Monday, October 29, 2007

Bostini Cream Pie

Have I gotten myself into something that I can't handle? I don't know! We'll just have to wait and see. My mom asked me how I was going to do it. I told her, it's only once a month...surely I'll have time. But will I have time? Will I succeed? What am I rambling about...I've joined the Daring Bakers!!! For months I've been watching, enjoying the posts, and thinking that would be fun. So I finally joined. Another reason...they make things that I can make but never would without "having" to make it...so it's a challenge for myself! This month the challenge was given by Mary to make Bostini Cream Pies. Yes...Bostini! Basically, it's a Boston Cream Pie made with an orange chiffon cake and a true custard rather than just a cream...and it's set up a bit differently...custard on bottom, then cake, then chocolate. I made this for a get together with some friends from school. I don't really have any good ramekins that can be put in the oven, so I decided to make a large version of this. In the end, it turned out okay but my original plan didn't work. I wanted to let the custard set in a round cake pan, flip the pan over on a plate, and have the custard beautifully slip out onto the plate. Well...the slipping out was just a dream! I ended up scraping the custard out and spreading back into the proper shape on the plate. Then I topped it with my chiffon cake, which I thought turned out great. Everyone at the party enjoyed the cake. If you want to see some other entries drop by the Daring Bakers site. I ended up halving the recipe because I didn't check how much cream I needed and only had half...it worked fine! In fact, a whole recipe would have been WAY too much!Bostini Cream Pie (from Donna Scala & Kurtis Baguley of Bistro Don Giovanni and Scala's Bistro)Makes 8 generous servings

INGREDIENTS:
Custard
3/4 cup whole milk
2 3/4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 whole egg, beaten
9 egg yolks, beaten
3 3/4 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 vanilla bean (EDITED: vanilla extract is okay)
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
Chiffon Cake
1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup superfine sugar
1 1/3 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup beaten egg yolks (3 to 4 yolks)
3/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 1/2 tablespoons grated orange zest
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup egg whites (about 8 large)
1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Chocolate Glaze
8 ounces semi or bittersweet chocolate
8 ounces unsalted butter

INSTRUCTIONS
To prepare the custard: Combine the milk and cornstarch in a bowl; blend until smooth. Whisk in the whole egg and yolks, beating until smooth. Combine the cream, vanilla bean and sugar in a saucepan and carefully bring to a boil. When the mixture just boils, whisk a ladleful into the egg mixture to temper it, then whisk this back into the cream mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Strain the custard and pour into 8 large custard cups. Refrigerate to chill.

To prepare the chiffon cakes: Preheat the oven to 325°F. Spray 8 molds with nonstick cooking spray. You may use 7-ounce custard cups, ovenproof wide mugs or even large foil cups. Whatever you use should be the same size as the custard cups. Sift the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Add the oil, egg yolks, orange juice, zest and vanilla. Stir until smooth, but do not overbeat. Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold the beaten whites into the orange batter. Fill the sprayed molds nearly to the top with the batter. Bake approximately 25 minutes, until the cakes bounce back when lightly pressed with your fingertip. Do not overbake. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. When completely cool, remove the cakes from the molds. Cover the cakes to keep them moist.

To prepare the glaze: Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Place the butter in a saucepan and heat until it is just about to bubble. Remove from the heat; add the chocolate and stir to melt. Pour through a strainer and keep warm. To assemble: Cut a thin slice from the top of each cake to create a flat surface. Place a cake flat-side down on top of each custard. Cover the tops with warm chocolate glaze. Serve immediately (or refrigerate and serve later).

49 comments:

Julius said...

Hi,

I totally agree with you that the original recipe is *way* too big!

I love your bostini, the perfect size for sharing with a lot of people.

Please feel free to check out my bostini here.

Julius :)

Brilynn said...

I dreamed of a perfect custard flip too and it just didn't happen. I ended doing the same as you and trying to scrape it into place. Well done on your first challenge!

Belinda said...

I had trouble getting my custard to cooperate as well, and ended up patching it back together for presentation purposes! Yours turned out beautifully though...and I like the plate you used, very elegant. :-) Great job!

Anne said...

