Not long after moving to England in 2019, I discovered the joys of the supermarket biscuit aisle. Here, “biscuit” refers to a cookie served with tea, rather than the American variety enjoyed with butter or gravy. Packets of biscuits filled the shelves from top to bottom, and while some of the offerings—ginger, shortbread, chocolate chip—were familiar, others, like bourbon creams and digestive biscuits, were brand new to me. The variety available was almost overwhelming, and I found myself perusing each packet, carefully debating which to try first.
In the years since that first shopping trip, I’ve sampled most of the biscuit aisle offerings, and custard creams have become one of my favorites. These sandwich-style cookies feature a silky, pale yellow custard powder–flavored buttercream between two crumbly rectangular biscuits. Paired with a cuppa (what many Brits call a cup of tea), custard creams are a tea break staple at home, in the workplace, and in social settings throughout the UK.
It’s unclear when exactly custard creams were invented, but the biscuits were incredibly popular during the 1900s: A search of the British Newspaper Archive reveals that “custard creams” were mentioned nearly 100,000 times between 1900 and 1949. In 2007, a survey of 7,000 Brits crowned the custard cream as the UK’s favorite biscuit, and while these slightly old-fashioned biscuits were recently outranked by chocolate-covered treats like Hobnobs and chocolate digestive biscuits, the custard cream remains a popular accompaniment to a cup of tea.
True custard creams are known for their distinctive embossed pattern, with swirls surrounding a diamond shape and the biscuit’s name stamped into the dough. The swirls on the biscuits are supposed to be unfurling ferns, a design that dates back to the Victorian era, Stuart Payne, the author of A Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down,, told the BBC in 2007.In London, the Chelsea Physic Garden displays an image of a custard cream among its collection of ferns, showing how the stamped design around the biscuit’s diamond logo echoes the plant’s unfurling fronds.
In addition to the classic version, custard creams come in all kinds of modern flavors, such as lemon, rhubarb, orange, and peaches and cream. The popular British department store Marks & Spencer even sells a chocolate-covered custard cream. Because many Brits enjoy custard creams daily, people often pick up a packet or two during their weekly shopping trips. Though store-bought custard creams are highly affordable and cost about 32 pence (about 40 cents) per packet, it’s extremely rewarding to make your own. Baking your own custard creams means you can control the sweetness of the buttercream and fill the cookie with as much—or as little—buttercream as you’d like. More importantly, it allows you to enjoy them fresh, when they have the best flavor and texture.
The Key Techniques for Making the Best Custard Creams
Use real custard powder. In my research, I encountered recipes offering substitutions like cornstarch or pudding mix. I tested these possible alternatives, but found that the biscuits lacked the distinct vanilla flavor and color that custard powder provides. For the best custard creams, it’s worth tracking down the real thing. Though there are many brands available, I recommend using Bird’s custard powder, which is what’s traditionally used. (As a bonus, you’ll have plenty of custard powder left over to make a batch of Nanaimo bars.)
Keep the dough cold. Refrigerate the dough before rolling, and again after cutting the biscuits. Chilling allows the biscuits to retain their rectangular shape and embossed detail as they bake, and prevents the dough from sticking to the cutter. If at any point the dough starts to feel warm or overly soft, pop it back in the fridge for five to 10 minutes before proceeding with the recipe.
Warm the milk. Custard powder gives the buttercream its signature amber color and vanilla custard flavor, but you can’t just add a scoop of dry powder. Like instant pudding mix, custard powder is designed to dissolve in hot milk. Whisking the custard powder into warm milk before combining it with the butter and sugar helps dissolve the powder, resulting in a silky smooth buttercream.
Consider springing for special cutters. For custard creams that look and feel professionally made, I recommend using classic custard cream cutters with the embossed ferns. But if you can’t find them or don’t feel like buying them, a regular rectangular will be just fine.
Fill them your way. Keep things simple by spreading the buttercream with a small stepped palette knife, or for increased precision, pipe the cream in two lengthwise strips. If you’re feeling extra fancy, you can cover the flat side of the biscuit with small piped dots of buttercream for a decorative finishing touch.
How to Serve Custard Creams
Everyone eats their custard creams differently. Some bite, some break, some nibble. Others dunk the biscuits in tea or coffee. Others, including me, prefer to separate the sandwich-style cookies and eat the smooth filling first, with the crunchy biscuits as a chaser.
Line a 13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment; set aside.
For the Biscuits: In a medium bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, custard powder, and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add egg yolk and vanilla bean paste or extract and beat on medium-high speed until fully incorporated, about 20 seconds. Add dry ingredients and mix on medium speed until dough just comes together, about 45 seconds, pausing halfway through to scrape bowl with a flexible spatula. With the mixer running, add milk and mix until a thick dough forms, about 10 seconds. (Alternatively, you can prepare the dough using an electric hand mixer.)
Use your hands to gently press the dough together; it will feel soft and slightly sticky. Flatten into an 8-inch disc, wrap tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
On a generously floured surface, roll chilled dough to about 5-mm thickness. With a 1 1/2- by 2-inch rectangular cutter, cut biscuits and use an offset spatula to transfer to prepared baking sheet, leaving at least 3/4-inch between each. Gather scraps, knead, re-roll, and cut as before. (If dough feels warm or sticks to the rolling pin, refrigerate for 10 minutes or until firm enough to roll.) You should have 30 rectangles. Refrigerate baking sheet with cookies for 30 minutes. (If a 13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheet won’t fit in your refrigerator, you can bake the biscuits on two or three 9- by 13-inch rimmed baking sheets instead.)
While dough chills, adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Bake biscuits until golden with very lightly brown edges, about 13 minutes, then cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes. Using an offset spatula, transfer biscuits to a wire rack to cool completely while you prepare the buttercream.
For the Buttercream: In a small microwave-safe bowl, heat milk on medium-high power until very warm to the touch, 8 to 10 seconds. Add custard powder and whisk until a thin yellow paste forms, 5 to 10 seconds.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, whip butter on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 30 seconds. Add confectioners’ sugar, milk and custard powder mixture, and vanilla paste. Mix on medium-high until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. The buttercream should be soft and creamy, but firm enough to hold its shape when piped. If it feels too thin, add powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon at a time, until thick enough to pipe. Using a flexible spatula, scrape buttercream into a piping bag.
Using scissors, cut a 1/2-inch hole in the piping bag. Pipe 1 to 2 teaspoons of buttercream onto the flat side of half the biscuits, then sandwich with remaining biscuits.
Special Equipment
13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheet, stand mixer or hand mixer, flexible spatula, rolling pin; 1 1/2- by 2-inch custard cream or rectangular cutter, offset spatula, wire rack, piping bag
Notes
Caster or superfine sugar is finer than regular granulated sugar; it can be found in most grocery stores and online.
The biscuit dough tastes best with vanilla paste, which adds depth of flavor and pretty specks of vanilla bean. However, good-quality vanilla extract (not flavoring) will work in a pinch.
For traditional-looking custard creams, Amazon and other online sources sell an embossed cutter that makes patterns similar to the one on store-bought custard creams. If you plan to serve your custard creams for a special occasion, it’s worth splurging on the pretty cutter. However, you can also cut the dough with a plain rectangle—about 1 1/2 x 2 inches works best.
Make-Ahead and Storage
The biscuit dough can be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 24 hours. Allow refrigerated dough to stand at room temperature for 15 minutes prior to rolling.
Leftover custard creams can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. The biscuits will soften as they sit, and the buttercream may deepen in color.
To freeze custard creams, layer filled or unfilled biscuits between sheets of parchment and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature.