Pastry Creamed

Last Saucyman, we poached pears. Step 2 of the Pear Tart is Pastry Cream. While the butter rich crust, which can be frozen either before or after baking, could just as easily be the 2nd component of this dessert, the pastry cream needs to be chilled before using. So unless you want to get extra dishes out and cool the Pastry Cream down via an ice bath or ice cream maker, adding both time, extra labor and dirty dishes to your endeavor, the Pastry Cream should be done in advance.

Pastry Cream belongs to a family of sweetened custard-based sauces that my sister in common law refers to universally as ‘bob’ – Crème Anglaise (English Cream with a Latinized spelling, go figure), Lemon Curd, Zabaglione and Sabayon are all part of this phylum. Each slightly different from the other – Zabaglione, tiramisu’s base is made with Marsala, while sabayon gets wine, sparkling or otherwise. Curds use fruit juice instead of dairy, while Pastry Cream is much like Crème Anglaise, except for it uses a binding agent to help produce a thicker sauce.

Cornstarch is used here although other recipes can and do occasionally do call for arrowroot, agar-agar or if you are old school – gelatin. Besides producing a thicker sauce, the cornstarch absorbs moisture from the fruit topping and makes the sauce heat stable, meaning you can make the Pastry Cream on the stovetop (as opposed to the diffused heat of a double boiler). If a little cornstarch helps produce a winning dessert, a little too much binding agent produces a seemingly vulcanized sauce – be careful with the measurements.

Pastry Cream

2 Cups Whole Milk*
6 egg yolks
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
½ c sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 T butter – cut into 6 pieces.
*Optional 2 T Pear Brandy. Reduce Milk by 1 Tablespoon if using brandy. Why not 2? The brandy is about ½ alcohol, which will evaporate.

Bring milk to a gentle bubble. (Microwaving is perfectly acceptable, but use a pyrex/glass measuring cup - avoid plastic, which can absorb odors, which in turn, really announce themselves when heated).

Locate a rubber spatula, a whisk and a heavy bottomed stainless steel pan. In the pan whisk together egg yolks, cornstarch and sugar. When ingredients have formed a grainy, yellow paste, slowly whisk in a ½ c of the still warm milk. Place pan over a medium heat and continue to whisk in the remaining milk.

When all the milk is incorporated slowly turn up the heat – the temperature should be a gentle boil. Continue whisking and occasionally run the spatula around the edge of the pan. After 1 ½ to 2 minutes remove pan from heat. Whisk in vanilla and pear brandy and walk away for 5 minutes.

Add butter by whisking in one piece at a time. Do not add additional butter until the first piece has been absorbed - The goal is to incorporate the butter to into the sauce not melt into it: This is done by whisking the butter into the Pastry Cream after it has cooled to a lower temperature. When the last of the butter has been whisked in, transfer sauce to a stainless steel bowl and place plastic wrap or parchment paper over the Pastry Cream (otherwise a skin/crust will form, which is not cool). This will keep 3 days in the fridge.