Frozen Whiskey Cream - A Frozen Custard

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...While I hate to see the holidays come to an end, I must admit that the finery that comes with them is starting to look worn and tired, a bit like an old woman whose makeup is too thickly applied.  The poinsettias seem glaringly bright, while the ivy garlands, no longer quite so jolly, are fading to a  khaki green, and destroying any sense of the yin and yang that greeted their arrival. I spent some time this morning removing the worst offenders, but even though I should,  I'm not quite ready to erase all traces of the season. The same thing is happening in my kitchen. Fortunately, the cookies are finally gone, and while there is still some fruit cake, the holiday cupboard is looking mighty bare. I still, however,  need some quick and easy desserts to see the season out, and I've found this one will do nicely. I think you'll also enjoy this whiskey flavored frozen custard. While it needs at least six hours to chill, it is simple to make and it is a stressless way to end a meal.  This is a very rich dessert, so you'll want to keep serving sizes small.  The custard will keep for several days in the freezer, so it is a perfect make ahead for New Year's Eve celebration. Do try it.  Here is how it is made.

Frozen Whiskey Cream...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Southern Living magazine

Ingredients:
3 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup whiskey or brandy
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamont
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1-1/2 cups heavy cream
Garnishes: sweetened whipped cream, freshly grated nutmeg, chopped candied nuts

Directions:
1. Pour water to depth of 1 inch into bottom of a double boiler over medium heat; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and simmer. Whisk together eggs, egg yolks, and next 4 ingredients in top of double boiler over simmering water, and cook, stirring constantly, 8 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat; cool completely, stirring often.

2. Meanwhile, beat cream at high speed with an electric mixer 3 minutes or until soft peaks form. Stir one-third whipped cream into cooled egg mixture until blended. Fold in remaining whipped cream. Spoon mixture into 8 (8-oz.) cups or glasses, filling half full; cover with plastic wrap. Freeze 6 hours to 2 days.

                    

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Boston Cream Pie

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...While I know my family and friends look forward to dessert, I'm decidedly ambivalent about it. I enjoy vaguely sweet breakfast breads and coffee cakes far more than the more elaborate creations usually served at the end of a meal. I made an dacquoise for a friend's birthday today. It was a lovely, time consuming creation that I know she'll enjoy it, but while I was working on the meringue layers,  I started to think about the simpler American desserts that I think have more universal appeal. Apple, cherry, blueberry, pecan and pumpkin pies came to mind. As did soft strawberry ice cream and strawberry or peach short cakes. And while any any cook worth her salt should be able to whip up a vanilla or chocolate layer cake in the blink of an eye, the list would be incomplete if gingerbread, apple crisp, lemon meringue and Boston cream pie were not also included. Most of these desserts are made regularly, but Boston cream pie is starting to go the way of the dodo and is disappearing from the American table.

Boston cream pie is actually a cake that is filled with a custard or cream filling and covered with a chocolate glaze. Cake pans were not regular features of early American kitchens, so cake batter was baked in pie pans and the resulting cake was called a pie. For some cakes the name pie stuck. Boston cream pie is an updated version of the early American dish called pudding-cake pie, so when the Parker House Hotel in Boston first served this cake, they named it Boston cream pie. A French chef, hired for the opening of the hotel, is credited with making the version of pudding-cake pie that became famous. It hasn't changed much over the years. While it is a three step process, this is not a difficult dessert to make. I would like to make one suggestion that I think will make the cake a standout. Brush the layers with dark rum before it is assembled and those at your table will really sing your praise, especially if you use a lot of rum. There are many recipes for this cake, but this is the one I like to use on a regular basis. Here's how this cake is made.

Boston Cream Pie...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Saveur magazine

Ingredients:
Cake
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pan
1-1/2 cups flour, plus more for pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 eggs
2/3 cup buttermilk
Filling
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 vanilla bean, seeds scraped and reserved
6 egg yolks
1-1/2 cups milk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Glaze
4 ounces 60% bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions:
1) To prepare cake: Heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease and flour a 9-inch round cake pan; set aside. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; set aside. In another bowl, beat butter, sugar, and vanilla on medium-high speed of a hand mixer until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each, until smooth. Alternately add dry ingredients and buttermilk in 3 batches, beginning and ending with dry ingredients; beat until just combined. Pour into pan; smooth top with a rubber spatula. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes, and then invert onto a wire rack; let cool completely.
2) To make filling: While cake bakes, whisk together sugar, cornstarch, salt, and vanilla seeds in a large saucepan; add yolks, and whisk until smooth. Stir in milk, and place pan over medium heat; cook, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and add butter one cube at a time, whisking until smooth; stir in vanilla extract. Transfer pudding to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap; chill until firmed, at least 2 hours.
3) To make glaze:  Place chocolate in a bowl. Bring cream to a boil in a 1-qt. saucepan over high heat; pour over chocolate and let sit for 1 minute. Slowly stir chocolate and cream until smooth and shiny; set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
4) To assemble cream pie: Using a serrated knife, split cake horizontally into two layers so that  top layer is slightly smaller than  bottom. Spread chilled pudding over cut side of bottom layer and cover with top layer; pour chocolate glaze evenly over cake, letting it drip down the side of the cake. Refrigerate cake until glaze is set, at least 30 minutes. Serve chilled or at room temperature. Yield: 10 servings.

