Thick, rich, and exceptionally chocolatey, our Chocolate Thick Pastry Cream is perfect for filling cakes and pastries. We love to use it in our elaborate Paris Brest Recipe Tutorial. Look below to find out what we think is the best way to thicken this pastry cream.
CUSTARD RECIPE HELP
INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup whole or 2% milk
2 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
4 ounces bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped into 1-inch evenly sized pieces
1 teaspoon vanilla
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Whisk the yolks, and add the sugar to them in a bowl, immediately mixing together with a whisk for about 30 seconds.
QUESTION: Egg yolks seem to “cook” when we mix the sugar and yolks to make pastry cream. How do we prevent this?
ANSWER
2. Bring the milk to a boil in a medium heavy bottomed saucepan, under medium heat, while stirring frequently.
SARAH SAYS: Why a heavy bottomed saucepan? Answer
3. Add the 1 1/2 tablespoons flour to the egg yolk / sugar mixture in the bowl, and mix it in with the whisk.
4. Pour about 1/3 cup of the boiling milk in on top of the egg yolk mixture and mix it in well with a whisk.
5. Then add the rest of the milk to the egg yolk mixture and whisk to combine.
6. Return the mixture to the saucepan and bring to a boil under medium heat, mixing constantly with the whisk.
7. Boil for about 10 seconds, then remove from the heat and add the chocolate. Let sit for a few minutes.
8. Stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted and is incorporated into the pastry cream.
NOTE: This chocolate cream will be VERY thick.
9. Add in the vanilla extract, and stir.
10. Transfer to a bowl, press a piece of plastic wrap on its surface, and let cool, then refrigerate until chilled.
STORAGE
The pastry cream can be made up to 3 days in advance. Stir well before using.
Does not freeze.
SARAH SAYS: Pastry cream is highly perishable, so it cannot remain out of refrigeration for more than 2 hours maximum.
