Love French Food

  • Home
  • 🇫🇷 Pâté
  • All Recipes
  • About
  • Join My Email List 📩
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • 🇫🇷 Pâté
  • All Recipes
  • About
  • Join My Email List 📩
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • 🇫🇷 Pâté
  • All Recipes
  • About
  • Join My Email List 📩
×
Add us as a trusted site on Google
Home > All Recipes > French Pastry Recipes

Pastry Cream Recipe Perfection

Modified: Jan 13, 2025 by Judith E. Coates · This post may contain affiliate links · Leave a Comment

Bon Appetit
Crème Patissière, Like it? ~ Let us know below!
Create delicious Pastry Cream or Creme Pat tarts, as the French say, often with your favorite fruit.
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Tarts filled with chocolate pastry cream topped with red raspberries.

Creme Patissiere

Pastry Cream or Creme Patisserie is a custard cream filling technique that can be mastered easily with this recipe to create delicious tarts. It produces a smooth custard filling with many flavor variations to be topped with a variety of fruits. Learn to add a beautiful finishing touch with a glaze or sprinkling of sugar. It is quite easy to make and you will have a lovely smooth cream with this method & can be used to make Raspberry Tarts & Strawberry Tarts!

Tarts filled with chocolate pastry cream topped with red raspberries.

Once you have mastered the techniques for Crème Pat, you'll be well on your way to making these delicious Strawberry and Chocolate tarts and many, many more excellent flavors of tarts.

Like, chocolate cream, coffee cream, or flavored with your favorite liquor, only limited by your creative power.

Then top your exquisite cream custard filling with a luscious fresh fruit or frozen fruit that has been well drained.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar, crystal sugar or glaze it for a lovely sheen!

After dressing your tarts they will look as good as they taste!

Try These Tasty Recipes

  • Amazing Chocolate Cream Filled Crepes
  • Onion Tart Recipe
  • Short Crust Pastry Recipe

📖 Recipe

Prep Like a Pro
Before you start cooking, chop, measure, and prep every ingredient, and gather your tools.
This simple habit reduces stress, prevents overcooking, and instantly improves your meals. Mise en Place - "Everything in its place."

Tarts filled with chocolate pastry cream topped with red raspberries.

Pastry Cream Recipe Perfection

Judith Coates
Bon Appetit
Crème Patissière, Like it? ~ Let us know below!
Create delicious Pastry Cream or Creme Pat tarts, as the French say, often with your favorite fruit.
Print Recipe Pin
Prep Time 8 minutes mins
Cook Time 7 minutes mins
Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine French
Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 2 egg yolks
  • 2 ounce/50 gram ¼ cup castor sugar
  • 1 ounce/25 gram ¼ cup plain flour
  • ½ pint/ 1 cup milk
  • A few drops of vanilla essence optional
Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions
 

How To Make The Basic Pastry Cream

  • In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar using a wire balloon whisk until they are pale and thick.
  • Gradually beat in the flour with just one tablespoon of the milk.
  • Place the rest of the milk in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil.
  • Whisk this into the egg mixture in a slow stream, ensuring that you whisk continuously so that it does not go lumpy (by using a balloon whisk you should have no problems with this).
  • Return the mixture to the saucepan and place back on the heat. Continue to whisk until boiling, just a few seconds.
  • Remove from heat and continue whisking and cooking for 2-3 minutes. By removing from the heat it prevents any burning!
  • Allow to cool.
  • Pour into a dish and keep it in a refrigerator until you are ready to fill your pastry shells.
  • Now you have your crème patissière for your favorite fruit tarts.

How To Put The Tarts Together

  • Simply fill the cooled empty pastry shells with your pastry cream filling and arrange the fruit on the top. A little dusting with icing sugar to finish off if you prefer.
  • This is the basis of some delicious fillings for your pastries.

Variations

  • Chocolate
  • To make a wonderful chocolate filling, just add 2oz melted chocolate at the end of the method. Make sure it is good quality chocolate as it will make all the difference.
  • Flavor With Spirits
  • You can also add your favorite liqueur to the cooled custard filling to flavor it such as rum, brandy, kirsch, or orange liqueur.
  • Coffee Flavored
  • If you want a lovely coffee flavor simply add some instant coffee.

Method For A Glaze

  • Mix 2 tablespoons of preserve/jam with 1 tablespoon each of water and Kirsch.
  • Heat until just melted.
  • Set aside to allow the glaze to cool.

Such a variety of flavorings and all from one simple basic recipe!

    Notes

    Visit my Pinterest, Facebook Page 

    Add your own private notes that only you can see.

    Click Here

    Nutrition

    Calories: 203.72kcalCarbohydrates: 25.11gProtein: 9.87gFat: 6.96gSaturated Fat: 3.74gCholesterol: 111.82mgSodium: 131.7mgSugar: 12.65g
    You Can Help LoveFrenchFood!By simply rating the recipe & leaving a comment! Thank You!