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Three Years Ago Today: Sizzling Rice Cakes with Shrimp in Chili Garlic Sauce

Glazed Cream Cake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This lovely dessert is one of my personal favorites. Despite my love for it, I don't make it all that often. It's not hard to do, but it's time consuming to assemble and I tend to prepare it only for close friends or special occasions. The cake has the same elements as Boston cream pie, but over the years it's been refined and its various components now represent the "best of show" from different places. The sponge layers, génoise, come from Italy, the crème pâtissière is, of course, French, as is the glaze, a rich dark chocolate ganache that's interpreted here by Alton Brown. It is a thoroughly satisfying dessert that I think you'll really enjoy. Final assembly is simple. Two sponge layers are filled with pastry cream and glazed with ganache. Here are the recipes for all three of its elements.

Génoise...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Jacques Torres

Ingredients:
8 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
1 cup granulated sugar
2-1/2 tablespoons honey
2 cups unbleached, pastry flour, sifted

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and line two 8-inch cake pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
2) Place a 1-quart saucepan half filled with water over high heat and bring it to a simmer. Make a double boiler by setting a large mixing bowl over simmering water. Place whole eggs, egg yolks, sugar, and honey in mixing bowl and make an egg foam by whisking mixture to 113 degrees on a candy thermometer, about 7 to 10 minutes. When it is thick, it will be hot to the touch, tripled in volume, and light in color and sugar will have completely dissolved. If you dip a whisk into mixture and pull it out, batter should fall back into bowl in a thick ribbon.
3) Remove mixing bowl from heat and whip batter with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until it cools, increases in volume, stiffens slightly and becomes pale yellow, about 7 to 10 minutes. Very, very carefully, fold in flour with a rubber spatula until it is no longer visible, making sure to fold to bottom of bowl. Do not over mix or batter will deflate. Fill prepared pans with batter.
4) Transfer to oven and bake on center rack until well-risen and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven. Let layers cool slightly. Unmold, remove parchment paper and finish cooling on a wire rack. Layers can be stored in the freezer for 2 to 3 weeks if well wrapped in plastic wrap. Return it to room temperature before using it.

Crème Pâtissière - French Pastry Cream...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Julia Child

Ingredients:
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups hot milk
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon vanilla extract or 1/2 tablespoon vanilla combined with 2 tablespoons dark rum

Directions:
1) Place egg yolks in a 2-1/2 quart saucepan. Gradually beat in the sugar with a wire whip and beat until mixture is thick, pale yellow, and forms ribbons. Beat in flour, then beat in hot milk in a thin stream.
2) Set over moderately high heat and stir slowly and continuously with a wire whip, reaching all over bottom and sides of pan, until mixture thickens. As it turns lumpy, beat vigorously to smooth it out.
3) Lower temperature and continue stirring for several minutes to cook flour and thicken cream. Be very careful about scorching cream in bottom of pan; be sure your pan is heavy, be sure to keep stirring, and do not use high heat, particularly after cream has started to thicken.
4) Remove from heat; beat in butter and the flavoring. Clean off sides of the pan with a spatula. Film top of the pastry cream with 1/2 tablespoon milk, rum or kirsch to prevent crusting. Chill. (Pastry cream will keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated.)

Ganache...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Alton Brown

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons corn syrup
6 ounces heavy cream
12 ounces dark chocolate, chopped into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Combine corn syrup and heavy cream in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer and add chocolate. Stir until smooth. Remove from heat and add vanilla extract. Cool to room temperature. Pour over cold cake.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Boston Cream Pie - Felice in the Kitchen
Boston Cream Whoopie Pies - Baking and Boys!
Individual Boston Cream Pies - Pastry Studio
Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes - Baking Powders
Deluxe Boston Cream Pie - Eat Me, Delicious
Boston Cream Pie - Annie's Eats