Creme Anglaise is the dressed-up name for the delicious vanilla sauce that is served with so many desserts. A rich custard sauce that is speckled with the small seeds from a vanilla pod gives a luscious taste to fresh fruit, cakes, brownies, or a wonderful counterpoint to a molten lava cake.

All About Creme Anglaise

Creme Anglaise (pronounce krem ahng glaze) is French for “English cream”, and is a mix of milk and cream, sugar, egg yolks, and vanilla. Also known as pouring custard, or custard sauce, this classic dessert sauce is as useful as it is delicious. You can even transform Creme Anglaise into a light, but thickened vanilla pudding with the addition of previously whipped cream. I can’t gush enough about how versatile this recipe is.

And vanilla isn’t the only flavor you can make this recipe, add chocolate flavoring and 1 ounce of semisweet chocolate and you have a sauce that is totally different in flavor than any hot fudge sauce out there. Substitute vanilla bean taste for the seeds of a vanilla bean for a much easier recipe. Or even replace the vanilla with coconut extract for a coconut cream sauce that is fantastic over grilled pineapple. The sky (and your imagination) is the limit!

Keeping Creme Anglaise

Since this sauce is based on both eggs and milk, you need to be careful not to store it too long or improperly. I recommend no more than 3-4 days in the refrigerator. Don’t try to freeze it as that completely changes the texture from silken to unappetizing.

The best method of storing Creme Anglaise is to press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the warm sauce and then cover that with an airtight lid. To serve, simply gently warm the sauce in a saucepan and as it heats it will thin out. The slightly cooled sauce is the consistency to allow spooning into designs on a serving plate, while warm sauce will drizzle and pour over any dessert.

Tips and Tricks

Use heavy cream that has at least 36% fat to give the rich custard mouth feel of this recipe.
The sugar and egg yolks should be whisked together until they turn pale yellow, this incorporates air to the mixture.
There is a sweet spot in cooking with egg yolks, too little heat and cooking time and the sauce won’t thicken to the rich consistency. Or too high of heat or too long on any heat and you end up with sweet scrambled eggs—yuck.
Temper the eggs by incorporating a little of the very warm milk and cream into the whipped eggs and sugar to gently bring them closer in temperature to the milk. This step acts as a buffer against curdling the eggs when you add them into the warmed milk.
The eggs will thicken the English cream as they cook. You are looking for a temperature of 170°-178°F or until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Another way to check is to dip a spoon into the sauce and remove it, then trace a line on the back of the spoon through the sauce. If the track of your finger is remains, the sauce is at proper consistency.
Remember the sauce will thicken as it cools, but will thin as it is reheated—just stir constantly and heat gently to not overcook the eggs.
If you do get some cooked egg in the sauce, strain the creme anglaise through a fine mesh sieve to remove the cooked bits and get the silken consistency of the sauce.

Creme Anglaise (Vanilla Cream Sauce)

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Author: Chef Lisa @ A Pinch of Salt Lake
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 3 cups 1x
Category: sauce, dessert
Method: stovetop
Cuisine: American, French

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Description

Creme Anglaise is the dressed-up name for the delicious vanilla cream sauce that is served with so many desserts.

Ingredients

Scale

6 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup milk, do not use low-fat or skim
1 cup heavy cream
1 vanilla bean or 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

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Instructions

În a medium saucepan add the milk and the heavy cream.
Use a sharp knife to cut open the vanilla bean down the length of the pod. Place the back of the tip of the knife into the pod and scrape the seeds out.
Add all the small black seeds and the vanilla bean to the milk mixture.
Heat the milk and cream over medium-low heat until time bubbles appear all around the edge of the pan. Remove the milk from the heat.
In a medium mixing bowl, Separate the egg yolks from the egg white. Reserve the egg whites for another recipe.
Whisk the egg yolks and the sugar until they turn pale yellow.
Temper the eggs by ladling a large spoonful of very warm milk and cream and stir it well to combine and raise the temperature of the eggs and sugar.
While stirring constantly, pour the egg mixture into the milk mixture and return the pan to low heat.
Add the kosher salt and gently cook until the Creme Anglaise has thickened. You are looking for a temperature of 170°-178°F or until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Another way to check is to dip a spoon into the sauce and remove it, then trace a line on the back of the spoon through the sauce. If the track of your finger remains, the sauce is at the proper consistency.
Remove the vanilla pod from the custard sauce and pat dry to remove any sauce, and reserve to make vanilla sugar.
The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools. If the consistency is not smooth, strain out any cooked egg bits through a fine-mesh strainer.
Serve the Creme Anglaise warm to slightly cool. Or transfer to an air-tight container, press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the sauce, then cover with a lid.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. To use, gentle heat a portion of the creme anglaise in a saucepan over low heat until slightly warm while stirring frequently until the sauce reaches the desired consistency.

Decorating Creme Anglaise with Raspberry Sauce

On a dessert plate, ladle a pool of Creme Anglaise.

creme anglaise puddled on a dessert plate

With a spoon, carefully dollop spoonfuls of raspberry sauce around the perimeter, (and in the center if desired).

raspberry sauce dolloped on puddle of creme anglaise

Holding a thin skewer vertically, place the tip of the tool in the center of one of the dollops of raspberry sauce and lightly but firmly, drag the tip of the skewer around the plate.