Pastry Cream

Pastry cream is a custard somewhat like crème anglaise, but much thicker because it contains cornstarch or flour. Because the starch stabilizes it, pastry cream, unlike crème anglaise, can be allowed to boil. In fact it must boil for the starch to thicken it properly. Pastry cream is perhaps best known as the filling for éclairs, but it is at its best when combined with other mixtures such as whipped cream, Italian meringue, butter, brown butter, or lemon curd. It is used as a base for raw