That looks lovely! I never even thought of trying to unmold mine :)

Pille said...

Well done on completing the challenge! I didn't try to unmold mine either, as Mary said in the comments that the custard is very runny and cannot by unmoulded or cut into shapes. That suited me just fine, however:)

Red Dirt Mummy said...

Yay, Claire. I'm so envious that you joined up - I keep thinking I might and then chickening out LOL.

Your Bostini looks great - well done on your first challenge. I can't wait to see the next one!

Karen Baking Soda said...

A perfect custard flip..sounds like it's an athletes dream! Well done!

Anne said...

I too didn't like my first presentation so I needed to think of something else. Glad your a DB :)

Sheltie Girl said...

I divided my recipe into fourths, since I didn't think we'd ever eat it all. I'm glad you had friends to help you eat it all.

Natalie @ Gluten A Go Go

Unknown said...

100% agree on recipe size, could have made food for my whole church

looks great, well done on your first challenge, welcome to DB

slush said...

Well done on your first challenge, Welcome to the DBs! I love your family style presentation. Lovely!

Anita said...

Great first job, so glad you've joined the DBs!

April said...

Great job on completing your Bostini challenge!

Dolores said...

Gorgeous king-sized Bostini Claire.

You've got the right idea with these challenges... they're nothing you can't do, with proper planning and time management...which I find I'm developing right alongside my baking skills

And welcome to the group!

Anonymous said...

Claire,

Congratulations on completing your first challenge! You did a great job!

Chris said...

congratulations on completing your first challenge! Welcome to the DBs!

Lis said...

Yay! I'm so glad it worked out for you! And serving it family style for the party was an excellent idea - I love the big Bostini! =)

Excellent challenge post, Claire!

xoxo

eatme_delicious said...

It's okay that your custard didn't perfectly flip out! But then I'm a person who doesn't care what my dessert looks like as long as it's delicious. :) I didn't even attempt to mold the custard as I was scared it would just make a mess, so good for you!

Anonymous said...

I didn't have any small containers to bake the cake in either. I baked it in a 9x13 pan and then used a cookie cutter ;-) Yours looks much more like a cake! I had wanted to mold my custard as well but as many of us have found, that doesn't really work! Nice job!

Jen Yu said...

Wow! Great job on a Big Bostini :) Your custard still looks like it had more structure than mine. And you're right - that recipe makes a ton of Bostini (Bos"ton"i?)

-jen at use real butter

Dharm said...

Glad you joined us!! Well done on your first challenge.

Simona Carini said...

It seems to me that often original plans don't work, but fall-back ones work great. Your cake looks great!

Deborah said...

Great job on your first challenge! I think yours is the first full size "pie" that I've seen!

Andrea said...

Oh, the perfect custard flip was nowhere to be found in my kitchen, either! Still, your Bostini turned out great. Welcome to the Daring Bakers!

Alpineberry Mary said...

I have to be "pushed" to try recipes too so I'm glad that I joined the DBs. I've learned so much! Very nicely done on your very first challenge.

Julie said...

Congratulations on your first challenge! I think it looks wonderful, and I just love the idea of a big Bostini. =)

marias23 said...

Claire, congrats on completing your first challenge! I love they way your bostini turned out :)

Dagmar said...

Well done! I cut the recipe in half, but it was still too much :-)

glamah16 said...

I love the cake size Bostini for entertaining. More like what I would imagine a true Boston Creme pie to be. Great job.

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

Well done! Yes, the original recipe is too big...

Cheers,

Rosa

breadchick said...

Great job on your challenge and yup, lots of custard but such good custard!! Glad to have you with us!!

test it comm said...

Looks good! I halved the recipe as well.

Christine said...

Great job! I also cut mine in half as I didn't want to a) have that much around and b) use as many eggs and cream as the full recipe calls for!

african vanielje said...

Claire it looks brilliant. Is that a vintage plate I see? WElcome to the daring bakers. That's exactly why I joined, to push myself to make things I wouldn't normally make

Elle said...

Too bad about that custard. It still looks great and pretty awesome as a whole cake. Nice job on the post and photos, too. Glad you are a Daring Baker!

Shandy said...

