Boston Cream Pie

So this is the dessert I chose to serve for Christmas dinner this past year. Well, my mom asked for it and so I decided to go for it. Although the 3 components (cake, filling, glaze) took a bit more time than I usually put into a recipe, it was definitely worth it. Also, I made the custard 2 days ahead, the cake the day before, and then did the glaze and assembly the morning of. Choosing to do the work over the course of a few days made it seem much less time-consuming.

Sitting here in 18F degree weather under my big feather blanket, wearing a hoodie and sweats and a hat, really makes me wish I was back in 86F degree Florida (where I was on Christmas when I ate this delicious dessert.) This is a great way to end a special dinner and is generally impressive, especially when you tell your guests that it was made entirely from scratch.

Boston Cream Pie

Custard

• 2 cups milk
• ¼ cup white sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 egg
• ¼ cup cornstarch
• ⅓ cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a heavy saucepan, stir together the milk and ¼ cup of sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and egg. Stir together the remaining sugar and cornstarch; then stir them into the egg until smooth. When the milk comes to a boil, drizzle it into the bowl in a thin stream while mixing so that you do not cook the eggs. Return the mixture to the saucepan, and slowly bring to a boil, stirring constantly so the eggs don' t curdle or scorch on the bottom.

When the mixture comes to a boil and thickens, remove from the heat. Stir in the butter and vanilla, mixing until the butter is completely blended in. Pour into a heat-proof container and place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until chilled before using.

Cake (from Bakerella)

• 1 cup (2 sticks) of butter (room temperature)
• 2 cups of sugar
• 4 eggs (room temperature)
• 3 cups of sifted self-rising flour (or make some yourself)
• 1 cup of whole milk (room temperature)
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 
• ½ teaspoon butter flavoring (in the extract section)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour (2) 8 inch cake pans, then prepare about 10 cupcake tins with paper or foil liners because there will be extra batter, or just prepare a 3rd 8 inch cake pan for the extra batter. Have fun with the cupcakes, feel free to make mini boston cream pies like I did.
Using a mixer, cream butter until fluffy. Add sugar and continue to cream for about 7 minutes. Add eggs one at a time. Beat well after each egg is added.

Add flour and milk (alternating to creamed mixture), beginning and ending with flour.
Add vanilla and butter flavoring to mix; until just mixed. Divide batter equally into two, filling about 1/2 full cake pans, then fill whatever you want (extra cake pan, cupcake tins) with the extra batter. Bake and do with the extra batter however/whatever you desire.

Hold each cake pan about 3 inches above your counter and carefully drop the pans flat onto counter several times to ensure release of any air bubbles. This will help you have a more level cake.
Bake for 25 – 30 minutes (depending on your oven) until done.
Cool in pans for 5 – 10 minutes. Remove and immediately wrap each layer in plastic wrap to seal in moisture. Cool completely on wire racks. I place my cake layers in the freezer to make for easier cutting/leveling.

Glaze *Do not make until custard has chilled and cake layers are cooled/frozen and ready to be assembled, because the pie must be assembled immediately upon making the glaze.

• 1 1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chip
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a double boiler over hot, but not boiling water, combine chocolate chips, butter, and corn syrup. Stir until chips are melted and mixture is smooth, then add vanilla.

Assembly

Unwrap plastic wrap from your two cake layers. Place cake layers on a smooth service (I put them on a piece of parchment or wax paper on my counter) with the rounded side up. With the tool of your choice (I use a large serrated bread knife), slice the rounded portion off so that both sides are now completely level. Do this to both cake layers.

Place one of the layers on a cake stand that has a piece of parchment or wax paper cut to the size of the stand, then take custard and heap a generous portion onto the middle of what is now the bottom cake layer. Spread custard out to the sides, making sure to keep the amount of custard equal across the cake -mine was about 1/2 inch thick; you will not use all of the custard, so save the rest for a later use or for mini cream pies if you made cupcakes . Gently place second cake layer on top of custard layer.

*Now you can make the glaze*

Spread warm glaze over top of cake, letting it drizzle down the sides, being sure to cover the entire cake. This is why you cut a piece of paper to go underneath the cake, so that it catches the drips. There will be a little leftover, so feel free to use for the mini cream pies, or for dipping fresh fruit, pretzels, marshmallows or whatever else you on hand.

Chill in the fridge until glaze hardens (an hour or so?). I left mine in the fridge for a few hours while we prepared Christmas dinner.

Enjoy!

My ugly, but oh-so-yummy and personal-size mini Boston Cream Pies
made from the leftover batter that I put in cupcake tins. 

Christmas Dinner 2011

Christmas Dinner Menu (from top left, clockwise)
Twice baked potatoes
Yorkshire pudding
Creamed spinach
Cranberry fruit gel
Rib roast
Asparagus
And for dessert, not pictured, Boston cream pie (recipe to come soon)

One of my favorite holiday recipes of all time is my family's cranberry gel. It has oranges in it, which I love. It tastes so much better than the caned stuff. Just know before you make it, it is more like a jell-o salad almost -it is not a cranberry sauce. But boy is it yummy. My sister preferred the cranberry gel over the from-scratch boston cream pie we had for dessert, actually (though everyone else helped themselves to seconds and even thirds of the boston cream pie).

