How to Make Pastry Cream (Creme Patissiere)

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Vanilla pastry cream, or crème pâtissière, is the foundation of countless desserts, from French éclairs to classic fruit tarts. It’s smooth, rich, and just the right balance of creamy and thick.

The best part? It’s incredibly easy to make at home with just a handful of ingredients and about 20 minutes of hands-on time.

In this guide, I’ll:

• walk you through every step
• share a few tips to make sure your pastry creams turns out perfectly every time
• go over different ways methods of making pastry creams
• show you ways to use them
• and more

Recipe Info

This recipe is:

• Quick and simple. With only about 20 minutes of hands-on work, this recipe is easy to master. The technique is straightforward, making it beginner-friendly while still delivering professional-quality results.
• Classic and versatile. This vanilla pastry cream is a staple in pastry making, perfect for filling cakes, éclairs, tarts, and more. It’s simple yet rich, making it a go-to for many desserts.
• A perfect base recipe. This is more than just vanilla pastry cream—it’s a starting point for endless variations. Add chocolate, coffee, citrus zest, or spices to create new flavors.

If you’re making this vanilla pastry cream for the first time, read the ingredients notes, step-by-step instructions, and tips. If you have any experience with pastry creams, feel free to jump to the recipe card.

Ingredients Notes and Substitutes

• Milk: Whole fat works best, but skim should be okay too. Milk alternatives also work well, though the final flavor will be slightly different. When using a vegan milk alternative, check whether it’s the regular or sweet variety. If the latter, reduce the amount of sugar by half and add more after cooking the cream if needed.
• Cornstarch: Cornstarch is ideal as it has a relatively high thickening temperature. You can also use potato starch (half the amount), but let the cooked milk mixture cool down a bit before adding it to the eggs, so the egg mixture doesn’t thicken too quickly. Check out my article on cornstarch versus potato starch for more details. If you don’t have cornstarch on hand, this Creme Bavaroise recipe could work as a substitute depending on your needs.
• Sugar: Regular white sugar works well, but feel free to use any sweetener you like. Remember to adjust the amount when using alternatives like xylitol or stevia.
• Vanilla Extract: Vanilla extract is what gives this pastry cream its flavor. I typically use the extract because it simplifies the workflow compared to using vanilla beans (which many other recipes recommend). I cover using vanilla beans later in the article.
• Unsalted Butter: Plain unsalted butter is all you need.
• Egg Yolks: Along cornstarch, egg yolks help thicken the cream.

How to Make Vanilla Pastry Cream

1. Boil Milk: Measure the milk into a pot and stir in the vanilla extract and sugar. Bring the mixture close to a boil.
2. Prep Yolks: While the milk heats, whisk the yolks, cornstarch, and about 2 tablespoons of the milk mixture (while it’s still lukewarm) in a large heatproof bowl. The addition of the milk mixture loosens the yolks and cornstarch, so exact measurements aren’t critical here. Set the bowl aside.
3. Temper Eggs: When the milk is close to boiling, remove it from the heat. Gradually pour a couple of tablespoons of the hot milk into the yolk mixture, constantly whisking to prevent the yolks from curdling. Repeat this process 3 to 4 times until you’ve incorporated all the milk. Keep stirring throughout.

4. Cook Until Thick and Bubbly: Return the combined mixture to the pot you used for the milk. Cook it over low or medium heat, stirring constantly, until it noticeably thickens and starts to bubble. This typically takes 2 to 4 minutes, depending on the pot and heat intensity. Avoid rushing the process to prevent the yolks from curdling.

5. Take Off the Heat and Whisk: Once the mixture is thick, remove the pot from the heat and continue whisking for about a minute, bringing the mixture past the point of maximum thickness.
6. Stir in Butter: Add the butter to the pot and stir until it melts and integrates into the cream.

7. Taste Test: Sample the cream (be cautious, it’s hot) and add more sugar or vanilla extract if necessary.
8. Cover and Chill: Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pastry cream to prevent a crust from forming. Leave it at room temperature for at least 30 minutes to cool slightly. Then refrigerate (covered) until you’re ready to use it.

9. Whisk and Use: When removed from the fridge, the pastry cream will have a stiff, pudding-like texture. This is normal, so don’t freak out. To use it, start by “chopping” it up with a fork, then switch to a whisk and stir for a minute or two until it becomes smooth (ish). Once done, it’s ready for piping.

One Pot (No Egg Tempering) Method

The method I cover above is the egg tempering method and it’s the standard method for making pastry creams. You can follow it to make pretty much any pastry cream you like.

If you’d like to simplify the approach and stick to a single pot, that’s also an option. Here are the changes to the process:

• Set aside 1/3 cup of milk, cornstarch, and butter; the rest goes into the pot.
• Stir together everything in the pot, set it over medium heat, and bring it to a boil, whisking constantly.
• When the mixture is close to boiling, make a cornstarch slurry by whisking together the cornstarch and the milk you set aside, then add it to the mixture on the stove and stir until it thickens and starts to bubble.
• Remove the pot from the stove, whisk for a minute, then stir in the butter.

This setup works well for many pastry creams, but its main downside is that you have to keep whisking continuously. In the egg tempering method, you only need to pay close attention to the mixture on the stove after adding the eggs.

How to Use Vanilla Beans Instead of Vanilla Extract (Vanilla Bean Infusion)

I typically use vanilla extract in my pastry creams because it’s a quick and simple way to add vanilla flavor. And I suggest you do the same if you want to keep things simple.

