Sweet, creamy, and luscious CREME ANGLAISE, is an indulgent white sauce that can make your desserts extraordinary. With just 6 simple ingredients, you can create your very own vanilla sauce for your fresh fruits, cakes, and any light desserts. Truly a must-have for all dessert lovers out there!
I used to call this “that white good stuff” when I was younger, but as I grew up I realized that the way I called it is now inappropriate and socially unacceptable. So, I started calling it by its real name and, well, I sound fancier now. Oui!
Capture everyone’s sweet tooth by applying this fancy cream to a variety of desserts and even beverages and you’ll give the tooth fairy a run for her money.
Boring fresh fruits? No problem. Just give it a little bit of drizzle of this extraordinaire sauce.
Last-minute cake indulgence? Doll it up by layering or topping it up with this vanilla sauce for a delectable dripping effect on your cake.
Care for an easy afternoon sweet treat? Make pudding by serving this sauce with a bit of whipped cream.
The possibilities are endless for this mighty versatile dessert sauce!
What is Creme Anglaise?
The recipe goes as far back as 1837 in England, thus the name, although the recipe name is in French (history can be a little twisted.) From there, the sauce has come a long way, it is now applied to different delicacies, desserts and God only knows what else, the only limit is your imagination.
I personally love the way it goes with almost everything. Today, we get to experience creating our very own modern masterpiece with our easy Crème Anglaise Recipe.
Vanilla Sauce or English Cream, as some would call it, is basically a custard sauce that you can add to your simple desserts to have a smooth and rich flavor. Since Crème Anglaise is milk-based, it acts as a great flavor binder. Think about the burst of sweetness you get from blueberry and the plain, toned down taste of toast. These flavors seem to be a bit too far apart from each other so when you eat these as a meal, you would feel two separate ingredients instead of one meal.
Our sauce fixes this problem by bridging the two flavors together so that the flavors from these two ingredients would marry beautifully and live happily ever after.
Custard Ingredients
A lot of people prefer Crème Anglaise because it’s really easy to make. Try doing this with your friends or kids and make every moment sweeter.
Granulated Sugar – Add more if you’re using this sauce as a base for something cold (See the recipe notes)
Salt – This to tone down the sweetness in our sauce.
Whole Milk – Or you can use reduced-fat but NOT zero fat
Heavy Cream – Adding this to the recipe helps in achieving that rich custard flavor. It should at least contain 36% fat.
Egg Yolks – Take note that if the eggs are undercooked, the sauce won’t thicken to that silky consistency, and if it’s overcooked, the eggs will turn into runny scrambled eggs.
Vanilla Beans – For that fabulous full vanilla flavor. But since vanilla beans are quite pricey, you can always substitute it for vanilla extract.
How Long Will Creme Anglaise Keep in Fridge?
Homemade Crème Anglaise can last for up to 3 days (at most 4) especially when stored properly. And because you’re my friend, I’ll share with you a few ways you could store your Vanilla Custard Cream.
Keep it Cool
We want to keep that bacterial development at bay, but considering that our sauce is egg and milk-based, that may be a bit hard. Keeping it cool in the can slows down bacterial growth.
Pro Tip: I don’t encourage you to freeze this sauce as it will have a bad texture once thawed.
Keep the Moisture
Similar to the Lemon Bar, it is essential that our beloved custard sauce does not dry out and develop a skin when stored. Use an airtight container when storing the cream or the cling wrap method.
Ways to Use Creme Anglaise
Creme Anglaise is such a versatile recipe in the dessert world. If you’re into entertaining, this is a great addition to your repertoire. With just a few tweaks here and there, you can ultimately make another creation out of it.
- Spread this vanilla sauce between each cake layer and frost the cake with your favorite icing. And you’ll have a cake extraordinaire!
- Pour this sauce into a prepared baked pastry shell and top it with raspberries or anything that suits your mood.
- Use this to soak in your bread cubes for your next Bread Pudding.
- Serve this as a drizzle on your favorite cakes. This actually pairs well with my Flourless Chocolate Cake HERE.
- Or simply pour it over on some fresh fruits.