Harvey Cranberry Gel
1 (6oz) raspberry gelatin mix (or two 3oz)
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup cold water
1 can mandarin oranges, drained (or use fresh, sliced/chopped oranges, if you prefer)
1 can (20oz) crushed pineapple, well drained
1 can whole cranberry sauce
1/2 cup pecans, chopped

In a large, pretty bowl that you wish to serve your cranberry gel in*, dissolve gelatin in boiling water, then add cold water. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Fold remaining ingredients into chilled gelatin and chill in fridge until firm (2-3 hours).

*you can always prepare this in a large, normal bowl, then pour into a lightly greased mold or 8x11 dish after folding in the remaining ingredients

My First Attempt at Stollen

Stollen, my favorite sweet bread, at least until I try something new again.

Although I definitely do not enjoy spending an entire day reading for class and having to drink coffee by the gallon (one can only read about political theory and history for so many hours before having to fight off sleep), I do enjoy having an entire day devoted to sitting on the couch, which is conveniently located just a few yards from my kitchen.

Such vast amounts of reading need to be punctuated by physical activity, and by "physical activity" I mean kneading dough, measuring ingredients, and pulling various pans and bowls out of my cabinets. This bread definitely kept me busy and provided some nice breaks during my reading. I started it at 7:30am and finished it at about 1pm. Also, since the dough makes 2 loaves, so I baked one and I froze the other just at the stage before baking so that I can have one later when I want something sweet and holiday-like, but do not have the 6 hours to make it.

Overall, grad school and working is a bit hard to juggle (especially when you throw in my 5-day-a-week exercise regimen), but cooking and baking is here to stay... for now.

The beautiful layers of sugar on top remind me of undisturbed snowfall on a winter morning. No wonder this is a great holiday treat.

Stollen
Adapted from David Lebovitz

You can certainly swap out any dried fruits you want although I’d keep the tang of the dried cherries or cranberries in there, if you can find them; the little nuggets will brighten up your winter just a bit.

⅔ cup dark raisins

⅔ cup golden raisins

½ cup dried cranberries or cherries

⅓ cup dark rum

1 cup slivered or sliced almonds, lightly toasted

¼ cup water

2 ½ (one envelope) teaspoons active dry yeast

½ cup milk (whole or low-fat), at room temperature

3 ½ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup whole wheat flour (or use similar amount all-purpose flour)

½ cup, plus 3 tablespoons sugar

1 ½ teaspoons ground dried ginger

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 teaspoon freshly-grated nutmeg

1 teaspoon grated lemon or orange zest

¾ teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract, or 1/2 teaspoon of powdered vanilla

1 cup, plus ¾ cup unsalted butter, melted

1 tablespoon honey

1 large egg yolk

½ cup chopped candied ginger *optional. I feel this would be so good in it, but I did not have any, so I omitted it and the bread was still divine

½ cup diced candied citrus peel (I made my own as per the directions here)

½ cup powdered sugar, or more, if necessary

1. Mix both kinds of raisins with the cranberries or cherries with the dark rum or orange juice, then cover. In another bowl, mix the almonds with the water, and cover. Let both sit at least an hour, or overnight.

2. Pour the milk in a medium bowl and sprinkle the yeast over it. Stir briefly, then stir in 1 cup of the flour until smooth to make a starter. Cover, and let rest one hour.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, with the paddle attachment, or by hand, stir together the remaining 2 ½ cups flour, the rye flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, ½ teaspoon of the dried ginger, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, citrus zest, and vanilla. Pour in the 1 cup of the melted butter, honey, and the egg yolk, and mix on medium speed until the mixture is moistened uniformly.

4. While mixing, add the yeasted starter, one-third at a time, mixing until thoroughly incorporated. Once added, continue to beat for about four minutes until almost smooth: it should resemble cookie dough. Add the dried fruits (and any liquid), candied ginger, citrus peel, and almonds, and beat until they’re well-distributed

5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly-floured surface and knead a few times, then place back in the mixer bowl, cover, and let rest in a warm place for one hour.

6. Remove the dough from the bowl, knead the dough again, then return it to the bowl. Let rest for another hour.

7. Divide the dough into four pieces and shape each one into a oval, and place them evenly-spaced apart on a baking sheet (I used my stoneware one).

8. Cover the loaves with a clean tea towel and let rest in a warm place for one hour.

9. Preheat the oven to 350F. Remove the tea towel and bake the loaves for 45 minutes, or until they’re deep golden brown.

10. While they loaves are baking, mix together the remaining ½ cup sugar and 1 teaspoon dried ginger. When the breads come out of the oven, generously brush the remaining ¾ cup melted butter over the hot loaves, letting the butter saturate the breads, repeating until all the butter is absorbed.

(Feel free to lift the loaves to saturate the bottoms. Just make sure you don’t break the loaves.)

11. Rub the gingered sugar mixture over the top and side of each loaf then let rest on the baking sheet until room temperature.

12. Sift the powdered sugar over, under, and around the breads, rubbing it in with your hands. They wrap the loaves on the baking sheet in a large plastic bag and let them sit for two days. After two days, the loaves are ready to eat, or can be wrapped as gifts. You may wish to sift additional powdered sugar over the top in case they need another dusting.

Storage: Stollen can be stored for at least a week, if well-wrapped, at room temperature. Or frozen for at least one month.