The bavarian cream filling.
I really wanted the filling to be richer than pudding, and I want it to hold up for a few days, so I can make the second one on the week-end. This filling can be refrigerated several days or frozen for 3 months. A pastry cream or pudding might start to break down after a few days because it is thickened with flour or corn starch or custard powder, the bavarian cream is thickened with egg yolks and gelatin.
Put the gelatin in the cold water:
3 Tablespoons cold water
2 1/4 teaspoons gelatin
Whip together the egg yolks and sugar:
4 large egg yolks
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
Heat the cream and vanilla to boiling:
1 1/2 cups cream
Seeds from one vanilla bean (I used vanilla extract instead)
Whisk, tempering the eggs/sugar with the cream/vanilla, then in the pan, bring up to heat until there are bubbles, then strain into a bowl and whisk in the gelatin/water. Put the bowl over a bowl of ice water to bring to room temperature.
Whip to soft peaks:
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
Gently fold the custard mixture into the soft peaks of cream, cover and refrigerate.