Learn how to make gluten-free pastry cream, an essential part of many Italian recipes.

Gluten-Free Pastry Cream

Gluten-free pastry cream is a versatile preparation, a variant of the classic pastry cream, allowing you to create desserts suitable for everyone. This recipe is specially designed for those avoiding gluten, yet the result remains identical to the original, with the same deliciousness. It is one of the most beloved creams in Italian pastry, capable of transforming into a velvety filling for cakes, tarts, and cream puffs, or simply enjoyed by the spoonful. Milk, eggs, and sugar form the base of the recipe, while rice starch and potato starch replace flour to provide structure and density. The result is a smooth, enveloping, and fragrant cream, ideal for making your homemade desserts special.

If you’re looking for other gluten-free cream recipes, check out:

• English Cream
• Coconut Milk Cream
• Vanilla Sauce
• Diplomatic Coffee Cream
• Vegan Pastry Cream

Ingredients

• 500 ml milk
• 4 egg yolks
• 120 g sugar
• 50 g rice starch
• 20 g potato starch
• 1 vanilla pod (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)

Instructions

1. In a saucepan, heat the milk with the vanilla until just before it simmers.
2. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until pale and creamy.
3. Add the rice and potato starch, mixing until well combined.
4. Slowly pour in the hot milk while whisking constantly to temper the eggs.
5. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring continuously until it thickens.
6. Once thickened, pour the cream into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap, pressing it against the surface to prevent a skin from forming.
7. Let the cream cool at room temperature, then refrigerate until set.

Total Time

Approximately 30 minutes

Cuisine

Italian