    Recommended Recipes To Select

    • A light brown galette on a white plate with orange flowers on the side and a pink French bull dog figurine.
      Best Easy Apple Pie Filling Galette
    • Make my favorite, classic French croissant recipe with expert tips to help you make a light crisp French treat.
      A Delicious French Croissant Recipe
    • crab-quiche
      Easy Crab Quiche Recipe
    • A yellow onion custard tart.
      Classic Onion Tart Recipe

    Loved it, tweaked it, or not your "cup of tea"... I’d really love to hear how it went for you. Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Judith Coates author and creator of lovefrenchfood.com

    Bonjour

    I’m Judith E. Coates

    Founder of LoveFrenchFood.com helping home cooks prepare authentic French recipes & confidently master traditional French cooking. With carefully tested recipes, step-by-step guidance, & practical cooking tips, classic French cuisine is accessible for your home kitchen. With a touch of French "joie de vivre," & always full of heart.♥︎ Join me from your kitchen!

    More about moi →

    Hello, Bonjour Visitor!

    Here Is Why You Can Trust The Recipes On Love French Food

    My recipes originate directly from real French kitchens of homes and restaurants in France. Where these dishes have been cooked, shared, and perfected over generations: techniques passed from parent to child, flavors refined through repetition, and traditions honored. You aren’t just getting instructions; you’re receiving a slice of authentic French culinary life!

    Judith E. Coates

    Have A Fav French Recipe?

    Share With Us!

    Judith E. Coates founder of LoveFrenchFood.com, with expertise in traditional French cuisine and authentic French recipes.

    🥗 French Salad In Summer

    • Arugula salad simply made with asparagus ribbons, parmesan and lemon salad dressing.
      Arugula Salad Dressing With Zesty Lemon And Asparagus
    • Four types of colorful salad plates.
      Types Of Salads And How To Make Salads
    • Chicken salad with basil garnish and white bun on white plate.
      Coronation Chicken Recipe With Mild Curry Flavor
    • White and green bean sprouts mixed with brown beef slices.
      Thai Restaurant Style Spicey Beef Salad Recipe
    • salad nicoise
      Salade Niçoise With Homemade Dressing
    • lyonnaise salad
      Easy Lyonnaise Salad
    • Cut up artichokes with slices of red onion and drizzled with vinaigrette.
      Best French Artichoke Salad Recipe With Vinaigrette aux Fines Herbes Dressing
    • red-cabbage-salad-recipe
      Easy Red Cabbage Salad Recipe With Vinaigrette à La Moutarde

    🦞Popular French Seafood

    • A classic French seafood dish Lobster thermidor served on a blue plate.
      Delectable Lobster Thermidor
    • White dish with holes filled with butter, colored herbs, and snails.
      Classic French Escargot Recipe in Garlic Butter Sauce
    • A casserole dish with browned potato slices layered across the top.
      Tasty Fish Pie Recipe
    • Golden brown fish balls topped with green parsley leaves on a white napkin on a white plate with a red gingham background.
      Homemade Fish Balls Recipe
    • Two white bowls one with dark shellfish, the other with brown potato sticks on a red gingham table cloth with green plant garnish.
      Belgium Influence Moules Frites
    • sauteed scallops
      How To Cook Scallops In A Skillet
    • crab-quiche
      Easy Crab Quiche Recipe
    • bouillabass
      Bouillabaisse A Classic French Seafood Soup

    Are You A Brand?
    Please connect here!

    This Website is AMAZING! I was raised by my stepmother, who was born in France and grew up eating this food! Every Sunday, we would go to her mother's house and eat. I have been trying to recreate these recipes on my own and have failed miserably. THANK YOU for having these recipes for use! They are FANTASTIC!

    - Lydia B.N.

    Footer

    Impress yourself & everyone you know by learning to cook epic French food. Easily! Deliciously!

    Let's Cook French

    Information

    📝Recipes Index

    🥖Traditional

    👩🏻‍🍳How To Cook

    🥗French Salads

    🥬Vegetable Recipes

    🦐Fish & Seafood

    🍰Desserts

    🇫🇷Chicken Recipes

    🤝Work With Me

    💌Contact

    🎶About

    🤝Share a Recipe

    Terms,

    Privacy

    Disclaimer

    Accessibility

    Content by Judith Coates of LoveFrenchFood.com, with expertise in traditional French cuisine and authentic French recipes.

    Here at Love French Food, we appreciate the diversity of individuals, religions, and cultures from around the world. We celebrate the kindness of so many, something that is easy to miss. We strive to tread lightly on our earth, as it supports an amazing array of creatures and landscapes that we want future generations to enjoy. We financially support WCK (World Central Kitchen), Animal Rescue Groups, Birds Canada, Nature Canada, The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, and our local Hospitals.

    Let us live, Love, & Eat together!

    Signature of author in red.

    As an Amazon Associate, I profit from qualifying purchases, but this does not change your price.

    Copyright © 2026 Love French Food - All Rights Reserved. Regardless of Links or Attributions

    • Gravatar

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    Let us know what you thought of this recipe:

    This worked exactly as written, thanks!
    My family loved this!
    Thank you for sharing this recipe!
    This will be in our dinner rotation going forward!
    Just like when I was a kid!
    This was amazing!

    Or write in your own words:

    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required