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Boston Cream Pie

Not a pie at all: sponge, custard, and a silky emulsified ganache.

Intermediate#50 most lovedUses: Emulsification
classic Boston cream piecustard cake with ganache

The Chemistry in This Bake

Whisking hot cream into chocolate to form a smooth, stable ganache — a textbook emulsion of fat and liquid.

Learn the full technique →

Ingredients

  • All-purpose flour
  • Baking powder
  • Eggs
  • Sugar
  • Milk
  • Butter
  • Egg yolks (for pastry cream)
  • Cornstarch
  • Dark chocolate
  • Heavy cream

Method

  1. Bake a butter cake in two layers and cool completely.

  2. Cook milk, egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch into a thick pastry cream; chill.

  3. Heat the cream until steaming and pour it over chopped chocolate.

  4. Whisk from the center outward until the ganache is glossy and fully emulsified.

  5. Sandwich the layers with pastry cream.

  6. Pour the warm ganache over the top and let it drip down the sides before chilling.