Pastry cream

Name: Pastry cream
Yield: 1 batch of each
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 250 g 2% milk; 50 g Superfine sugar; 30 g Egg yolks; 12 g Custard powder; 13 g All-purpose flour (T65); 0.5 g Vanilla powder; 250 g 2% milk; 50 g Superfine sugar; 30 g Egg yolks; 12 g Cornstarch; 13 g All-purpose flour (T65); 0.5 g Vanilla powder; 250 g 2% milk; 50 g Superfine sugar; 30 g Egg yolks; 13 g Custard powder; 12 g All-purpose flour (T65); 0.5 g Vanilla powder; 250 g 2% milk; 50 g Superfine sugar; 30 g Egg yolks; 25 g Potato starch; 0.5 g Vanilla powder; 250 g 2% milk; 50 g Superfine sugar; 30 g Egg yolks; 25 g All-purpose flour (T65); 0.5 g Vanilla powder; 250 g 2% milk; 50 g Superfine sugar

Six pastry creams on one base of milk, sugar, yolks and vanilla, each with a different thickener. Made side by side, they show how custard powder, cornstarch, potato starch and flour set, and what a barely cooked cream does.

Makes: 1 batch of each
Each version: 356 g

By weight, first version.

Scale batches

Pastry cream #1

Control: 50% custard powder, 50% flour

Ingredient	Grams	% of milk
2% milk	250 g	100%
Superfine sugar	50 g	20%
Egg yolks	30 g	12%
Custard powder	12 g	4.8%
All-purpose flour (T65)	13 g	5.2%
Vanilla powder	0.5 g	0.2%
Total	355.5 g

Heat the milk with the vanilla.
Whisk the yolks with the sugar until pale, then mix in the custard powder and the flour.
Whisk in a little of the warm milk.
Cook everything together, whisking, until the starch is fully cooked.
Chill quickly.

Pastry cream #2

50% cornstarch, 50% flour

Ingredient	Grams	% of milk
2% milk	250 g	100%
Superfine sugar	50 g	20%
Egg yolks	30 g	12%
Cornstarch	12 g	4.8%
All-purpose flour (T65)	13 g	5.2%
Vanilla powder	0.5 g	0.2%
Total	355.5 g

Heat the milk with the vanilla.
Whisk the yolks with the sugar until pale, then mix in the cornstarch and the flour.
Whisk in a little of the warm milk.
Cook everything together, whisking, until the starch is fully cooked.
Chill quickly.

Pastry cream #3

Uncooked

Ingredient	Grams	% of milk
2% milk	250 g	100%
Superfine sugar	50 g	20%
Egg yolks	30 g	12%
Custard powder	13 g	5.2%
All-purpose flour (T65)	12 g	4.8%
Vanilla powder	0.5 g	0.2%
Total	355.5 g

Warm the milk with the vanilla without letting it boil.
Whisk the yolks with the sugar until pale, then mix in the custard powder and the flour well.
Whisk in a little of the warm milk.
Cook for only 15 seconds, then stop, without letting it boil.
Chill quickly.

Pastry cream #4

With potato starch

Ingredient	Grams	% of milk
2% milk	250 g	100%
Superfine sugar	50 g	20%
Egg yolks	30 g	12%
Potato starch	25 g	10%
Vanilla powder	0.5 g	0.2%
Total	355.5 g

Heat the milk with the vanilla.
Whisk the yolks with the sugar until pale, then mix in the potato starch well.
Whisk in a little of the warm milk.
Cook everything together, whisking, until the starch is fully cooked.
Chill quickly.

Pastry cream #5

With flour

Ingredient	Grams	% of milk
2% milk	250 g	100%
Superfine sugar	50 g	20%
Egg yolks	30 g	12%
All-purpose flour (T65)	25 g	10%
Vanilla powder	0.5 g	0.2%
Total	355.5 g

Heat the milk with the vanilla.
Whisk the yolks with the sugar until pale, then mix in the flour.
Whisk in a little of the warm milk.
Cook everything together, whisking, until the starch is fully cooked.
Chill quickly.

Pastry cream #6

With custard powder

Ingredient	Grams	% of milk
2% milk	250 g	100%
Superfine sugar	50 g	20%
Egg yolks	30 g	12%
Custard powder	25 g	10%
Vanilla powder	0.5 g	0.2%
Total	355.5 g

Heat the milk with the vanilla.
Whisk the yolks with the sugar until pale, then mix in the custard powder.
Whisk in a little of the warm milk.
Cook everything together, whisking, until the starch is fully cooked.
Chill quickly.

For bakers in the US

Custard powder: A cornstarch-based mix with flavor and color, such as Bird’s

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