The Healthy Vegan Kitchen

What was my double challenge for April?

BOSTINI CREAM PIE

Huh? It’s not a typo. Bostini cream pie is a twist on the traditional Boston cream pie. The dessert is vanilla custard topped with an orange chiffon cake & then drizzled with a chocolate glaze. The Boston cream pie is my m-i-l’s favorite desserts. The recipe is from a restaurant that was later printed in the SF Chronicle newspaper.

We were able to play with the size of the dessert as well as being able to halve the recipe, which I did. We could also use a different custard recipe to make it vegan. This challenge was originally done in October 2007 Challenge #12 Hostess: Mary of Alpineberry.

Bostini Cream Pie (from Donna Scala & Kurtis Baguley of Bistro Don Giovanni & Scala’s Bistro)

Makes 8 generous servings

I used the pastry cream recipe from The Joy of Vegan Baking

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 ¾ cup cake flour

3/4 cup superfine sugar ¼ + 1/8 cup sugar

1 1/3 teaspoons baking powder ¾ tsp baking powder

1/3 teaspoon salt pinch salt

1/3 cup canola oil 1/6 cup applesauce

1/3 cup beaten egg yolks (3 to 4 yolks) 1/6 cup soy yogurt

3/4 cup fresh orange juice ¼ cup + 1 TBSP orange juice

1 1/2 tablespoons grated orange zest 1 TBSP grand marnier

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract ½ tsp vanilla extract

1 cup egg whites (about 8 large) ½ cup warm water mixed with 4 TBSP egg replacer

1 teaspoon cream of tartar ½ tsp cream of tartar

 

Chocolate Glaze I used a chocolate powdered sugar frosting, cuz I didn’t have any chocolate, can you believe it?!?

8 ounces semi or bittersweet chocolate

8 ounces unsalted butter

To prepare the custard: Combine the milk & cornstarch in a bowl; blend until smooth. Whisk in the whole egg & yolks, beating until smooth. Combine the cream, vanilla bean & sugar in a saucepan & 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 & 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 & salt into a large bowl. Add the oil, egg yolks, orange juice, zest & vanilla. Stir until smooth, but do not overbeat.

Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar & 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 & 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 & heat until it is just about to bubble. Remove from the heat; add the chocolate & stir to melt. Pour through a strainer & 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.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 30th, 2009 at 12:07 am and is filed under chocolate, Daring Bakers, Dessert, Challenges, Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.