Easy One-Pot French Chocolate Pastry Cream Recipe
This rich and perfectly smooth Chocolate Pastry Cream Recipe, also known as crème pâtissière is thick, perfectly pipeable and not overly sweet!
Ingredients
Chocolate Pastry Cream Recipe
- 500 g whole milk not skim
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or Pure Vanilla Extract
- 40 g corn starch corn flour
- 40 g caster sugar superfine sugar
- 10 g Dutch processed cocoa powder see notes
- Pinch of fine salt
- 4 egg yolks
- 80 g unsalted butter cubed and cold
- 180 g dark cooking chocolate finely chopped (see notes)
Instructions
How to prepare a vanilla bean (if using)
- Use a sharp knife to cut the bean in half lengthwise. Then, use the sharp end of the knife to scrape out the vanilla pods from inside the bean. Add the milk, bean halves and scraped out seeds into a medium sized heavy bottomed stainless-steel pot. Heat on medium heat until warm, not hot. When you’re ready to use it, run it through a sieve as you pour it into the rest of the ingredients.
Chocolate Pastry Cream
- Combine dry ingredients and eggs - To a medium sized heavy bottomed stainless-steel pot, add the corn starch, sugar, cocoa powder and salt and use a whisk to combine. Add the egg yolks and whisk until smooth.
- Add the milk - Add 1/4 of the milk and whisk. Then add the remaining milk and whisk to combine.
- Cook pastry cream - Cook in the pot on medium heat. Use a whisk to mix continuously. Do not stop mixing or the pastry cream will become grainy. After about 3-4 minutes the mixture will begin to thicken. Continue whisking until the mixture begins to bubble. When it bubbles, stir for 2-3 minutes, then take off the heat.
- Add butter - Add 1/4 of the butter and whisk until it’s melted and well combined. Repeat until all the butter has been added. You want to do this slowly, so the pastry cream doesn’t split.
- Add the chocolate - Add the cooking chocolate and whisk until well combined.
- Run through a sieve - Run the pastry cream through a sieve into a medium sized mixing bowl to get rid of any lumps.
- Chill to set - Cover the surface of the pastry cream with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 5 hours. Overnight is best.
- Once set - Give the pastry cream a whisk before using to smoothen it out again. This can be used to fill pastries like eclairs, cupcakes and depending on how long it was cooked for can be used in between cake layers or to fill tarts.
Notes
Dutch processed cocoa powder - is an unsweetened cocoa powder which has been treated with alkaline and potassium carbonate to neutralize the acidity that is naturally found in cocoa powder. It’s darker in color and strong in chocolate flavor.
Dark cooking chocolate - I used dark cooking chocolate for this recipe. You can use cooking buttons or cooking block that’s been finely chopped or grated. This will ensure it melts into the pastry cream quickly. For the buttons, I use the Nestle cooking buttons which are designed to be easily melted and used for baking and desserts, but any cooking chocolate that can be found in the baking isle of your supermarket will work. Just make sure it’s good quality.
Storage - This Chocolate Pastry cream can be stored in an airtight container, in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Nutrition - This recipe makes about 2 cups of pastry cream. Nutrition is an approximate and is based on per 1 cup (250g).
How to make dairy free - To make this pastry cream dairy free, simply replace the milk with plant-based milk and the butter with dairy free butter, not margarine.
A note on measurements - this recipe is offered in weight measurements. This is in an effort to offer the most accurate way to get the best results. Cup measurements simply aren’t accurate enough for a recipe that needs precision and cup sizes differ depending on where you are in the world. Here is where you can learn more about how to measure ingredients using digital kitchen scales!
Nutrition
Calories:1513kcal | Carbohydrates:82g | Protein:27g | Fat:117g | Saturated Fat:67g | Polyunsaturated Fat:6g | Monounsaturated Fat:34g | Trans Fat:2g | Cholesterol:751mg | Sodium:444mg | Potassium:1349mg | Fiber:15g | Sugar:39g | Vitamin A:2785IU | Calcium:481mg | Iron:15mg
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