Thick Pastry Cream

Directions

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   1.
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   Set a clean, dry, nonreactive bowl and a sturdy rubber spatula near the stove.
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   Put a large, fine strainer over a large bowlm ready to pour hot pastry cream through it.
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   2.
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   In another bowl, mix the flour with 1 cup of the sugar.
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   Whisk in the eggs until smooth.
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   The mixture will be very thick.
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   3.
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   In a 2 1/2- to 3-quart, heavy-bottomed saucepan, mix the milk, the remaining cup of sugar, and the salt.
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    Scald over medium heat, stirring frequently so it doesn't scorch or form a skin.
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    When the milk has a ring of small bubbles around the edge of the pan, remove it from the heat and, with a whisk, stir 1 cup of the milk, a little at a time, into the flour and egg mixture.
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    Whisk in another cup of hot milk, then pour the now-tempered flour and egg mixture into the saucepan with the remaining milk, whisking constantly.
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    Still whisking constantly, but slowly, over medium to medium-low heat, cook the mixture until it thickens, Pull it off the heat at the first sign of a boil as soon as the first bubble breaks on the surface.
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    This will take about 5 minutes.
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    4.
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    Immediately pour the hot pastry cream through the strainer and into the bowl, using the spatula to remove it all from the pan and to push it through the sieve.
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    Stir in the vanilla.
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    5.
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    Cover the very surface of the cream with wax paper or plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming.
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    Refrigerate for at least several hours, or until chilled.
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    Pastry cream can be kept refrigerated for several days, sometimes up to a week, depending on the efficiency of the refrigeration.