As I started writing up this recipe to tell you how good homemade custard is compared to store bought, I realised that I had never actually bought custard before. So this morning after my daily caffeine fix (shameless coffee addict here), I popped into the supermarket to buy a (small) carton. Just so I could truly describe the difference. Because it’s easy enough to say that homemade is always better. But I didn’t actually know what store bought tasted like. Having now had my first taste of store bought, I can definitively tell you that there is no comparison. Store bought lacks flavour, it isn’t actually creamy and an inspection of the ingredients showed that it’s made with a thickener, which explains why it lacked the richness that’s so prevalent in homemade custard. It is NOTHING like this….
Isn’t it beautiful?? It’s quite amazing that something that is made with so few ingredients can transform into something so stunning. Both looks and taste. “Custard” is a pretty generic term. It refers to a range of desserts and sauces made using egg, milk/cream and sometimes a thickener. You can get custards that are firm enough to hold its shape, like what you get in pies and cakes, firm piping custard (Creme Patissiere) and custard that’s used to pour over things (also known as Creme Anglaise). This is the pouring kind. Which I simply call Custard because I call every other type of custard something else, not just “Custard”. 🤷🏻♀️
What to use custard for? Gosh, the list is long! I think many people associate custard with Christmas pudding. It’s very traditional. For me though, I use it to doll up many desserts. Like this Apple Cake – a reader recipe which is very popular, and rightly so because it’s so tasty, so moist and so darn fast to make! I make it often because it’s a crowd pleaser and it freezes well too. Case in point – I had one in the freezer which I pulled out to show you how custard can fancy up a simple piece of cake. 🙂
Pour it over pancakes, with Bread and Butter Pudding (INSANELY good), waffles, crumbles / crisps, puddings, French Toast, use it in trifles. Or just pour it over a bowl of fruit. If you put this in front of me at the end of a fancy pants dinner party, I’d be one happy gal. – Nagi xx
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Custard recipe video!
LIFE OF DOZER
Don’t fall off your chair in shock….but I think Dozer’s gagging for custard??
