Berry Custard Pastry

These elegant pastries filled with custard cream and berries are incredibly easy to make and are absolutely delicious!

Anything puff pastry related is a win in my book. The light, flaky texture and butter flavor just melts in your mouth and is so good that it’s addicting to eat by itself. Puff pastry is used for both savory and sweet pastries, and is difficult and time-consuming to make. I have found that store-bought puff pastry (such as Pepperidge Farm) works incredibly well.

This berry custard pastry is a very common dessert and is filled with a creme patisserie, or custard cream. The cream pat is such an essential ingredient in French baking and is relatively easy to make! The sweetness and tang from the berries complement the sweet creme pat well and is a decadent dessert that pairs well with coffee or tea.

Look at the layers of the puff pastry! Doesn’t that look so tempting? My favorite part is hearing the crispiness when I use a fork and knife to cut the pastry open.

A few pointers about the recipe… you can certainly use homemade puff pastry if you have time. The custard cream can be made the day before as it requires time to be chilled and set. I personally like to eat the pastry a few hours after it has been made since the custard softens the puff pastry a bit. But, don’t let it set for days as the pastry will gradually become soggy.

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Berry Custard Pastry

yield: 8 medium pastry

Ingredients:

For custard cream (Recipe adapted from Preppy Kitchen):

• 240 g. or 1 c. whole milk
• 4 g. or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 51 g. or 3 large egg yolks
• 72 g. or 1/3 c. granulated sugar
• 18 g. or 2 tbsp. cornstarch
• 10 g. or 2 tsp. unsalted butter

For pastry:

• 490 g. or 2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
• 6 oz. raspberries and 6 oz. blackberries, washed and dried
• 1 beaten egg + 10 g. or 2 tsp. milk for egg wash
• powdered sugar to dust
• slivered almonds to top, optional

Directions:

1. To make the custard cream, add milk and vanilla extract to a medium saucepan, over medium heat until boiled. Turn off the heat when boiled and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the cornstarch and whisk until no lumps remain.
3. Whisk in 1/4 of the hot milk mix until incorporated. Whisk in the remaining hot milk mixture until incorporated.
4. Pour the mixture through a strainer back into the saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until thickened and slowly boiling.
5. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter. Let cool slightly. 
6. Cover with plastic wrap, lightly pressing the plastic against the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Chill at least 2 hours .
7. Preheat oven to 400 F.
8. For the puff pastry, trim off some of the long end of the sheet so it forms a 9 x 9 in. square. Cut into 4 squares on both sheets so you have 8 smaller squares. Take one square and fold it in half to form a triangle. Use a knife to make two diagonal cuts on the sides without completely cutting the dough at the top.

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10. Open up the dough and fold the top strip down and the bottom strip up and over. Repeat for the rest of the squares.

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11. Once all the shapes have been formed, brush with egg wash and lightly use a fork to poke holes on the bottom of the pastry. Bake for 17-20 min at 400 F or until golden brown.

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12. Remove the pastry and cool on a cooling rack. Once cooled, use a spoon to lightly press down the middle since it has puffed up.

13. Pipe custard cream on the inside and top with berries. Dust with powdered sugar and enjoy!

*Nutrition Facts are estimates