pastry cream

noun

: a thick custard that is made of eggs, sugar, milk, flour or cornstarch, and usually flavoring and that is typically used as a filling for pastries and other baked goods

Once you've become comfortable with the technique for making pastry cream, opportunities abound for the versatile baker's staple. You can use it as a filling for cream puffs, éclairs, fruit tarts, and cakes …—

Kristina Razon

Pastry cream is an anomaly among custards. Although overheating a typical custard can lead to curdling, it's vital to bring pastry cream almost to a boil. Doing so sets the eggs and activates the starch, thereby ensuring a proper consistency.—

Bryan Roof

Guests will go wild for these little pies. They're at once delicate and decadent, the airy puffs of crisp meringue giving way to rich, vanilla-flavored pastry cream and a sprightly mix of fresh fruit.—

Lillian Cho

Examples of pastry cream in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The choux pastry is baked and cooled and then filled with pastry cream before being topped with a chocolate glaze or chocolate ganache to complete the delicious treat. —

Molly Allen, Southern Living, 9 Nov. 2023 Your best friends will enjoy flavors such as vanilla custard, chai pastry cream, lemon curd, and chocolate ganache. —

Moriah Mason, Southern Living, 12 Oct. 2023 The real showstopper in this dish is the homemade caramelized pastry cream. —

Laura Denby, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Sep. 2023 Traditional French-style fresh-fruit tarts involve a short, sweet crust and vanilla pastry cream filling. —

G. Daniela Galarza, Washington Post, 15 July 2023 About 50 forkfuls of pastry cream and 10 trillion calories later, here’s what transpired in our blind taste test. —

Pamela Wright, BostonGlobe.com, 22 June 2023 Layers of seasonal fruit, buttery pound cake, and velvety pastry cream are stacked into cute single-serve mason jars your family and friends will love. —

By sunset, Sunset Magazine, 18 May 2023 Whisk cream/gelatin mixture into the pastry cream until combined. —

Caron Golden, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pastry cream.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.