The mush made with grain fed the Etruscan and the italic population for centuries. The grain was sometimes replaced with chestnuts that were abundantly harvested and in the XV century, when the corn arrived from America, the mush evolved into polenta. The mush was made in a salty version to pair with vegetables, game or fish and in a sweet version, mixed with honey, and spices. 

The sweet version made in the Mediterranean Basin since archaic eras, with the addition of milk and eggs at the end of the medieval period it changed into what today is called custard cream. This cream is employed to fill pastries, cakes or pies. In English and Norwegian languages and in the northern part of Europe this cream has been mostly used to fill pie crusts hence the term custard, from crust. In Swedish and Danish it is called cream fyld or fylld meaning filling cream, in the rest of the world, it is known as what can be translated “bakers’ cream” or crema pasticciera in Italian. In Sicily we call “milk cream”, crema ri latti, because the main ingredient is milk. 

The use of this cream is widespread all over the island, and each baker and each housewife makes its own version; in fact, this recipe does not have strict parameters, but allows personal touches which most of the time improve the taste. 

This cream is needed in the preparation of Zuppa Inglese, profiteroles, budino al Marsala, crema fritta, torte di crema alla frutta, to name a few desserts where it cannot be substituted. Adding Marsala wine and whipped cream makes a delicious zabaglione cream, or utilizes a Rosolio to enhance its flavor to the taste of the liquor used. Many times we served this cream as a dessert, after dinner in a goblet glass sprinkled with Marsala wine and toasted pistachio nuts with biscuits on the side.