Food Recipes Desserts Custards, Puddings & Mousse 27 Custard Recipes, From Classic Crème Brûlée to Savory Strata Serve up some custard to add a little luxury to your meal — you deserve it. By Jodie Kautzmann Jodie Kautzmann Jodie Kautzmann is an editor, baker, and confectioner with more than 15 years of experience in content creation, recipe development, and pastry production. She's obsessed with the fine details and ingredients that take dishes from tasty to outright otherworldly. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Published on July 29, 2024 Close Photo: Greg Dupree / Food Styling by Ruth Blackburn / Prop Styling by Thom Driver Just like love, custard is many-splendored and sure to make you swoon. Poured, sliced, or spooned, its lush richness owes to the presence of egg, which by definition is what's used to thicken it. Most custards tend to be dairy-based — think dessert classics like flan, baked cheesecake, and French-style ice cream — but they can also be made from ingredients such as juice, broth, or wine. Sweet or savory, they are stirred together on the stovetop, baked, or steamed. Whether you're looking to serve up a grand quiche for brunch or an elegant crème caramel for dessert, these are some of our favorite custard recipes to sweep you off your feet. 01 of 27 Bunet (Chocolate Crème Caramel with Amaretti) Photo by Christopher Testani / Food Styling by Melissa Gray / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen Also known as bonet, bunet is a luscious custard from Piedmont, Italy. Amaretti cookies enhance the almond flavor of the pudding while adding a lovely crunch to this silky dessert. Get the Recipe 02 of 27 Fraisier Cake Food & Wine / Photo by Morgan Hunt Glaze / Prop Styling by Christina Daley / Food Styling by Julian Hensarling Vanilla-flecked mousseline cream — a stovetop custard bolstered by a generous amount of butter — is the star of this French showstopper. Paired with fluffy sponge cake, it's the perfect foil for sun-ripened strawberries. Get the Recipe 03 of 27 Crème Brûlée Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Julian Hensarling / Prop Styling by Julia Bayless With its signature caramel crunch topping, classic French crème brûlée is the richest of all custards. The moment the spoon cracks the top to expose the creamy custard is our favorite part of eating this decadent dessert. Get the Recipe 04 of 27 Turmeric Custard Pie with Raspberries Photo by Johnny Autry / Food and Prop Styling by Charlotte Autry Brilliant red raspberries add a tangy-sweet burst of flavor to this silky, creamy pie. A pinch of black pepper adds a mild savory note, while turmeric tints the filling with its vibrant golden hue. Get the Recipe 05 of 27 Over-the-Top Mushroom Quiche Food & Wine / Photo by Greg Dupree / Prop Styling by Christina Daley / Food Styling Julian Hensarling “I love quiche, but it has to be several inches high and made right,” says chef Thomas Keller of the quintessential savory custard dish. This over-the-top deep-dish version, adapted from a recipe in his Bouchon cookbook, just might be the perfect example. Get the Recipe 06 of 27 Tortine di Riso Agli Agrumi (Italian-Style Rice Custard with Citrus) Greg Dupree / Food Styling by Ruth Blackburn / Prop Styling by Thom Driver As this sweet Tuscan rice dessert bakes, it separates into two layers: The top transforms into a delicate, barely set custard and the bottom develops into a firmer layer studded with soft arborio rice. Get the Recipe 07 of 27 Quindim (Brazilian Coconut Egg Custards) Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Audrey Davis These Brazilian treats feature a rich eggy custard and a chewy coconut crust, both of which come from a single batter. The macaroon-like crust forms as the shredded coconut floats and browns while baking; once cooled, the desserts are inverted, revealing the shiny, bright custard layer. Get the Recipe 08 of 27 Bougatsa Ellen Silverman Decadent and creamy, traditional Greek bougatsa is made by baking together layers of flaky phyllo and velvety custard. Chef Nasim Alikhani gives hers a Persian spin by flavoring it with rosewater, saffron, and cardamom rather than the usual cinnamon. Get the Recipe 09 of 27 Gyeranjjim (Korean Steamed Eggs) Photo by Antonis Achilleos / Prop Styling by Christina Daley / Food Styling by Ali Ramee Gyeranjjim is a savory Korean steamed custard usually served as a side dish. Fluffy and luxurious, the eggs are infused with flavorful broth and topped with all kinds of optional garnishes, like a drizzle of toasted sesame oil or hot chile oil, or a sprinkle of scallions, sesame seeds, or cod roe. Get the Recipe 10 of 27 Roasted Strawberry-Vanilla Ice Cream Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Victoria Granof / Prop Styling by Christine Keely Chef Fany Gerson says the key to French-style ice cream is making a custard base so good you could eat it without freezing it. This is definitely true of Gerson's homage to strawberries and cream; frozen, it's transformed into a thick, silky ice cream. Get the Recipe 11 of 27 Banana Pudding Pie Photo by Will Dickey / Prop Styling by Christina Daley / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey Sliced bananas are