More Delectable Dessert Recipes
If you have a sweet tooth, I got loads for you to explore here on the blog. You can make any of these scrumptious, heavenly desserts below, and many more.
How to Make Creme Anglaise
Pour milk and heavy cream into a medium saucepan. Using a sharp knife, split the vanilla bean lengthwise, then scrape out the seeds, and add them together with the pod to the cream and milk mixture. Heat up the cream and milk mixture on medium-low heat until small bubbles begin to appear around the edges. Remove from the heat.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the yolks and sugar together until pale in color. Pour a small amount of cream and milk mixture to the egg yolk mixture to temper the egg yolk mixture (this prevents it from curdling or cooking when added to the hot liquid). After tempering the egg mixture, pour all of it into the milk mixture. Add salt.
Return saucepan back to the heat and cook on low heat until the sauce thickens slightly (You should be able to coat the back of a spoon. If you run your finger on the back of the spoon, there should be a visible track. Just like in the picture.) – about 5-6 minutes. Another option is to measure with an instant-read thermometer. The temperature should read 170 degrees F, and not more than 180 degrees F. Remove the vanilla pods. If needed, pour the vanilla sauce through a fine sieve to get rid of any cooked eggs, then let it cool to room temperature. Place in the fridge and store for up to 3 days or serve immediately with fresh fruits for a light dessert or with cake. Keep the Creme Anglaise refrigerated until ready to serve.
Creme Anglaise
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup (120 ml) heavy cream
- 1 vanilla bean or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 5 large egg yolks
- ½ cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- berries for serving
Instructions
- Pour milk and heavy cream in a medium saucepan.
- Using a sharp knife, split the vanilla bean lengthwise, then scrape out the seeds, and add them together with the pod to the cream and milk mixture.
- Heat up the cream and milk mixture on medium-low heat until small bubbles begin to appear around the edges. Remove from the heat.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the yolks and sugar together until pale in color.
- Pour a small amount of cream and milk mixture to the egg yolk mixture to temper the egg yolk mixture (this prevents it from curdling or cooking when added to the hot liquid).
- After tempering the egg mixture, pour all of it into the milk mixture. Add salt.
- Return saucepan back to the heat and cook on low heat until the sauce thickens slightly (You should be able to coat the back of a spoon. If you run your finger on the back of the spoon, there should be a visible track. Just like in the picture.) - about 5-6 minutes. Another option is to measure with an instant-read thermometer. The temperature should read 170 degrees F, and not more than 180 degrees F. Remove the vanilla pods.
- If needed, pour the vanilla sauce through a fine sieve to get rid of any cooked eggs, then let it cool to room temperature.
- Place in the fridge and store for up to 3 days or serve immediately with fresh fruits for a light dessert or with cake.
- Keep the Creme Anglaise refrigerated until ready to serve.
Tips & Notes:
- Add more sugar if you're using this sauce as a base for something cold (like ice cream) because chilling makes the flavor and sweetness dull.
- You can serve this sauce both hot and cold.
- If by any chance your custard starts to curdle during the process, you can save it by blending the mixture while still warm. This will make your custard sauce lump-free.
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
Nutrition Information:
Sue Boardman says
Thanks so much for the photos showing how things should look at different stages. Never seen this before in recipes. So helpful ❤️
ImmaculateBites says
So happy to hear this . Glad it is helpful
Kara Jay says
This was delicious! Pretty easy to make.
We ate it with fresh strawberries and it was the perfect dessert!
Imma Adamu says
Thank you for the feedback, Kara!
Ahmad Mccoard says
I agree with you
Lynn Adamson says
In the UK we call this custard and it is used all the time as an accompaniment to puddings. It is also the basis for English trifle and making ice cream.
ImmaculateBites says
Thanks for sharing .
Sampong says
Immaculate please how can I contact
Wendy says
Hola Imma; qué tal tu semana?. Riquísima salsa ó crema . Me encanta como cama de las peras al vino ó en la isla flotante. Deliciosa! Hay tantos postres dónde se puede poner. Verdad?. Cuídate mucho mi niña preciosa. Besitos
Rolanda says
This looks so good! Can’t wait to try this!
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Rolanda! It tastes good too :). Looking forward to your feedback !