But if you have vanilla beans and an extra 20 to 30 minutes, here’s how to use them instead of the extract:

• Prep. Grab 1–2 vanilla beans for every 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, depending on how strong you like it.
• Infuse. Split the vanilla bean(s), scrape out the seeds, and combine the milk, beans, and seeds in a pot. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, take it off the heat, cover, and let it steep for 20 to 30 minutes. The longer it sits, the stronger the vanilla flavor.
• Cleanup. Remove the beans, strain the milk if you want the pastry cream silky smooth, and continue with the recipe.

Flavoring Pastry Cream

Rather than just giving you a vague list of potential pastry cream flavorings without clear proportions, I’ve put together a complete article detailing all my pastry cream recipes.

Here’s my list of 12+ pastry cream flavors.

Adjusting Texture

My pastry cream recipes typically use 4 tablespoons (~40 g) of cornstarch per 2 cups of liquid, whether that’s milk or a combination of milk and another liquid ingredient. This ratio creates a thick, sturdy pastry cream.

A thicker texture is ideal for éclairs and cream puffs—you can pipe the cream through a hole in the bottom without worrying about leaks. It’s also great for tarts and no-bake cakes, as it spreads fairly smoothly while warm and holds its shape when sliced.

That thick texture might not be that great for other uses, though.

If structure isn’t that big of a deal, say in layered desserts prepared and served in small serving glasses, a softer texture is probably better. In that case, you can reduce the cornstarch by 25%, from 4 to 3 tablespoons per 2 cups of liquid, up to 50% if you’re going for a more custard-like consistency.

Tips

• Chill on a Plate. To speed up chilling the pudding, pour it onto a large plate or bowl. Or a couple of them. A larger surface area helps it cool down much faster.
• Make It in Advance. This pastry cream keeps for 3 to 4 days in the fridge, so you can easily prepare it the day before you need it. I usually make all the pastry creams I need a day earlier, and assemble whatever dessert I’m making the day I’m serving it.
• Keep Whisking. There’s quite a lot of whisking involved in this recipe, and it’s not something you you can skip. If you do, you’ll end up with curdled yolks, and that’s not something people appreciate in a pastry cream. Treat it as your arm workout for the day.

How to Use Pastry Creams

Here are some ways to use pastry creams:

• Layered Desserts: Use it as a layer in parfaits or trifle. Layer it with fruits, cake pieces, or crushed cookies for a delightful dessert.
• Stuffed Pastries: Pipe it into croissants, Danish pastries, or sweet rolls before baking. Or bake some eclairs or cream puffs (see my vanilla cream puffs recipe) and fill them with the pastry cream.
• Cake Filling and Frosting: Use it as a filling for sponge cakes, cupcakes, or layer cakes (see my Karpatka cake recipe). It can also be used as a frosting for cupcakes or a naked cake.
• Tart Filling: Fill pre-baked tart shells with pastry cream and top with fresh fruits or a glaze for an elegant dessert.
• French Macarons: Use it as a filling for macarons for a sophisticated and flavorful treat.

Transforming Pastry Cream

Pastry creams are not only great by themselves, but you can also transform them into different creams depending on your needs.

Here are some popular options:

• Diplomat Cream. Pastry creams are quite rich, especially if used in large quantities. To lighten the cream, you can fold in whipped cream and stabilize the mixture with gelatin. This setup is called diplomat cream, and I wrote a big guide on making diplomat cream.
• Cream Mousseline. Pastry creams pipe decently if you make them thick, but they’re not nearly as sturdy as buttercream. If you need a richer, more stable version that holds its shape well—and you don’t want to work with gelatin—turn the pastry cream into cream mousseline by whipping it with butter. The linked article explains the whole process in detail.

Storage

Once prepared, you can store this pastry cream for 3 to 4 days in the fridge. Make sure the container is sealed tightly so that it doesn’t absorb any smells.

Vanilla Pastry Cream

Vanilla pastry cream, or crème pâtissière, is the foundation of countless desserts, from French éclairs to classic fruit tarts. It’s smooth, rich, and just the right balance of creamy and thick.

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Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes minutes

Course: Dessert, Filling

Cuisine: French

Keyword: Cream Patisserie, Custard, Filling, Pastry Cream, Vanilla

Servings: 2.25 cups

Author: Marcin Skrzypiec

Equipment

• Whisk

Ingredients

• 2 cups milk ~480g
• 4 egg yolks medium or large (about 60-70g)
• 4 tablespoons cornstarch ~40g
• 7 tablespoons sugar ~87g
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter ~28g

Instructions

• Boil Milk: In a pot, mix milk with vanilla extract and sugar, and heat until almost boiling.
  2 cups milk, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, 7 tablespoons sugar
• Prep Yolks: While the milk heats, whisk yolks, cornstarch, and 2 tablespoons of the milk mixture (while it's still lukewarm) in a bowl.
  4 tablespoons cornstarch, 4 egg yolks
• Temper Eggs: Gradually add a few tablespoons of hot milk to the yolk mixture, whisking constantly to avoid curdling. Repeat until all milk is incorporated.
• Thicken Cream: Return mixture to the pot and cook on low/medium heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens and bubbles (2-4 minutes).
• Off Heat Whisking: Once thick, remove from heat and whisk for another minute.
• Add Butter: Stir butter into the mixture until melted and integrated.
  2 tbsp unsalted butter
• Taste and Adjust: Taste the cream and add more sugar or vanilla if needed.
• Chill: Cover with plastic wrap touching the cream's surface to avoid crust formation. Cool at room temperature for 30 minutes, then refrigerate.
• Final Whisk: Before use, "chop" the chilled cream with a fork, then whisk until smooth. It's now ready for piping.

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Notes

This recipe uses less sugar than most other recipes out there. Make sure to taste the pastry cream and adjust the sugar if needed. It should be sweet, but not so that the vanilla flavor is barely noticeable.

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