Custard Cream Hearts
by Nigella. Featured in FEASTIntroduction
I have what I like to think of as a Wildean thing about reproducing artifice by more natural means. Thus, in How To Eat, I gave a recipe for digestive biscuits, and now I find myself propelled towards the homely accomplishment of the custard cream, hitherto — at least in my lifetime — only known in its packet form. It's probably a brand heresy to say it, but these are so much better homemade. I knew that no one would be bothered to go through the motions in the normal run of things, but thought if I fashioned them as hearts, and designated them as a special lurve token, you might consider it. And please do: they are not hard to make and fabulous to eat, on top of their heavenly appearance. To achieve this you need one piece of specialist equipment as well as the heart-cutters: a corn on the cob holder. This is my patented tool for making the dotted perforations like quaint stitching around the edges of each heart. And very satisfying work it is, too.
For US conversion — substitute Bird's Custard Powder with the same amount of cornstarch (3 tablespoons for biscuits and 1 tablespoon for buttercream) and add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract for the biscuits and ½ teaspoon for the cream.
For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.
I have what I like to think of as a Wildean thing about reproducing artifice by more natural means. Thus, in How To Eat, I gave a recipe for digestive biscuits, and now I find myself propelled towards the homely accomplishment of the custard cream, hitherto — at least in my lifetime — only known in its packet form. It's probably a brand heresy to say it, but these are so much better homemade. I knew that no one would be bothered to go through the motions in the normal run of things, but thought if I fashioned them as hearts, and designated them as a special lurve token, you might consider it. And please do: they are not hard to make and fabulous to eat, on top of their heavenly appearance. To achieve this you need one piece of specialist equipment as well as the heart-cutters: a corn on the cob holder. This is my patented tool for making the dotted perforations like quaint stitching around the edges of each heart. And very satisfying work it is, too.
For US conversion — substitute Bird's Custard Powder with the same amount of cornstarch (3 tablespoons for biscuits and 1 tablespoon for buttercream) and add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract for the biscuits and ½ teaspoon for the cream.
For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.
Ingredients
Makes: approx. 14 custard cream hearts
For the biscuits
- 175 grams plain flour
- 3 tablespoons Bird's original custard powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 50 grams unsalted butter
- 50 grams vegetable shortening (such as Trex)
- 3 tablespoons caster sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon milk or more to bind
For the custard cream
- 1 tablespoon Bird's original custard powder
- 100 grams icing sugar
- 50 grams soft unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon boiling water
For the biscuits
- 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch plus vanilla extract (see recipe intro)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ cup vegetable shortening (such as Crisco)
- 3 tablespoons superfine sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon milk or more to bind
For the custard cream
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch plus vanilla extract (see recipe intro)
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar
- 3 tablespoons soft unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon boiling water
Method
- Preheat the oven to gas mark 4/180°C/160°C Fan/350°F.
- To make the biscuits, put the flour, custard powder and baking powder into a processor and pulse to mix. Add the butter, cut into smallish cubes and the vegetable shortening, in mounded teaspoonfuls, and pulse to cut into the flour to create a crumbly mixture.
- Tip in the sugar and pulse again, and then beat the egg and tablespoon of milk together. Pour down the funnel of the processor with the engine running until it clumps together into a ball. Go cautiously: you may not need all of the egg and milk or you may need to add more milk to make it come together. Form the dough into a ball, press down into a fat disc, then wrap in clingwrap, and let it rest in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of 4mm/ 1/8 inch. Dip a 5cm/ 2-inch heart-shaped cutter in flour and then cut out your shapes. You want an even number of hearts, as you will sandwich them together later. It is possible to get about 30 biscuits out of the dough, but you can get more if you re-roll the pastry. I generally stop around 28 so that you end up with 14 biscuits, which seems appropriate for the date. That's when you know you're going downhill: when you let yourself be tainted with both commercialism and numerology.
- Prick the outside edge of each heart all the way around on one side with a corn on the cob holder, or other pointed implement of choice. Cook on a lined baking sheet for 15 minutes, and then let the biscuits cool on a rack before sandwiching them.
- To make the custard cream, put the custard powder and icing sugar into the processor and pulse briefly to combine and delump. Add the butter, and blitz together until you get a smooth cream. Add the teaspoon of boiling water and pulse again.
