Pastry Cream and Phyllo

I like to think that the first time I made pastry cream was when I was around 13 years old, after watching Julia Child make a croquembouche on PBS. I was inspired to make cream puffs, and did, fairly successfully. From then on, I was obsessed with baking and pastry. You could say that Julia Child made me what I am today.

I don’t think that’s an accurate memory, though, just a romanticized version of what really happened, based on all the current hype surrounding the release of Julie and Julia.

Here’s what I know to be true:

1. I made cream puffs when I was in middle school.
2. I watched Julia Child make a croquembouche on PBS once.
3. I sure like baked goods.

Continuing on my quest to use up all the random food in my kitchen, I vowed to make something with the phyllo dough that’s been in my freezer forever. I’ve never used phyllo before, but I’ve seen people use it, and that’s got to count for something, right?

I hadn’t made pastry cream in a long time, so I thought I’d make some to go with the phyllo, along with some sliced fresh strawberries and whipped cream. It’s really my favorite type of dessert: a little fruit, a little crust, and a little cream . . . perfect!

I used the phyllo to make some little cups. I wrestled a bit with the phyllo, and the end result would probably make a Greek grandmother weep, but the cups are tasty and, well, cuppy. I used five sheets of phyllo, brushed a lot of butter in between, and sprinkled the butter with sugar. I pressed squares of the layered dough into a muffin pan and baked them. I was actually surprised at how not hard (I wouldn’t go so far as to say easy) it was to work with the phyllo. I think it might become a good tool in my dessert arsenal.

I was nervous entering into the pastry-cream-making portion of my dessert, as Eliza had been fussy on and off all afternoon. Luckily, she cooperated enough to let me finish it, with only a few glitches.


Phyllo Cups with Pastry Cream and Strawberries

Ingredients

For the phyllo cups:
10 sheets phyllo dough
1/4 cup melted butter
Sugar

For the pastry cream:
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of salt
2 cups half and half, heated
1/2 cup corn starch
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Sliced strawberries
Whipped cream

1. For the phyllo cups: Layer five sheets of phyllo, brushing each sheet with melted butter and sprinkling with one to two teaspoons of sugar. Cut into six four-inch squares. Press the squares into a muffin tin, making little cups. Bake at 350 for 5-10 minutes, or until the edges are golden. Let the cups cool before using.
2. For the pastry cream: In a saucepan, whisk the egg yolks until creamy and yellow; whisk in the sugar and salt. Sift in the corn starch, mixing well. Slowly add in the heated half and half.
3. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking continuously. The mixture will get lumpy as it begins to boil--keep whisking. Reduce the heat to low and keep cooking for a minute or two, until it gets super thick. Remove from the heat and add in the vanilla.
4. Press the pastry cream through a sieve to eliminate the lumps. Let it cool before using.
5. To assemble: Fill each phyllo cup with a couple of tablespoons of pastry cream. Cover the pastry cream with sweetened sliced strawberries, then top with a big dollop of sweetened whipped cream. Take a big bite, then moan with delight.

My measurements for the strawberries and whipped cream are, well, nonexistent, because I just kind of made a bunch of everything and threw a couple of the desserts together for me and Erik. The pastry cream recipe makes about two cups, which means I have a tub of pastry cream in the fridge that I will have fun incorporating into other desserts this week. I made 12 phyllo cups, which was probably overkill, but I wasn’t sure how my maiden voyage into phyllo would turn out, so I made extra. I whipped up about half a cup of cream and sliced maybe a pint of strawberries, and I have lots left over. This isn’t a very specific recipe--just throw some stuff together and see what works.