Bostini Cream Pie

This months Daring bakers challenge.

I really liked the sound of this one and planned to make it early, as it was I bought cream three times before I did!! Still struggling to cook anything that feels hard work though in the end it was really quite easy.

The pudding comes in three stages. First I made the cake which is one where you used whisked egg whites to give it air, first time I've ever had a chiffon cake to my knowledge . It does have some baking powder in but is designed for cake flour which is low in gluten for wheat flour and so is less of a change for gluten free. I just used Dove Farm general purpose as I wanted something fairly neutral flavour wise and some of my other flours have a distinct taste. The cake came out wonderfully light though it wasn't cooked in the middle. I cooked it all in one big cake pan not small molds as I didn't have any and it was getting too cooked round the edge but hadn't quite cooked enough in the middle. However as I made the whole amount of cake and only 1/3 of the custard it was easy to work round the uncooked bit. Next time I'll try muffin tins or similar.

With the custard as I already mentioned I only made 1/3 of the recipe, it was a huge amount of cream to make the full amount and from what others had said it was far more than we would eat, though for a party it would be a different matter. It was quite easy to make though I nearly killed it twice, first I tried to measure the cornflour in cups not tbsps which would have been interesting! Then I got distracted while cooking it because the timer went off for the cake and I nearly got scrambled egg.

The chocolate sauce however was a 10 second job, I used unsalted butter (thanks those who mentioned using salted by accident otherwise I would have too!) and Bornville chocolate as we like dark chocolate but I wasn't using the Green and Black !!

I chilled the custard and then placed a room temp circle of cake on top and smothered with chocolate sauce. I divided the custard into 4 which was still good size portions even though it is smaller than the suggested serving size. Loved the cake and sauce, personally found the custard a little eggy but himself loved it. It was something between a thick normal custard and a set egg custard. He polished off all his and half of mine as I was already quite full from fish pie earlier.

Original recipe
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 (I used double cream as I'm in the UK)
1/2 vanilla bean (I used vanilla extract)
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar

Chiffon Cake

1 1/2 cups cake flour (used Dove Farm gluten free)
3/4 cup superfine sugar
1 1/3 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canola oil (used basic veggy 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.