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vanilla custard in two glass bowls topped with strawberries.
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5 from 1 vote

Vanilla Custard (Pastry Cream)

This delicious silky smooth Vanilla Custard is a super easy to make French pastry cream! Made with egg yolks, milk, butter, and vanilla, it’s infused with a delicate buttery vanilla flavor. You can eat it topped with fresh fruit with a spoon like pudding or use it to make other desserts like cream puffs, tarts, eclairs, and even cakes! 
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Chilling time30 minutes
Total Time55 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: French
Keyword: pastry cream, vanilla custard
Servings: 6
Calories: 278kcal
Author: Joanna Cismaru

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 1 vanilla bean split in half and use scraped seeds, or 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
  • 6 large egg yolks
  • ⅔ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup cornstarch
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt
  • 4 tablespoons butter unsalted, softened
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Add the milk and vanilla extract to a medium saucepan and heat until hot but not boiling.
    process shots showing how to make vanilla custard.
  • Meanwhile, add the egg yolks, sugar, and whisk until light and fluffy. Add cornstarch and salt to the bowl of you mixer and mix on medium speed until smooth.
    process shots showing how to make vanilla custard.
  • Gradually add the milk while mixing until well combined. Pour the mixture back into a saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and registers at 170°F. Should take about 6 to 10 minutes, make sure to not boil.
    process shots showing how to make vanilla custard.
  • Stir in the butter until smooth.
    process shots showing how to make vanilla custard.
  • Transfer the custard to a bowl, and cover it with plastic wrap directly over the surface of the cream. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before using.
    process shots showing how to make vanilla custard.

Notes

  1. Recipe yields about 3 cups of custard. Nutrition information is per ½ cup.
  2. Room temperature eggs and butter. The butter and egg yolks should be at room temperature so that they blend together properly with the other ingredients. 
  3. Never let the custard boil. At no point in this recipe should the milk or custard ever come to a boil. This is to prevent the custard from curdling and having an eggy taste. 
  4. Plastic wrap the surface. The plastic wrap should be laid right on the surface of the custard. Doing so prevents a skin from forming on the top when it goes into the fridge.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 278kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 213mg | Sodium: 89mg | Potassium: 143mg | Fiber: 0.05g | Sugar: 26g | Vitamin A: 610IU | Calcium: 125mg | Iron: 1mg