Easy Vanilla Custard & Buttercream

Published on February 7, 2018 | In Italian/French | By tatyanaseverydayfood |

- Prep Time
- 15 Minutes
- Difficulty Level

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A simple, no-fail recipe for classic vanilla custard! This is one recipe that every baker must have in their recipe collection. This easy recipe can be used as a filling for tarts, cakes, cupcakes, eclairs, cream puffs or even cookies! I love the versatility of this recipe and use it quite often in my kitchen!

Watch my video recipe for all the instructions! YouTube channelWant to receive an alert when a new recipe goes live? Make sure you’re subscribed to my !

Bonus recipe alert! As I was filming the recipe for the vanilla custard, I knew I had to share a traditional recipe for German custard buttercream! If you have never tried this buttercream, give it a try for your next cake! This recipe yields a super smooth, creamy and pipeable cream that holds its shape very well. It’s a great buttercream recipe for cakes and cupcakes and it’s also not too sweet. If you want to add additional sweetness, add 1 cup confectioner’s sugar to the frosting. As I mention in my video, I find that using a hand mixer works better for this frosting; my stand mixer always over-mixes the buttercream, causing it to separate.

I also love that this recipe can be easily changed to incorporate other flavors other than vanilla. I’ve made this custard with coffee – just add a teaspoon of coffee extract, or a few teaspoons of instant coffee; chocolate – add 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips along with the butter; caramel – add 1/2 cup dulce de leche or my salted caramel sauce. Whichever flavor you go with, vanilla or otherwise, this custard is simply delicious. It’s creamy, smooth and aromatic!

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A few tips for making the perfect custard and buttercream!

Do not cook the custard over high heat. High heat will overcook the starch, causing the custard to separate. If this happens, create another slurry using 2 tablespoons cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water. Add it to the broken custard and cook again for a few minutes until the custard thickens.
This custard can be made with or without the butter. I prefer adding the butter because it makes the custard super creamy.
For the German buttercream, add the chilled custard slowly, about 2 to 3 tablespoons at a time. Adding too much custard at once will cause it to separate, as will overmixing.

Enjoyed this recipe? Use this handy pinboard to save it to Pinterest!

And make sure to check out my other ‘Back To Cake Basics’ episodes, like this ‘Raspberry Whipped Cream’! https://tatyanaseverydayfood.com/recipe-items/berry-whipped-cream-frosting/

Need some supplies to make this recipe? You can get them here (Amazon affiliate links):

This is a similar stainless steel sauce pot to the one I have – so handy for making the custard.
I love this set of nesting glass mixing bowls – a must for food prep.
My favorite whisk – this sturdy All-Clad whisk is amazing!
And my handy, handheld KitchenAid mixer gets the job done when I don’t want to get out my larger stand mixer.

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Ingredients

1 1/2 cups (355 ml) whole milk
1 tablespoon (8 g) all-purpose flour
1 vanilla bean
3 large egg yolks
1/3 cup (67 g) white granulated sugar
2 tbsp (19 g) corn starch
2 tbsp (30 ml) water
1/2 cup (113 g) unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
For Buttercream:
1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup (125 g) confectioner's sugar, optional

Instructions

This recipe can be made with or without the vanilla bean; increase the amount of vanilla to 2 teaspoons.
Split the vanilla bean in half and add into a sauce pan along with the milk and flour. Whisk the flour in until no clumps remain. Cook the milk over medium-low heat for approximately 5 minutes, until the milk is steaming hot but not boiling. Remove the vanilla bean and scrap out the seeds with a knife and add the seeds to the milk, discarding the pod.
Meanwhile, in a separate mixing bowl, combine the egg yolks and sugar. Whisk vigorously for 2 to 3 minutes until the mixture is thick and pale and ribbons off of the whisk. In a small ramekin, combine the cornstarch and water to create a slurry. Add the slurry to the egg yolk mixture and whisk for 30 seconds.
Once the milk is hot, slowly temper the milk into the egg yolks. Add a little at a time and whisk well after each addition. Once the two mixtures have been combined, pour the custard base back into the saucepan. Cook the mixture over medium-low heat for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula. Custard is ready when it holds its shape on the back of the spatula. Avoid cooking over high heat; this can cause the custard to separate.
Remove the custard from heat and add the 1/2 cup butter and vanilla extract. Whisk the butter into the hot custard until it's completely melted. Cover the custard with plastic wrap touching the surface, to prevent a film from forming on top. Refrigerate the custard until completely cooled, then use as a filling or for the custard buttercream.
For the buttercream. first beat the softened butter on high speed for 2 to 3 minutes until the butter is light and fluffy. Begin adding the cooled custard, a few tablespoons at a time, and whisk on medium speed after each addition. After adding the last few tablespoons, whisk for just 30 seconds. If desired, add an additional 1 cup confectioner's sugar to sweeten the frosting.

Course : Dessert
Recipe Type : Back To Cake Basics, Cakes, Video

8 Responses to Easy Vanilla Custard & Buttercream

Eileen February 7, 2018 at 2:47 pm #

Танечка привет! Thank you for putting so much effort and energy into all this work! Quick question for you. You have two pictures of the cream. One is piped and the other looks more of a yogurt consistency. I would like to use it for trybochki. Just thought I church.
Thanks in advance😊

Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood February 8, 2018 at 9:32 am #
  
  Hi! Yes, the one that looks like yogurt/pudding is the custard base, which is typically used for filling cakes and tarts. The piped buttercream is made using the custard and that’s what you’ll want to use for trybochki! 🙂
  
  Reply
Anastasia February 20, 2018 at 12:39 pm #

Tatyana, I want to say a huge Thank You for sharing this recipe! I have done it yesterday and used it on cupcakes. The buttercream is amazing! So fluffy and yummy! Not even mentioning how great it pipes. Thank you again!

Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood February 22, 2018 at 10:05 am #
  
  Aww, you’re so welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe! 🙂
  
  Reply
lkizner May 24, 2018 at 3:17 pm #

Hello Tatyana, I just tried to make the german buttercream and tried to pipe flowers on cupcakes but the frosting was melting on me. What could be the issue, it is not holding up at all.
thank you

Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood May 24, 2018 at 3:53 pm #
  
  Oh, no! Did the frosting separate or just didn’t hold its shape? Try refrigerating it for a few hours to chill it down. Make sure when you add the custard, that it’s completely cooled.
  
  Reply
Elizabeth Whitton November 11, 2018 at 7:27 pm #

Hi Tatyana
Hi just made your German Butter Cream and it split on the last part of putting in the custard I purchased your European Cake Cookbook hoping you had a cake with that type of topping my mother used to make the chocolate & Vanilla one all the time unfortunately she passed & never thought me how to make it what did I do wrong? Pls
Thank you Liz

Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood November 12, 2018 at 11:17 am #
  
  Hi Liz! Thank you so much for purchasing my book! I’m so sorry the recipe for the buttercream didn’t work out. Did you make sure to cool it down? Also, you need to be careful not to over mix the frosting once you add in the custard. Hope it turns out better for you next time!
  
  Reply