Easy Bavarian Cream Recipe

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Have you ever had Bavarian cream? If not, it could be because the traditional take on Bavarian cream (aka bavarois), much like making any type of custard-based dessert, is actually pretty labor-intensive by modern standards. If you were to take such a traditional route, making Bavarian cream would involve a whole slew of ingredients, like egg yolks, milk, gelatin, cream, and milk, and you'd have to worry about tempering the eggs without actually scalding them.

Luckily for us, recipe developer and registered dietician Kristen Carli has made it her mission to simplify some of the classics, as she does with her easy (and some might say shortcut) Bavarian cream recipe. "I love any 'easy' recipe," Carli tells us. "As a home cook, not everyone has time or resources to perform extravagant recipes." She adds that super easy recipes "can make decadent recipes more attainable," and with this Bavarian cream recipe requiring but two ingredients, it's safe to say that it's about as attainable as it gets.

We weren't kidding about this Bavarian cream recipe only requiring two ingredients. All you will need is a box of vanilla instant pudding and a carton of heavy whipping cream (though you won't need the entire carton if you buy a large one, so you can consider other ways to use up leftover whipping cream).

Got your ingredients? Good. No need to spend time arranging an elaborate mise en place, either. If you have a stand mixer, add both the pudding mix and heavy cream to the bowl, and attach the whisk. If you don't have such an appliance in your kitchen, mix them together in a large, steep-sided bowl, and use an electric hand mixer.

In about 5 minutes, maybe less, your cream should be light and fluffy. At this point, that's it! You're done "cooking," since there's actually no need to cook anything. And, if your Bavarian cream is a bit lumpy, you may want to run it through a sieve or strainer to make it ultra-smooth.

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As easy as this recipe is, one thing you can't do with this Bavarian cream is prepare it well in advance of when you plan to use it. "The pudding allows this to be a very stable cream," Carli says, but she is talking about its relative stability as compared to whipped cream. With that in mind, she does say it can be kept in the fridge in an airtight container for maybe one day, but it won't last much longer. At a certain point, it will start to lose that volume you (/your stand mixer) worked so hard to achieve. 

Carli also notes that this Bavarian cream "does not freeze well either alone or within baked goods, unfortunately," so bear that in mind when using it as a pastry filling. If you're looking for a time saver, consider recipes where you can prepare the actual pastry element in advance, and add the Bavarian cream just before serving (or, as a French pastry chef might say, à la minute).

This recipe is written intentionally to be as simple as possible, though that doesn't mean that you need to stick to the bare-bones, two-ingredient list if you don't want to. There are plenty of ways to customize Bavarian cream, and since this particular recipe uses instant pudding mix, that would be your first place to start when it comes to switching things up. "You can use any flavor instant pudding as a flavor enhancer, or stick with vanilla and add extract," Carli suggests. 

Speaking of extracts, you don't have to stick with just vanilla in that regard, either. Carli recommends either almond or mint extract, though really any extract flavor that you fancy could work here, including strawberry, banana, or maple. Finally, you could boost the flavor of this Bavarian cream and add a slightly boozy twist all in one go by adding a liqueur like amaretto or Kahlua. To do so, reduce the amount of whipping cream by 2-3 tablespoons and replace it with your favorite type of liqueur.

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