Cheater's Creme Anglaise . . . Works for Me Wednesday

Have you ever come across a recipe that called for a dessert to be topped with, not whipped cream, but creme anglaise?

Creme Anglaise is described as a thick, pourable custard and is made with eggs, milk, sugar and vanilla bean.

Well, I came across a recipe not long ago that called for cream anglaise to be served with the cake, but I was feeling lazy.  Then, I heard a voice in my head telling me to use melted ice cream.  I'm pretty sure the voice was Alton Brown's from a very, very old episode of Good Eats.  It sounded like him anyway. ;)

So, that's exactly what I did.  And it was heavenly.

I highly recommend this Haagen-Dazs Five Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.  I'm not a vanilla ice cream girl, but I could eat this entire container in one sitting (melted OR frozen). 

Let it melt in the fridge....it will still be nice and thick and perfect to spoon over that dessert.

The cake it was meant to top wasn't my favorite.  
But the Cheater's Cream Anglaise?  It works for me!
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31 comments

  1. Andrea - Under a Blue MoonSeptember 20, 2011 at 9:01 PM

    I love this tip and it totally works! (pssst.....it was Ina...who sounds EXACTLY like Alton in my head....)

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  2. bettySeptember 20, 2011 at 9:14 PM

    thanks for the tip! I'll try it and by the way all your cookies are adorable and very creative!

    http://bitstreats.blogspot.com/

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  3. Meredith MacRitchieSeptember 20, 2011 at 10:00 PM

    This appeals to me just on its own... I am a weirdo and like to stick my ice cream in the microwave for a few seconds to soften in up! What a great topping for so many desserts, thanks for sharing!!

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  4. AndreaSeptember 20, 2011 at 10:58 PM

    Now I need the yummy dessert recipe to go with!

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  5. CandiSeptember 21, 2011 at 5:54 AM

    You were right about the foodnetwork. I remember Ina Garten doing this. Such a great idea!!!

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  6. SaraSeptember 21, 2011 at 7:51 AM

    Genius!! Melted ice cream is amazing in coffee too :)

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  7. MarianneSeptember 21, 2011 at 8:32 AM

    Great idea - you can always count on Alton!

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  8. AnonymousSeptember 21, 2011 at 9:58 AM

    What a great idea!! Sometimes there's just no time or energy to whip up the real thing (not that I've ever--ehem--made real creme anglaise anyway, heh heh).

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  9. TeresaSeptember 21, 2011 at 10:10 AM

    Yummy yummy!
    And your pics are lovely.
    How do you get them so BIG!?
    xo

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  10. AnaSeptember 21, 2011 at 10:37 AM

    Delicious!

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  11. AnonymousSeptember 21, 2011 at 1:10 PM

    Brilliant!

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  12. MollySeptember 21, 2011 at 1:38 PM

    Smart!

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  13. cookies and cupsSeptember 21, 2011 at 1:57 PM

    Love this tip!!!
    I hear Alton Brown talking to me sometimes too...

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  14. ErinsgobraghSeptember 21, 2011 at 4:14 PM

    That's a great idea! I love un conventional tip/ideas!

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  15. AmandaSeptember 21, 2011 at 5:17 PM

    soooo cool!

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  16. Jen @ My Kitchen AddictionSeptember 21, 2011 at 7:45 PM

    Great tip! It makes perfect sense, but I never really thought about it before. I will keep this in mind the next time I don't have the energy to be bothered with making creme anglaise!

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  17. WinnieSeptember 21, 2011 at 8:36 PM

    This is totally brilliant!

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  18. Jen at The Three Little PigletsSeptember 21, 2011 at 9:23 PM

    That's hilarious! The melted ice cream also works great as a coffee creamer - adds flavor and that frothy goodness...

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  19. AnonymousSeptember 21, 2011 at 11:36 PM

    ingenius! :D

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  20. JaniceSeptember 22, 2011 at 4:28 AM

    great idea!

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  21. TidyMomSeptember 22, 2011 at 10:42 AM

    there you go..........thinkin' all smart again on us! lol love it!

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  22. DelishhhSeptember 22, 2011 at 5:39 PM

    Such a clever idea . . .love Haagen Dazs . .

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  23. AnonymousSeptember 23, 2011 at 8:07 AM

    I am ready to try this in my coffee or an Americano, etc. Hmmm...good excuse to have Haagen-Dazs on hand, right?

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  24. AnneSeptember 23, 2011 at 9:45 AM

    I knew this!!! It is such a great shortcut too.

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  25. AnastasiaSeptember 25, 2011 at 5:40 AM

    I actually learned this in culinary school. haha

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  26. PamSeptember 27, 2011 at 1:42 PM

    That is just too cute, making cookies that look like cupcakes.

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  27. JacquelineOctober 11, 2011 at 12:01 AM

    This actually makes tons of sense--because french vanilla ice cream could be creme anglaise based. We made "french vanilla ice cream" from creme anglaise all the time in culinary school.

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  28. Buy Maplestory MesosFebruary 9, 2012 at 10:57 PM

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  29. Heidi SzczepanskiNovember 5, 2012 at 5:22 PM

    Great idea. Thanks for sharing the tip.
    Exede

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  30. KimMay 11, 2018 at 8:25 AM

    I will wait for your next post!

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  31. SonyaJune 6, 2018 at 8:26 AM

    The points you have mentioned in this article are useful.

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Thank you so much for taking the time to comment! Happy baking! :)
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