Monday 29 April 2013

Fleeting - Boston Cream Pie

I wasn't sure if I should dedicate this post to the victims of the Boston Marathon Bombing. It seems right and reflective though a bit odd to dedicate such a dessert for such a devastating event.
I shan't try to write about the event, nor any other really. I have only come to realise that Singapore is just quite isolated. It's not that we don't know what is going on... just that we don't know what's going on. Frustrating much.

So I'll just get down to the post.



I've always thought that the Boston Cream Pie is to Boston kinda like the Victoria Sandwich is to England. Simple but so yummy. I've never tried a Boston Cream Pie from Boston and would love to! If you've tried it, I'd like to know what it's like!
What's the cake like? Is it sweet? Plain? Spongey or crumble? Light or a bit more stodgy? What's the cream like? Is it Light and fluffy? Does it taste strongly of custard? Is it jelly-like?
Don't think I need to ask about the chocolate.

So I made a HUGE cream pie. 10". It wasn't decadent so I managed to share it with my bible study group and have 2 slices myself! Greedy Grub.

The Chocolate was lovely and set nicely. The cake wasn't too plain. It could have been a bit more moist, but the copious amount of cream made up for it all too well. The cream was custard made with whipped cream. Yummy! So a hint of custard in cream really.

All in all, it was a scrumptious dessert that everyone seemed to love. I know I did! :D

I decided to make the custard with powder custard I've known since forever...


which meant that I tweaked the cream recipe. Saves on all the egg yolks if you ask me!

INGREDIENTS
Cream
  • 2 tbsp custard powder
  • 3 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 300mls milk
  • 200mls whipped heavy cream
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Cake (adapted from What's Cooking America)

  • 2 cups sifted cake flour
  • 2 tsp double acting baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 3 eggs
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Chocolate Ganache
  • 100mls heavy cream
  • 7oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
METHOD
Cream
  1. In a small bowl, mix the custard powder and sugar to a paste with 2 tbsp of milk from the 300mls
  2. In a clean bowl, whisk the whipping cream until firm peaks just begin to show (be careful not to over beat!)
  3.  Over low heat, bring the milk to boil in a non-stick saucepan
  4. Reduce to heat to the lowest and pour in the custard paste
  5. Stir continuously until the custard begins to thicken, the longer you keep it on the heat, the thicker it will become
  6. Once it is at pudding-thick consistency, remove from heat and continue to stir until cooled (approx. 3-4 minutes)
  7. Pour the custard into the whipped cream and fold in until all well incorporated
  8. Cover the bowl and refrigerate until ready to use
Cake
  1. In a large bowl, beat softened butter, sugar & vanilla extract until light and fluffy
  2. Add in the eggs and beat until all well combined
  3. Sift in 1/3 of the flour, salt & baking powder and mix well
  4. Pour in 1/2 of milk and mix well
  5. Repeat steps 3 & 4 until all mixed in
  6. Pour mixture into a greased 10" cake tin and bake at 180 degrees C for about 22-24mins or until skewer inserted in middle comes out clean
  7. Remove from tin and leave to cool
Assemble Cake With Cream
  1. When cake has fully cooled, using a long serrated knife, level the top of the cake and cut it horizontally in half to give you two 10" cakes
  2. Place the bottom layer onto a wire rack and scoop the cream into the middle
  3. You can use a spatula or offset palette  to spread it evenly leaving a 2" border around the edge
  4. Gently stack the top layer top-down on top of the cream
  5. Keeping the cake at eye level, gently press down on middle of the top cake and watch the cream spread out to the edges
  6. Refrigerate while you make the Ganache
Ganache
  1. Bring the cream to simmer in a non-stick saucepan over low heat
  2. Once simmering, remove from heat and pour in chocolate
  3. Stir continuously until all chocolate has melted and mixture is starting to thicken
  4. *Remove cake from fridge and pour 1/2 of the chocolate mixture onto the top of the cake
  5. *Spread it out slightly with an offset palette knife before pouring the 2nd 1/2 slowly, ensuring that the ganache can flow off the edge of the cake all around
  6. Refrigerate cake in an airtight container until ready to serve
* I emphasise this because pouring all of it at once can result in lots of the ganache just flowing off the cake creating a downright mess especially if your cake isn't entirely flat, which mine isn't most of the time! Taking time to direct the ganache will ensure that the chocolate is more evenly spread and that you waste as little as possible.


Yay!!

Love,
Amy.

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