Vanilla cream sauce recipe

Silky, fragrant, and irresistibly rich, Vanilla Cream Sauce is a luxurious dessert topping that enhances everything from cakes and pies to pancakes, bread pudding, and fresh fruit. Made with simple ingredients like milk or cream, sugar, egg yolks, and real vanilla, this classic French-style sauce (often known as crème anglaise) adds elegance and flavor to any sweet dish. Whether served warm or chilled, it’s a must-have in every dessert lover’s kitchen.

Ingredients

Cooking Steps

Step 1: Infuse the Cream Mixture

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the whole milk, heavy cream, and pinch of salt.
2. If using a vanilla bean, slice it lengthwise down the middle and scrape out the tiny black seeds with the back of your knife. Add both the scraped seeds and the vanilla pod to the milk mixture in the saucepan.
3. Heat the mixture over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until it just barely comes to a simmer (small bubbles will appear around the edges of the pan). Do not let it boil vigorously. Remove from heat immediately.

1. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and granulated sugar until the mixture is pale yellow and creamy.
2. Slowly, in a thin stream, ladle about ½ cup of the hot milk mixture into the egg yolk mixture while whisking constantly and vigorously. This process is called "tempering" and prevents the egg yolks from scrambling.
3. Once the egg yolks are tempered, slowly pour the entire egg yolk mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining hot milk mixture, whisking constantly.

1. Place the saucepan back over medium-low heat.
2. Cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or spatula, for 5-8 minutes, or until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of the spoon (if you draw a line with your finger on the back of the spoon, the line should hold).
3. Crucially, do NOT let the sauce boil once the egg yolks are added, or it will curdle. If you see it starting to bubble, remove it from the heat immediately and whisk vigorously. The ideal temperature for Crème Anglaise is around $175-180^{\circ }\text{F}$ ($80-82^{\circ }\text{C}$).

Step 4: Finish and Strain

1. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
2. If you used a vanilla bean, remove and discard the pod (or rinse and dry it to use again for infusing sugar).
3. Stir in the pure vanilla extract (if using, as opposed to a vanilla bean).
4. For the smoothest sauce, strain the vanilla cream sauce through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl. This removes any tiny bits of cooked egg or vanilla bean pod.

Step 5: Cool and Store

1. If not serving immediately, place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the sauce to prevent a "skin" from forming as it cools.
2. Allow it to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
3. Vanilla cream sauce can be served warm, at room temperature, or chilled.

Nutritional Value

Benefits

• ✅ Versatile Dessert Topping: Pairs beautifully with cakes, fruits, crepes, and pastries.
• ✅ Naturally Flavorful: Made with real vanilla for an aromatic, comforting finish.
• ✅ Customizable: Can be infused with citrus zest, cinnamon, or even a splash of liqueur for different flavor profiles.
• ✅ Elegant Yet Simple: Offers a refined restaurant-quality touch using everyday ingredients.
• ✅ No Preservatives: Homemade version avoids artificial thickeners and additives often found in store-bought sauces.