Boston Cream Pie
A tender sponge cake filled with vanilla pastry cream and topped with ganache, this boston cream pie is a bakery-style treat you can make at home.
Servings: 8 slices
Equipment
- Saucepan 2-Quart or Larger
- Sieve Fine Mesh
- Immersion Blender with Whisk Attachment, Optional
- Cake Pan 8-Inch Round and Minimum 2 Inches Tall
Ingredients
For the Pastry Cream
- 1 Cup granulated sugar
- 3 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 5 egg yolks large
- 1 ⅔ Cups whole milk
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 Tablespoons butter unsalted
For the Cake
- 2 eggs large, at room temperature
- 1 Cup granulated sugar
- 1 ⅓ Cups all-purpose flour spooned and leveled, plus 2 Tablespoons to coat the cake pan
- 2 Teaspoons baking powder
- ½ Teaspoon salt
- 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ Cup whole milk
- 1 Teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Chocolate Ganache
- ¼ Cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ Cup chocolate chips semisweet
- 2 Tablespoons light corn syrup optional
Instructions
Make the Pastry Cream
- Whisk the sugar and cornstarch together in a medium bowl.
- Use an electric mixer to beat the egg yolks and sugar mixture together until pale and thick. Set the bowl aside.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm up the milk until it starts to boil.
- Pour about ½ cup of the hot milk into the yolk mixture while whisking to temper the yolks.
- Pour the yolk mixture into the saucepan with the remaining milk and whisk constantly until the cream has thickened and begins to boil, about 10 minutes. The cream will look foamy and rise in the saucepan before it starts to thicken.
- Remove the cream from the stove and immediately stir in the vanilla extract and butter.
- Pour the pastry cream into a medium, heat-proof bowl through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps or scorched bits.
- Let the cream rest on the counter for 30 minutes, or until it cools down slightly.
- Cover with plastic wrap, touching the top of the pastry cream to prevent skin from forming on top, and refrigerate for 2 hours or until it has thickened and set.
Make the Cake
- While the pastry cream is chilling, make the cake. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Grease a round, 8-inch cake pan (at least 2 inches tall) with butter or shortening and coat with flour. Set the pan aside.
- In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together with an electric mixer for about 3 minutes until light and pale yellow with a few small bubbles.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl, then add them to the egg and sugar mixture.
- Mix until the dry ingredients are just incorporated.
- Pour the milk into a microwave-safe bowl or measuring cup along with the butter.
- Heat in the microwave until the butter is melted and the milk is steaming.
- Add the vanilla extract and hot milk and butter mixture into the batter and mix until everything is combined. The batter will resemble pancake mix, wet and thin.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and a thin knife inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
- Let the cake rest in the pan for 20 minutes before running a thin knife around the edge of the pan and inverting it onto a cooling rack.
- Rest the cake at room temperature for 30 minutes or until it is completely cool.
Assemble the Boston Cream Pie
- Cut the cake in half horizontally using a serrated knife. Put the bottom half of the cake on a large plate or cake platter.
- Spoon the pastry cream on top of the bottom half of the cake and spread it out evenly.
- Put the top half of the cake over the pastry cream and press down slightly.
- Use the flat side of a spatula to spread out the pastry cream on the sides of the cake.
- Loosely wrap the cake in plastic wrap, and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
Make the Chocolate Ganache
- Heat the heavy whipping cream in a small, microwave-safe bowl in 30-second intervals until steaming.
- Add the chocolate chips and corn syrup and let it rest for 3 minutes. Stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth.
- Pour the ganache on top of the cake and spread it out with a spoon. Let some of it come down the sides of the cake.
- Wrap the cake loosely again with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour before serving.
Notes
Whisk constantly: Keep whisking the pastry cream to avoid lumps and burning.
Use a serrated knife: Slice the chocolate cream pie cake in half with a serrated knife for a cleaner, more even slice.
Let the ganache rest: Give it a moment to settle before pouring to prevent it running too thin.
Use a serrated knife: Slice the chocolate cream pie cake in half with a serrated knife for a cleaner, more even slice.
Let the ganache rest: Give it a moment to settle before pouring to prevent it running too thin.
Nutrition
Calories: 526kcal | Carbohydrates: 80g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 198mg | Sodium: 308mg | Potassium: 202mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 60g | Vitamin A: 666IU | Vitamin C: 0.04mg | Calcium: 186mg | Iron: 2mg
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