layered with rich vanilla custard and a billowy crown of fresh whipped cream, all atop a buttery crust of roasted macadamias and crushed vanilla wafers. Get the Recipe 12 of 27 Kielbasa, Apple, and Onion Strata with Mornay Sauce Yekaterina Boytsova Cubed country bread soaks up savory mustard-tinged custard before being tossed with smoky kielbasa, tart apples, and nutty Gouda and baked to breakfast perfection. Go the extra mile and make a luscious cheese sauce to drizzle on top. Get the Recipe 13 of 27 Frozen Citrus Soufflé Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Christine Keely Pastry chef Michael Werrell layers silky lemon custard with orange zest-infused whipped cream and tangy lemon curd to make these whimsical no-bake soufflés. Get the Recipe 14 of 27 Guava and Cheese Bread Pudding Photo by Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Lydia Pursell Pastry chef Paola Velez celebrates the duo of guava and cheese in this budin de pan recipe that originated with her husband's 101-year-old grandmother. She uses an excess of evaporated milk for a lavish custard that permeates the cubes of sourdough. Get the Recipe 15 of 27 Sour Cherry Tart with Almond Frangipane Photo by Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Melissa Gray / Prop Styling by Heather Chadduck Hillegas This irresistible tart takes full advantage of the affinity between tangy sour cherries and rich almond custard. A sprinkle of toasted almonds on top adds a welcome crunch. Serve it with French-style vanilla ice cream to double down on the custard deliciousness. Get the Recipe 16 of 27 Chess Pie Jen Causey / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Lydia Purcell You'll just need pantry staples for this classic Southern dessert, a simple yet decadent custard pie made from humble ingredients like eggs, milk, butter, sugar, and vanilla. Yellow cornmeal gives the filling some texture and helps create the pie’s crackly top layer; a subtle tang of lemon balances the sweetness. Get the Recipe 17 of 27 Cornmeal Cake Trifle with Sabayon and Candied Kumquats Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Christine Keely For this bright trifle, layers of crumbly cornmeal cake and tangy citrus float on billowy drifts of barely boozy sabayon, a sweet wine custard. Crisp peaks of toasted Italian meringue crown the top. Get the Recipe 18 of 27 Basque Cheesecake Cedric Angeles Baked cheesecakes fall into the custard category; this extra-creamy one does not require a water bath and emerges from the oven with a dark, deeply caramelized top. Get the Recipe 19 of 27 Lemon Meringue Pie with Marcona Shortbread Crust Jennifer Causey "I like lemon pie so much that I want even more of the bright, sunny lemon flavor to come through," says cookbook author Ann Taylor Pittman of this dessert's extra-tangy lemon custard. "It's assertively — but not aggressively — lemony, and is balanced by the fluffy meringue topping, which has the perfect sweetness and density to complement the tarter-than-usual filling." Get the Recipe 20 of 27 Pecan-Pumpkin Cream Pie Tara Donne Chef Joanne Chang's pie slices beautifully to reveal not one but two custard fillings: lightly spiced pumpkin and gooey, syrupy pecan. Get the Recipe 21 of 27 Floating Islands with Dark Chocolate Crème Anglaise and Toasted Pistachios Victor Protasio A pool of rich, deep chocolate custard sauce contrasts beautifully with light, airy meringue "islands" and crunchy pistachios for this sensual French dessert. Get the Recipe 22 of 27 Burnt Caramel Flan Romulo Yanes Let the requisite caramel sauce in this vanilla-flecked flan go a shade darker for a faint bitter edge that cuts through the dense, sweet custard. For a distinctly Cuban touch, top the flan with a rum-spiked whipped cream. Get the Recipe 23 of 27 Chawanmushi Eric Wolfinger Infused with umami-rich dashi and soy, these incredibly silky chawanmushi cook in a water bath like crème brûlée. They make a beautiful first course with a drizzle of yuzu ponzu and a garnish of fresh crab or uni. Get the Recipe 24 of 27 Salted-Caramel Cream Puffs with Warm Chocolate Sauce © Christina Holmes Pastry chef David Lebovitz fills his irresistible cream puffs with sea salt-tinged caramel custard and tops them with lush chocolate sauce. Get the Recipe 25 of 27 Creamy Butterscotch Pudding with Toffee © Wendell T. Webber Thickened with both egg yolks and cornstarch, this rich butterscotch pudding is considered a stovetop custard. Whipped cream and toffee crumbles make the perfect garnish. Get the Recipe 26 of 27 Acorn Squash with Coconut Custard Eva Kolenko Top Chef winner and host Kristen Kish upgrades her roasted acorn squash with an extravagant coconut custard that offsets the dish's earthy sweetness. The custard will set as it cools and slices beautifully at room temperature. Get the Recipe 27 of 27 Natilla (Creamy Egg Custard) © Lucy Schaeffer A direct descendant of the Spanish crema Catalana, this natilla recipe from Cuban food expert Lourdes Castro is a rich, creamy egg custard made without the crispy sugar topping. It's sweet, thick, comforting, and perfect for entertaining because it can be prepared ahead. Get the Recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit