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–+ servings
eggless fruit custard

Eggless Fruit Custard: Gluten-free and Easy to Make

Heat milk to boiling, stirring frequently. Make a thick slurry with cornstarch and a little milk and add with stirring to the hot milk. simmer , stirring constantly, until milk thickens. Stir in sugar and a few drops of beet juice (for pink color). Set aside to cool, stirring every few min to prevent forming a 'skin' on the surface. When cool, add a few drops of vanilla and refrigerate for about an hour. Just before serving, cut up fresh fruit of your choice. Serve with chilled custard. Enjoy!
5 from 8 votes
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American, Continental, European
Servings 6 people
Calories 144 kcal

Equipment

  • Heavy bottom saucepan - medium, 2 qt/L stainless steel or non-stick coated preferred

Ingredients
  

  • 2 1/2 cups Milk - divided 2 cups + 1/2 cup Whole milk preferred; for vegan custard, use a creamy non dairy milk
  • 2 1/2 tbsp Cornstarch (4 1/2 tsp) also called corn flour (this NOT the same as ground/milled whole grain corn)
  • 2 1/2 tbsp Sugar (4 1/2 tsp) this custard is not super-sweet - you can add up to 2-3 tsp more if you like it sweeter
  • 1 tsp Beet juice adjust as needed to get the color you like
  • 1 tsp Vanilla flavoring adjust as per preference; another delightful option is to use 2 tsp rose water
  • 1 cup Apples - cored and diced with or without peel; sweet, juicy apples preferred; if not available, use another sweet fruit - pears, Chikoo (sapota), dragon fruit...
  • 1 cup Mango - diced (without peel) if not available, use another brightly colored fruit - diced papaya, orange segments, diced strawberries, raspberries, other berries, grapes - all are OK
  • 1 cup Banana - sliced lengthwise and cut into 1/4 inch (1/2 cm) thick pieces if not available, use another fruit - see suggestions listed above

Instructions
 

  • Place 1/2 cup milk in a small bow and allow it to come to room temperature. Add 2 1/2 tbsp cornstarch.
    slurry-cornstarch-milk
  • Stir to mix into a slurry.
    cornstarch and milk slurry
  • Heat 2 cups of milk in a heavy bottom medium (2 qt/L) saucepan on low-medium heat, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking and burning at the bottom.
    Note: For doing this faster and more easily:
    I recommend heating the milk in the microwave, 1 cup at a time, for about 1 min on Hi for each cup. This way, once you transfer the preheated milk to the saucepan, it will come to a boil very quickly - in about 2-3 min.
    Do still stir the milk, making sure to scrape the bottom, after you transfer it to the saucepan.
  • When you start seeing small bubbles near the sides and top of the milk, turn the heat off.
    Stir the slurry again - you will immediately notice that the cornstarch has settled to the bottom like thick clay. Stir it well to distribute evenly and slowly pour into the hot milk with one hand, while stirring steadily with the other hand.
    Note: If you don't stir it continuously while you're adding the slurry, you will get a lumpy custard - that's definitely NOT what you should be getting!
  • After you've added all the slurry, add 1-2 tsp water and collect the little bit of cornstarch still left in the bowl. Stir this water to the milk too. Even with the heat off, you will see the milk beginning to thicken.
    Turn the heat on and cook on low heat, wile stirring, for about 1-2 min and turn the heat off.
  • Add the sugar - I have used unrefined sugar, which is not pure white, but slightly brownish.
    Stir in the sugar and do a taste-test for the following two things:
    1: There should not be any "raw" cornstarch taste left in the custard - if it tastes a bit pasty, or like uncooked starch, you will need to cook it for a few more min. If it tastes smooth and creamy, it's done.
    2. Check the sweetness level: this recipe makes a custard that is not super-sweet. So, if you would like it to be sweeter, feel free to add a bit more sugar - up to about 2-3 tsp more, as per your preference.
    sugar in custard
  • It's time to add the food color: I like to add some beet juice for a lovely pink color. (see Recipe Notes for how to prepare the beet juice from fresh beets.)
    Of course, if you prefer, you can add artificial red food color instead - you will likely need just a couple of drops.
    You can certainly decide to use a different color for your custard: light yellow and pale green are two other colors that work really well when paired with fresh fruits. Saffron works beautifully to give a golden yellow color along with exotic flavor. For green - artificial food color might be the best option.
    Either way, I like to dilute 1-2 drops of food color with a tsp of water before adding to the custard, that way, I can more easily control the intensity of color.
  • After adding each drop of diluted color, stir to mix and decide whether or not to add more color.
  • Keep adding one drop at a time, until you get the color you want.
    pink swirls in custard
  • The picture shows the shade of pink I personally like for this fruit custard - it's up to you to decide whether to go lighter or darker.
    Stir the custard periodically while it cools to room temperature, to prevent it from forming a "skin" on the surface.
    Some folks suggest covering the custard with plastic wrap that touches the custard, to prevent the "skin"-formation. However, I do not recommend doing this - it is not advisable for a plastic film to touch very hot food!
    Even if a bit of "skin" forms, don't worry! It's OK - just stir it back into the custard - you won't even notice it when you eat it!
    Once the custard has cooled to room temperature, stir in the flavoring - do NOT add while the custard is hot or the flavoring will just evaporate away!
    Vanilla works very well when pairing with fresh fruit... another delightful option is rose water (available at Indian grocery stores). You don't need much at all - 1-2 tsp should be plenty.
    Transfer the custard to a serving bowl and refrigerate until you're ready to serve.
    Note:
    If you're in a hurry, here's a way to cool it down fast:
    Place ice in a large bowl or pot, add just enough cold water to make an ice-water slush. Place your hot saucepan with the custard into the ice-water slush and stir gently and steadily to cool it down evenly. It should cool down in about 5-7 min.
    I recommend cooling the custard while it's still in a metal saucepan - it will cool faster because the metal conducts heat better. If you transfer it to a glass/ceramic serving bowl while it it still hot, it will take much longer to cool down.
  • While the custard cools, you can begin to prep the fruit.
    Cut the mango into cubes. See the picture for illustration. Use a sturdy spoon to scoop out the pieces.
    cutting mango
  • If there's a little bit of juicy pulp left behind, scrape it away from the peel (with the spoon) and collect that too!
    Repeat with the remaining part of the mango (on the 2 uncut sides). Even if the pieces seem a bit uneven in shape, it's OK!
    Place the mango pieces in a separate serving bowl. It's best to serve the fruit at room temp, but you can refrigerate it if you like it chilled.
    A Sweet Fruity Bonus:
    When you're done cutting up all the fruit, take a sweet break! Suck on the mango seed to slurp up and enjoy the last little bit of juicy pulp that you cannot possibly remove with a knife!
    mango
  • About 10-15 min before you plan to serve the custard, prepare the apples. I don't recommend doing this too much in advance, mainly because the apples start browning - visually, that's not very appealing!
    To prep:
    Slice the apple(s) into quarters, remove the seed core by making a with a V-cut through each piece. Slice each quarter into 3-4 thinner slices, then dice each piece - see accompanying picture for illustration.
    apples diced small
  • About 10-15 min before you plan to serve the custard, prepare the bananas. I don't recommend doing this too much in advance, mainly because the bananas, just like the apples, quickly start browning - visually, that's not very appealing!
    To prep:
    Peel and slice the banana(s): cut in half lengthwise, then slice into 1/4 in (1/2 cm) pieces. Add to the bowl with the diced mango and apples.
    apple banana mango
  • Set it all out and let folks help themselves....
    Maybe you could also set out some diced jello, ice cream, whipped cream..... Yumm!
    Enjoy!
    eggless fruit custard