- Sandwich each biscuit with about 1 teaspoon of custard cream, by gently spreading a layer of the cream over the unpricked side of a biscuit and then wiggling a matching top on to it. This helps avoid crumbling and breakage, as the biscuits are quite frangible.
- Preheat the oven to gas mark 4/180°C/160°C Fan/350°F.
- To make the biscuits, put the flour, custard powder and baking powder into a processor and pulse to mix. Add the butter, cut into smallish cubes and the vegetable shortening, in mounded teaspoonfuls, and pulse to cut into the flour to create a crumbly mixture.
- Tip in the sugar and pulse again, and then beat the egg and tablespoon of milk together. Pour down the funnel of the processor with the engine running until it clumps together into a ball. Go cautiously: you may not need all of the egg and milk or you may need to add more milk to make it come together. Form the dough into a ball, press down into a fat disc, then wrap in clingwrap, and let it rest in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of 4mm/ 1/8 inch. Dip a 5cm/ 2-inch heart-shaped cutter in flour and then cut out your shapes. You want an even number of hearts, as you will sandwich them together later. It is possible to get about 30 biscuits out of the dough, but you can get more if you re-roll the pastry. I generally stop around 28 so that you end up with 14 biscuits, which seems appropriate for the date. That's when you know you're going downhill: when you let yourself be tainted with both commercialism and numerology.
- Prick the outside edge of each heart all the way around on one side with a corn on the cob holder, or other pointed implement of choice. Cook on a lined baking sheet for 15 minutes, and then let the biscuits cool on a rack before sandwiching them.
- To make the custard cream, put the custard powder and confectioners' sugar into the processor and pulse briefly to combine and delump. Add the butter, and blitz together until you get a smooth cream. Add the teaspoon of boiling water and pulse again.
- Sandwich each biscuit with about 1 teaspoon of custard cream, by gently spreading a layer of the cream over the unpricked side of a biscuit and then wiggling a matching top on to it. This helps avoid crumbling and breakage, as the biscuits are quite frangible.
Additional Information
MAKE AHEAD / STORE:
The biscuits without filling can be made a day ahead and stored in an airtight container. They can also be frozen in an airtight container, with parchment in between the layers of biscuits, for up to 1 month. But be careful as they are fragile and it is easier to sandwich them while they are still frozen and then leave for an hour before serving. The filled biscuits will keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container but will become softer over time.
MAKE AHEAD / STORE:
The biscuits without filling can be made a day ahead and stored in an airtight container. They can also be frozen in an airtight container, with parchment in between the layers of biscuits, for up to 1 month. But be careful as they are fragile and it is easier to sandwich them while they are still frozen and then leave for an hour before serving. The filled biscuits will keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container but will become softer over time.
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Show more commentsThese are so good, I now make them every Valentine's Day. Yet, I find it difficult to wait a whole year in between!
Bird's Custard Powder (although magical and soothing) is basically cornflour (aka corn starch) with yellow colouring and a bit of vanilla. If you have difficulty sourcing the OG, you may be able to create a close proximity with those.
I agree these are fabulous! Easy to make, although I only pricked the top biscuit, less work! I used the corn fork too. I made them for Valentine’s Day along with some jammy dodgers. Xx
Absolutely fabulous ... I remember when I baked them .. In Italy we don ‘t have custard power to do the cream ... so I had it shipped with Amazon .. great Nigella !! I can say thanks to your books I speak good English now!!!!
Made these for when my daughter and grandchildren came round. Said I'd made a new biscuit (I used a square cutter). My daughter opened the tin and said "oh custard creams". I asked how she knew that and she said because they looked like them. So that was very pleasing. My 6 year old grandson ate 3 and would have ate more if he had got away with it! My daughter and 2 year old granddaughter had quite a few too. Over the next day they disappeared. Luckily I got a few. Simply delicious!
Fabulous recipe....first time making these and they turned out great. I live in the US and couldn’t find custard powder, so I used an instant pudding mix- cream cheese flavor. Also, instead of the tsp of boiling water I used the strained liquid of some muddled raspberries and jam. It gave the cream nice flavor and color.
My son was born on Valentine's Day. I will definitely be making a batch of these for his birthday!
Nigella is my favorite cook, simply the best!
Would definitely make a batch. Nigella's recipes never fail. Simply good.
Just a note for those who live in the US...World Market carries Bird's Custard Powder; it's available on their website if you don't have one of their shops nearby.