Daring Bakers October 2007 Challenge - Bostini Cream Pie

As almost a foresight to the Sox taking the World Series last night, Mary of Alpineberry's challenge for October 2007 was "Bostini Cream Pie" (from Donna Scala & Kurtis Baguley of Bistro Don Giovanni & Scala's Bakery).... This was not your normal BCP (which I LOVE), something a little different, with a couple of twists: one was the addition of a significant amount of fresh orange juice and orange zest to the cake, and the serving was done in individual ramekins, as little mini BCPs. I think my adaptation of this recipe was pretty spot-on, with the exception being that I didn't have enough ramekins to bake the cakes as individual cakes. You'll see my solution, below....

I'll list the ingredients first, so that you can read them, have your saturated-fat induced heart-attack, then while you're recouperating in the hospital you can see my pictures and notes on this challenge.

CUSTARD:
3/4 cup whole milk
2-3/4 tbsp cornstarch
1 whole egg, beaten
9 egg yolks, beaten
3-3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 vanilla bean (I used 1 tsp real vanilla extract)
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp sugar


CHIFFON CAKE:
1-1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup superfine sugar (I used regular sugar and pulsed it in my mini-food processor for a few seconds)
1/3 tsp salt
1/3 cup canola oil (good fats!!)
1/3 cup beaten egg yolks (3 to 4 yolks)
3/4 cup fresh orange juice
1-1/2 tbsp grated orange zest
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup egg whites (about 8 large)
1 tsp cream of tartar


CHOCOLOATE GLAZE
8 oz semi or bittersweet chocolate (I used semisweet chips)
8 oz unsalted butter

METHOD:
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 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 egg mixture back into the cream. 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 (I used ramekins). Refrigerate to chill.


To prepare the chiffon cakes:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Spray 8 molds with a non-stick cooking spray (use ramekins, or something that will fit over the custard tightly. Or, do what I did and bake them in a 9" x 12" and 8" x 8" baking pan, lined with parchment and sprayed, and then cut the cakes out because you don't have enough ramekins - see below for photos)

Sift the cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and sale into 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 still peaks form. Gently fold the beaten whites into the orange batter. Fill the molds (or pans) nearly to the top with batter.

Bake approximately 25 minutes, until the cakes bounce back when lightly pressed with a fingertip. Do not overback. Remove from over and let cool on wire rack, when completely cool, remove from molds, cover to keep moist.

To prepare the gaze:
Chop chocolate into small pieces, place butter in a saucepan and melt over low heat until it's about to bubble. Remove from heat, add chocolate, stir to melt. Strain and keep warm until assembly.

To assemble cake
Cut a thin slice from the top of each cake to create a flat surgace. Place a cake flat-side down on top of custart, cover tops with warm chocolate glaze. Serve immediately.
Or, you can do what I did and take your cake from the 8" x 8" pan, cut out round pieces, and fit them over the top:




I think this was a good solution to not having enough ramekins to go around.

Here's the finished product, plated, gooey with chocolate, dusted with "pow-pow" (thanks, DeeDee, for the tip!) with a floral accoutrement:




I have to say that when I heard that this was an orange-flavored cake, I wasn't very thrilled. I'm not a big fan of citrus and chocolate, so I was kind of apathetic when it was making this. I enjoyed the challenge, and when we sat down to eat (we had some friends over to try this out), they were all very enthusiastic.

However, I have to say that the combination of the chocolate, custard, and cake was VERY pleasing, and the flavors all complimented each other very well. It was the first citrus dessert I've enjoyed in a while!!

My one criticism for this recipe was the custard, which was by far my favorite single element of the recipe. The instruction to "cook until it coats the back of a spoon" is slightly misleading. I've made other custards before, and puddings, and there are usually more detailed instructions about temperature. I took the custard off when it coated the back of the spoon and seemed thick enough, but when I strained it, the liquid that was left never firmed up so the custard was very runny. The cakes did a nice job of soaking it up, but it wasn't like a real Boston Cream Pie in that way.

Thanks for the challenge, Daring Bakers! I can't wait to see what November's challenge is!
(it's 4:30 and I'm just getting this in under the gun!)