Different Type of Custards for Your Desserts

Custards are dense, rich and creamy desserts that resemble pudding. They are gently cooked or baked and then refrigerated to turn it into a slightly firm and thick gel sauce when cooled. Custards are generally made using the following ingredients: eggs and/or egg yolks, milk or cream, sugar and, often, salt and other flavorings. Some recipes for custards call for a small amount of flour or other starch such as cornstarch or potato starch.

There is a wide variety of custards. They can be made into a single dessert, such as custard pies, flans, or cheesecakes or they can be included to make a different dessert such as in making cream puffs. There are two ways to make custards for desserts. They are either oven baked or you can stir or cook them over a stove.

Baked custards use milk instead of cream and lesser eggs. Baking makes the lightest custards. The gel has a firmer texture since it is not stirred during the process of baking.
To find out if baked custard is done, insert a metal knife off its center. If it comes out clean, the custard is done. Be careful not to cook longer because the custard may curdle. On the other hand, under-baked custards will not set.

Cooking custards on top of stoves result in custards that are not as thick as when baked because the stirring interrupts the formation of the gel. Stovetop custard is typically used as a dessert sauce or a base for ice cream. Do not let stirred custards boil or set. They should be soft but thickened. After being refrigerated, stovetop custards will slightly thicken.

Here are popular types of custards for desserts:

Bavarian Cream - a cold and rich custard dessert with whipped cream and different flavorings such as pureed fruit, liqueurs, gelatin and chocolate. Bavarian cream may be served in tall glasses or they can be molded into various shapes.

Cheesecakes – These are oven-baked custards filled with a mixture of different cheeses such as cream cheese, ricotta cheese, and cottage cheese along with sugar and other flavorings. Cheesecakes are often topped with fruits or chocolate.

Crème Brulee – This is a French word meaning burnt oven-baked custard. It combines the velvety custard with caramelized sugar topping, creating a dessert that is delicate with a silky texture and very rich sweetness.

Custard Pies - Baked custard pies consist of uncooked custard filling placed into a pastry shell and then baked while cream custard pies have cooked custard or mouse as filling, which is spread in a cooled and pre-baked shell. Pumpkin Pies and pecan pies are common examples of this type of custard dessert.

Other custard desserts that you can try to order or make as a dessert or included in a dessert recipe include mousse, charlottes, vanilla custard sauce, crème caramel, pasty creams, flans, French ice cream, pot de crème, and zabaglione.

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Corrie Duana is a contributor at ArticleMash.com. She is an expert in Recipes and Desserts advice.