Crème Anglaise is the luscious, lighter cousin of vanilla pudding.  A quick and simple recipe, this topping is perfect served warm over cake, summer berries, or a cool weather pie. Experiment with other flavorings such as hazelnut, lavender, or Earl Grey by infusing the cream in advance.

Crème Anglaise

Serves 3 (Yields ~ 3 cups)  |  Prep Time :30  |  Total Cook Time :30

INGREDIENTS 

• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 vanilla bean (or 1 tsp. vanilla extract – I swear by Nielsen Massey)
• 6 egg yolks, room temperature 
• 12 oz. (¾ lb.) unsalted butter (at room temperature)
• ¼ cup granulated sugar

EQUIPMENT

• saucepan
• whisk
• rubber spatula
• strainer
• glass bowl / pouring container to cool and store

DIRECTIONS

1. In a saucepan, pour milk and cream and add vanilla bean (scraped) or vanilla extract.
2. Bring cream just to a simmer, but do not boil.
3. In a bowl, whisk together room temperature egg yolks and sugar.
4. Add egg yolk-sugar mixture to gently heated cream in saucepan, one drop at a time. Performing this step painfully slow is essential. Adding cold egg yolk to warm or hot cream too quickly will cause the egg to scramble and the sauce to “break”. Once that happens, simply pour it down the drain and begin again. (Pro tip : temper the eggs by adding a few spoonfuls of the slightly-warmed cream to the egg yolk as it warms but before it boils to equalize the temperatures.)
5. When fully combined, heat and constantly stir the cream mixture, scraping down the sides frequently, until it thicken and coats the spatula, about 5 minutes.
6. Strain the mixture through a sieve as it will invariably have (hopefully only) small egg solids.
7. Cool the liquid to the desired temperature and consistency (it will thicken in the fridge) or pour over dessert warm.