Yay! You did it Claire and it looks like a decadent dessert! I read that this recipe made a lot but you know? I just love custard and this has to be one of the best custard recipes I have ever made. I hope your friends enjoyed the labor of love and I think you did an awesome job! =D

Shandy (Pastry Heaven)

Kelly-Jane said...

The original recipe was way to big servings! Great job on your pie =)

Peabody said...

Yeah I had to let mine sit for well over 24 hours for it to hold in shape.
Well done.

Unknown said...

Julius - THanks...I guess that's what sharing is for, big recipes.

Brilynn - Oh well..not everything works the way we want!

Belinda - I found that patching worked just as well. Thanks...the plate was my grandmother's!

Anne - Thanks!

Pille - Mine wasn't so much runny as it just stuck to the pan! :-)

RDM - Thanks, I can't wait either.

Baking Soda - Exactly but this time, a baker's dream!

Anne - Unfortunately, I was so late getting to the party, that I didn't have much chance to play around with presentation!

Natalie - If I hadn't had friends to help, I don't know what I would have done!

Courtney - I'm sure your church would have enjoyed it!

Slush - Thanks...family is style is what I know.

Anita- Me too!

April - Thanks!

Dolores - I'm looking forward to seeing what the next challenge is. I'm hoping not many take multiple days...THAT'S what would trip me up.

Ivonne - Thanks!

Chris - Glad to be a part.

Lis - Thanks! I really enjoyed it a LOT!

EMD - My dad is like that but I get "upset" if it doesn't look like I want it to!

Carrie - I thought about putting this is iced tea glasses but knew it would be easier to transport as one big dessert.

Jen - HA! I LOVE it...bos"ton"i!

Dharm - Thanks! I'm enjoying it.

Simona - Yep..."best laid plans of mice and men!"

Deborah - Thanks! Glad to be unique.

Andrea - I think I only saw a couple of shaped custards and those were with molds.

Mary - I'm ready to see what else we get to do...stuff I wouldn't do on my own. Thanks for this one!

Julie - Thanks! Big ones are easier to transport than a bunch of individuals.

Marias23- Thanks it was fun.

Dagmar - Go big for parties!

Glamah16 - It IS more like a true Boston Cream Pie!

Rosa - Thanks!

Breadchick - Glad to be there!

Kevin - I'm glad we were able to halve it!

Christina - Agreed and agreed!!!

AV - The plate is, I guess, vintage. We got it from my grandmother's house last year after she died. It's American Lamoge.

Elle - Thanks! I wish I had had more time to photograph this.

Shandy - Thanks! The custard was pretty good...and turned out better than I thought it would.

Kelly-Jane - Thanks! This was a fun one.

Peabody - Thanks! I did my custard around 1 and then got back from a football game at 6 to finish the cake. Mine really set up pretty quickly but just was stubborn in leaving the pan!

Helene said...

Love all that drizzle and puddle of chocolate...good medecine on a blah day!

kitten said...

Good job ! I too lurked for months before I joined the DBer's and wondered what I got myself into after I joined... it looks like we will have a lot of exciting challenges ahead of us!

Erika W. said...

Gosh, I keep thinking I should join the daring bakers, but I'm such a chicken about that...

Anyway, that cake is very impressive, even though it didn't turn out like you'd wanted it to, I would gladly dive in.

The Caked Crusader said...

i like it as a big cake! Good idea!

Amy said...

The original recipe is definitely very generous. Great job! :)

Jenny said...

It's like a huge Boston Cream Donut! Nice work!

Anonymous said...

Oh! I love the round cake pan shape. Bigger, better!

Thanks for your comments on my blog. Much appreciated.

Best,
Paz

Unknown said...

Tartlette - Yep...all good medicine.

Kitten - I'm excited to see what comes.

Erika - You SO could do it...and your kids would love helping.

Crusader - Thanks!

Amy - Yep...huge

Quellia - I've never thought of that...a Boston Cream Donut!

Paz - Thanks...bigger is easier in this case.

Gabi said...

Looks good, congratulations on your 1st challenge and welcome!
xoxo

Unknown said...

Kurtis Baguley Here,

I am proud of all of you. Keep up the good work!!!!!