cream of the crop

Custard desserts are great for those who may find other treats like cupcakes or cookies too sickly sweet. This vegan version of the classic Crème Pâtissière is quite delicate and lightly sweet, making it go down real easy.

Skill Level- Easy

Shopping List:

• Sugar (granulated + confectioner )

• Lemons

• Blackberries (or raspberries, blueberries, or strawberries)

• Plant Milk

• Vegan-Friendly Puff Pastry

• Sliced Almonds

• Cornstarch

• Vegan Butter

• Vanilla Bean or Extract

• Oil

  
  
  
  

Equipment:

• Baking sheet

• Small saucepan

• 1 medium bowl for mixing

• 1 small bowl for straining

• Strainer or sieve (if using a vanilla pod and powder sugar)

• Parchment paper or silicon mat

• Whisk ( French works best, but use a balloon if it’s what you have)

• Knife

• Plastic wrap

  
  Makes 4 pastries, but you can easily double the recipe for more.

Products used:

Links provided below-

• Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry- puff pastry is traditionally made with standard butter, but there are a few brands out there that don’t. I find that Pepperidge Farm is pretty easy to find in any run-of-the-mill grocery store.

  
  

Helpful Notes:

Oil- is used to replace the fat that you get from egg yolks in a traditional Crème Pâtissière recipe. You could make it without this addition, but I don’t think the end result is as silky and creamy.

Cornstarch- helps to thicken the pastry cream and make it stable.

Lemon- is added to this crème pâtissière, but if you’re not a fan, feel free to leave it out and add a bit more vanilla.

Prep:

• Defrost puff pastry according to your package directions ( typically, about 40 minutes ) before ready to use- in the summer months or in a warm house, it’s usually good enough to bring it out when you start your pastry cream

• Zest and juice lemon

• Clean and dry berries

• Roast almonds if using

  
  

INGREDIENTS:

Crème Pâtissière

• 240 ml (1 C ) plant milk (soy, cashew, almond…)

• 50 g (1/4 C ) granulated sugar

• 16 g (2 T) cornstarch

• 1 vanilla pod or 2 tsp. of vanilla extract or paste

• zest of 1 lemon

• 1 T lemon juice

• 14 g (1 T ) vegan butter

• 54 ml (4 T/ 1/4 C ) neutral oil (I prefer grapeseed)

• pinch of salt

• tiny pinch of turmeric powder (optional, for color)

* double amount if you want to use both sheets of puff pastry in package *

Pastry

• 1 sheet puff pastry (vegan-friendly)

• 2 tsp. milk

• 1 tsp. maple syrup

Toppings

• 1 pint blackberries (or mix berries as you please)

• 1/4 C almonds, sliced

• powder sugar for sprinkling

  
  
  

Directions:

Almonds

1. Preheat oven to 350° F

2. Spread sliced almonds out on the cookie sheet and bake in the oven on the middle rack for 5-8 minutes or slightly toasted- set aside to cool.

   
   

Puff Pastry

Set puff pastry out on the counter to thaw (you want to be able to easily unfold the sheet without breaking).

1. Preheat oven to 400° F

2. Once thawed, unfold the puff pastry sheet onto a clean work surface.

3. Cut the pastry sheet into 4 equal parts and place on a surface you can cut on.

4. With a sharp knife, cut an L shape 3/4 - 1” from the edge of the pastry (don’t cut through to the opposite corner- see below).

5. Cut another L shape on the opposite corner, leaving the two opposite corners intact.

6. Pull the edge pieces up, over, and under to the opposite sides to create the pastry form (see below).

7. Use the tines of a fork to repeatedly poke the flat square center of the pastry, so that it doesn’t puff up as much in the middle where you will fill with pastry cream (after baking).

8. Place the pastries on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicon mat.

9. Mix together the 2 teaspoons of milk and 1 teaspoon of maple syrup and brush onto the edges of the pastries.

10. Place the baking sheet on the middle rack of your oven and bake 12-15 minutes or until the puff pastry has turned golden brown- check the pastry at the 10 minute mark to see if the center is puffing up too much- if it is, just lightly poke with the tines of a fork and continue to bake until golden brown.

11. When done, remove from oven and set on a cooling rack to cool while you’re making your pastry cream.

    
    

Crème Pâtissière (Pastry Cream)/ Assembly

1. Pour milk into small saucepan. If using a vanilla pod, cut it down the middle and scrape the seeds out with your knife. Add the seeds and the pod to the milk.

2. Turn the heat to medium-low and bring the mixture to a simmer (do not let boil over)- let simmer for 4 -5 minutes then remove the pan from heat - if using a vanilla pod, let milk sit with the pod and seeds for about 10 minutes (off heat) to infuse the milk further.

3. In a medium bowl, add sugar and oil and whisk for 1- 2 minutes until smooth and sugar has dissolved.

4. Add in cornstarch and pinch of salt, then whisk again until the starch is fully incorporated and there are no lumps.

5. Add in the infused milk to the sugar-cornstarch mixture and give a good whisk to combine.

6. If you have used a vanilla pod, use a strainer or a sieve to strain the mixture back into the same small saucepan- use a spatula to make sure that you push all the vanilla beans through your strainer.

7. Set to medium-high heat and continually whisk your mixture- don’t walk away here- you want to stay with your mixture so it doesn’t scorch or burn at the bottom.

8. Continue to whisk until the mixture has thickened and starts to pull away from the pan a little bit (about 2-3 minutes). You want the mixture thickened, but still fluid, not pasty- the cream will continue to thicken off the heat.

9. Remove from heat and add the zest and lemon juice along with the butter-stir with the whisk until smooth and glossy.

10. Pour the mixture into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap to avoid any skin from forming- let cool for about 5 minutes *lay the plastic wrap on top of the cream and firmly seal to the mixture, not the bowl *

11. Place the pastry cream in a piping bag and fill the center of the pastries- alternatively, you can use a spoon or offset spatula to spread the cream onto the pastry if you don’t have a piping bag.

12. Top with berries and toasted almonds, then sprinkle with powder sugar.

13. Enjoy!

Storage and Use

1. Store pastries in an air-tight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

2. Eat cold, at room temp, or remove berries and warm on low in the oven.

I hope you give these delicate and delicious pastries a try!

You are amazing! Thank you for being here,

xx Debbie xx