Quick reference guide to pastry and baking creams and crèmes.
Mother/Foundation Creams
- Whipped (Fouettée) - Whipped Heavy/Whipping Cream (>30% Milkfat)
- Chantilly - Whipped Cream + Sugar/Vanilla
- Custard - Cream Cooked with Egg or Egg Yolks
- Anglaise - Cream or Milk, Sugar, Egg Yolks, Vanilla [Thin/Pouring]
- Patisserie - Milk, Sugar, Egg Yolks, Starch (Flour and/or Cornstarch) [Thick]
Daughter/Advanced Creams
Crème Anglaise (CA) or Crème Pâtissière (CP) Base
- Légère/Madame/Princess - CP + Whipped Cream
- Diplomat - CP + Whipped Cream + Gelatin
- Mousseline - CP + Whipped Butter
- Chiboust - CP + Whipped Egg Whites
- Saint-Honoré - CP + Whipped Egg Whites + Gelatin
- Frangipane - CP + Crème d’Amandes (see Buttercream)
- Bavarois/Bavarian - CA + Whipped Cream + Gelatin
- Crèmeux - CA + Butter ± Gelatin
Mock and Cheese Creams
- Buttercream - Butter + Powdered Sugar
- American Buttercream - + Milk ± Vanilla
- Flour Buttercream (Ermine Frosting) - Flour and Sugar Cooked with Milk to Form a Paste that is then Whipped with Butter
- French Buttercream (Crème au Beurre) - + Whipped Egg Whites
- German Buttercream - see Crème Mousseline
- Swiss Meringue Buttercream - Heated Sugar and Egg Whites Whipped into a Meringue that is then Whipped with Butter
- Italian Meringue Buttercream - Hot Sugar Syrup Drizzled into Whipped Egg Whites that are then Whipped with Butter
- Crème d’Amandes/Amandine - Butter, Almond Powder, Sugar, Eggs, and Flour
- Cream Cheese - Soft Fresh Cheese Made From Milk and Cream
- Crème de Marrons - Sweetened Chestnut Paste (No Dairy)
- Mascarpone Cream - Mascarpone (Fresh Cheese Made from Cream and Citric Acid) + Sugar + Egg Yolks
Dairy Creams
Cream is made by separating out milk fat from milk by varying percentages, wherein the fattier liquid becomes cream and the remaining lean liquid becomes skim milk. Whipping the cream creates whipped cream, and further whipping, known as churning, separates the fat, which becomes butter, from the remaining liquid, which becomes buttermilk.
- Cream - Dairy Product Composed of the Higher-Fat Layer Skimmed from the Top of Milk (Types by Country)
- Clotted Cream - Thick Cream (≥55% Milkfat), Made by Heating Milk with Steam and Slowly Cooling in Shallow Pans
- Crème Fraîche - Cream Soured with Lactic Acid Bacterial Culture Containing 30–45% Milkfat with a pH of ~6
- Sour Cream - Cream Soured with Lactic Acid Bacterial Culture Containing 15–20% Milkfat with a pH of ~4.5
Crème Liqueur
Contains No Actual Dairy Cream
- Crème de Banane (Banana)
- Crème de Cacao (Chocolate)
- Crème de Cassis (Blackcurrant)
- Crème de Framboise (Raspberry)
- Crème de Menthe (Mint)
- Crème de Moka (Coffee)
- Crème de Mûre (Blackberry)
- Crème de Noisette (Hazelnut)
- Crème de Noyaux (Almond)
Cream Liqueur
Contains Dairy Cream
- Amarula (Fermented Fruit of the African Marula Tree)
- Dooley's (Vodka)
- Irish Cream (Whiskey)
Custard-Based Desserts
- Boston Cream Pie/Doughnut - Cake/Doughnut Filled with Thick Custard Topped with a Layer of Chocolate Icing
- Crème Brûlée - Thickened Crème Anglaise-Based Custard Topped with a Layer of Caramelized Sugar
- Crème Caramel - Flan/Caramel Custard, Caramael Cooked Over a Thick Custard Base
- Crème Catalana - Citrus/Cinnamon Flavored Crème Patisserie-Based Custard Topped with a Layer of Caramelized Sugar
- Crème Glacée - see Frozen Custard
- Crème Plombières - Frozen Crème Chiboust-Based Custard with Candied Fruit Macerated in Kirsch
- Cream Pie - Uncooked Custard Added to an Uncooked or Partially Cooked Pie Crust and Baked Together
- Custard Pie - Cooked Custard Poured Into a Cooled, Precooked Pie Crust
- Floating Island (Île Flottante) - Crème Anglaise with Meringue
- Frozen Custard - Ice Cream with Egg Yolks
- Ice Cream - Frozen Milk or Cream, Sugar, and Spice/Fruit
- Pot de Crème - Cream, Egg Yolks, Sugar
- Zabaione (Sabayon) - Egg Yolks, Sugar, Moscato d’Asti or or Marsala