Notes

Corn starch not available?
No worries...
Use one of the following substitutes instead,  a 1:1 swap
  • Arrowroot flour  -  a 1:1 swap  (so , for this recipe use 2 1/2 tbsp arrowroot flour)
    • gluten-free
    • also suitable for Hindu religious fasts
  • Potato starch - a 1:1 swap  (so , for this recipe use 2 1/2 tbsp potato starch)
    • gluten-free
    • also suitable for Hindu religious fasts
  • Tapioca flour - a 2:1 swap (so, for this recipe use 4 1/2 - 5 tbsp tapioca flour )
    • as soon as it thickens the milk, turn the heat off, do not boil longer - it might become stringy!
    • gluten-free
    • also suitable for Hindu religious fasts
  • All-purpose flour: a 2:1 swap (so, for this recipe use 4 1/2 - 5 tbsp all-purpose flour)
    • it will likely take a bit longer to thicken, so be patient and keep stirring till the milk is thickened
      • do a taste-test, to make sure there is no "raw flour" taste left in the custard
    • NOTE: this option is NOT gluten-free!
    • NOT suitable for Hindu religious fasts
 
Make a little Beet Juice for adding pink color to the custard:
Place a small piece of beetroot in a microwave safe ceramic bowl and add about 2 tbsp of water. 
  • Cover and microwave on medium-hi (about 40-50% power)  for 30 seconds.
  • Set aside for 5-7 min for the beetroot juice to bleed into the water.
  • The liquid will turn a very dark pink.
  • Use a few drops of this liquid to color the custard pink- if its extremely dar, I suggest diluting it a bit before adding to the custard.
 
Storing Leftovers:
In refrigerator:
Refrigerate leftovers in a container with a well-fitting lid; consume within 2-3 days.
  • Since it contains dairy milk, it can spoil fairly quickly.
In Freezer:
I do NOT recommend freezing this custard - in my experience, its texture, upon thawing is not very appealing.
  • However, if you do have a lot left over, and don't think you can finish it off in 2-3 days, sure, go ahead and freeze it in a lidded container.
  • To serve:
    • Thaw, transfer to a heavy-bottom saucepan and heat on low heat, stirring frequently, until it begins to gently boil.
      • Cool to room temperature, chill and serve.
    • Thaw till ice crystals are mostly melted, transfer to a blender jar and blend on low speed till it becomes smooth again and serve (chilled)
      • Do not blend on high speed - it will become too frothy!

Nutrition

Calories: 144kcalCarbohydrates: 26gProtein: 4gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.2gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 12mgSodium: 40mgPotassium: 312mgFiber: 2gSugar: 19gVitamin A: 490IUVitamin C: 13mgCalcium: 131mgIron: 0.1mg
Keyword Cool and refreshing, creamy dessert, Custard, Fresh fruits, Fruity dessert, Pudding
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