different in that it does not call for butter, so it's not quite as stiff as some. You can use it to fill a Boston Cream Pie, but it will be a softer cream as opposed to some other ones here which have flour and butter. But this one has a very clean vanilla flavor, especially if you use vanilla bean or paste.
Pastry Cream With 5 Egg Yolks
Corriher's, which she wrote about in Cookwise and then later in Bakewise, has 5 egg yolks, so it's quite yellow. She calls for a vanilla bean (I usually just use vanilla paste or extract) and a combination of both whole milk and heavy whipping cream rather than just whole milk. This recipe calls for only 3 tablespoons of cornstarch. The reason I'm pointing this out is because all of those egg yolks contain an enzyme called amylase, which will break down the protein bonds created by the cornstarch if you don't cook it out. So be sure to bring the pastry cream back to a boil after adding the yolks.
Another tip for making this pastry cream or any pastry cream really is to use saucepans with spouts. I purchased a couple from TJ Maxx and they make pastry cream life so much easier. For the egg yolks, you might also want to use a mixing bowl with a spout as well. I really love this one from Pyrex. It functions as a mixing bowl and measuring cup and is just the right size for this recipe.
Recipe
Basic Pastry Cream with 5 Egg Yolks
Ingredients
- 5 large egg yolks (72 grams)
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100 grams)
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch (24 grams)
- 1 whole vanilla bean (or skip and use 2 tsp paste
- 1 cup whole milk
- ½ cup heavy or whipping cream (use a good brand)
Instructions
- Whisk the egg yolks together in a medium size bowl and set next to the stove.
- In a medium size saucepan, off the heat, stir together the sugar, salt and the cornstarch. Set it aside too.
- If using the vanilla bean, pry it open with the tip of a knife and scrape its insides into a second medium saucepan. Add the vanilla bean pod and the milk and cream and heat over medium until mixture starts to steam. If you are not using the vanilla bean, you can skip this step.
- Remove the vanilla bean pod from the milk and drizzle milk into the sugar mixture. Set the sugar mixture over medium heat and whisk until smooth. It will start to thicken just a little from the cornstarch at this point, but won't be fully thickened because you have to add those yolks.
- Remove the hot milk mixture from the heat and stir about ¼ cup of the hot milk mixture into the yolks, then scrape the yolk mixture into the saucepan. Return to heat and bring to a gentle boil, stirring constantly until the custard becomes thick and smooth.
- Transfer the pastry cream to a clean bowl. If you did not use a vanilla bean and are using vanilla, stir that in now. Press a piece of plastic wrap to the surface and chill until cold.
BriAnne says
If I were to use the vanilla bean instead of extract do I need to add anymore liquid? Or do I just scrap the vanilla bean, remove the seeds and place in the milk with no added liquid?
stephanie says
Wow, thank you Paige! This was extremely helpful!
Paige Vandegrift says
Hi Stephanie, I thought I would jump in and try to give a partial answer to your question. I have tried making this recipe with the method you describe--combining the sugar with the flour/cornstarch mixture and then adding that to the egg yolks. (One of the reasons you would do it this way is that it insures that you won't have lumps of flour and cornstarch in your custard..but if you sift your flour/cornstarch it isn't really an issue) This method does work well with some recipes, but not this one. By whisking in the sugar first, you are increasing the volume of the liquid that will be recieving the flour/cornstarch...without this step, there is such a large volume of dry ingredients going into such a small volume of liquid (yolks) that the mixture is unmanageably stiff. (It really is amazing what a difference it makes in the liquid volume when you add the sugar to the yolks first.) Hope this helps!
stephanie says
Wow! Great find. I wonder if the method changed if results would be the same. I have read to mix the sugar and flour together before adding the egg yolks, rather than the classic method of ribboning the sugar and yolks and then adding the flour. I think this is from Joanne Chang of Flour Bakery...maybe? Also, I have seen some recipes that use cake flour. I wonder if that would be any different then AP. All that aside, this will be my new recipe because I always trust you! Thanks!
Anna says
Thanks Paige! It's a great recipe and I'm going to make it again soon with a vanilla bean. I've been on a vanilla kick for the past few months and pastry cream is such a good way to showcase it.
Paige Vandegrift says
Your pastry cream looks lovely! .... so glad the recipe turned out for you. I have never used it in Boston Cream Pie, but I love it in tarts and cream puffs.
Katrina says
Glad you love the recipe I sent you from Paige. I don't love cream puffs, but Kevin and the boys do. I'd rather have Boston Cream Pie.....oh what am I thinking, I can't have either one.....sigh....(Well, I CAN, I just choose not to, but it's nice to know I can splurge if I want to.) Great idea to freeze the cake and be able to make individual desserts later.
Sue says
Wow! That seemed fast. I thought there would be many tries before finding 'the one'. It looks really good!