Crème Anglaise

Crème Anglaise Recipe Summary:

Time taken: 10 minutes

One of the most useful basic patisserie recipes. Use this as a sauce for desserts or as a base for further creations like a cremeaux.

Equipment Checklist:

  • Small saucepan, maryse

  • Small bowl, whisk

  • Temperature probe (optional)

Crème Anglaise Ingredients list:

Milk | 75g

Whipping Cream | 25g

Sugar | 10g

Egg Yolks | 25g (approx 2 yolks)

Vanilla powder | Large pinch

Chef note: “nappage” means “to glaze”. This is a term used to test the consistency of many things in french cooking.

Take a spoon, dip it into the thing you are testing, it should coat the bacl of the spoon, and if you run your finger along the back of the spoon it should leave a clean line with the mixture holding rather than running into your finger mark.

Chef tip: it can be useful to keep a bowl over ice on the side to help stop the cooking more quickly once your anglaise reaches the right texture.

Crème Anglaise Method:

In a small saucepan:

  1. Heat your milk and whipping cream. In the meantime…

Blanche your egg yolks:

  1. In a small bowl, vigorously whisk together your egg yolks, sugar and vanilla until the mixture becomes somewhat pale and all the sugar has dissolved.

Now make the Creme Anglaise:

  1. Turn the heat up on the milk/cream and just before it starts to boil (when you see little bubble appear around the outside), remove from the heat and pour 2/3 of it over the yolks/sugar mixture in the bowl. Whisk until homogenous.

  2. Pour the mixture from the bowl back into the saucepan with the other 1/3 of the milk/cream, placing back over low-medium heat. Get rid of the whisk and bowl.

  3. Using a rubber spatula, stir the mixture continuously, being careful to scrape all over the bottom of the pan and around the sides/corners of the pan. After a few minutes the mixture will start to thicken. The trick here is patience, you do not want the mixture to get too hot or the eggs will scramble.

  4. Once the mixture coats the back of the spatula and you run a finger through it and it stays in place, your anglaise is ready. Alternatively, the mixture should probe at 83°c.

  5. Pour the mixture into another bowl, perhaps a bowl over ice if you want to cool it quickly.