Lighter Boston Cream Pie Recipes

Steps:

• For custard, in a heavy saucepan, mix sugar and cornstarch; whisk in milk and egg yolks. Cook and stir over medium heat; bring to a gentle boil. Cook and stir 1 minute; remove from heat. Stir in butter until melted. Immediately transfer to a clean bowl; stir in vanilla. Press plastic wrap onto surface of filling; cool 30 minutes. Refrigerate until cold., While custard is chilling, make cake layers. Preheat oven to 375°. Line bottoms of 2 greased 8-in. round baking pans with parchment; grease paper and dust with flour., In a large bowl, cream sugar and shortening until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition., Transfer to prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 15-20 minutes. Cool in pans 10 minutes before removing to wire racks; remove paper. Cool completely., For glaze, in a small saucepan, bring water and butter to a simmer; immediately remove from heat and whisk in cocoa powder. Beat in confectioners' sugar and vanilla until smooth; cool slightly. , Place one cake layer on a serving plate; spread with cold custard. Top with the second cake layer. Spoon chocolate glaze over the top, allowing it to drip down sides of cake. Refrigerate until serving.

Steps:

• For the cake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees with a rack in the middle position. Oil and flour two 8-inch round cake pans. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
• Whisk together the oil and sugar in a large bowl. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla. Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the sour cream in 2 additions (beginning and ending with the flour). Divide the batter between the prepared pans.
• Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the cakes pull away from the sides of the pans. Cool in the pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove from the pans to cool completely, right side up.
• For the pastry cream, lightly beat the egg and yolks together in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl using a hand mixer. Add the sugar a little at a time, and continue beating until the mixture falls in ribbons when the beater is lifted, about 5 minutes. Mix in the flour, then add the milk in a steady stream.
• Transfer the mixture to a saucepan, bring just to a boil, and boil gently over medium heat, whisking, until the mixture thickens, 8 to 10 minutes. Strain the pastry cream through a fine sieve into a large bowl. Stir in the vanilla. Press plastic wrap against the surface. Cool for at least 1 hour.
• For the chocolate ganache topping, put the chocolate in a medium bowl. Pour the cream over it and leave undisturbed for 1 minute. Stir gently, until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Let cool for 10 minutes.
• Slice off the domed top of 1 cake layer to level it. With your fingers, remove some of the cake to make a 1/2-inch hollow, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge. Place on a cake stand or plate. Fill with the pastry cream. Top with the second cake layer, domed side up. Pour the topping over the cake, letting it run down the sides. Chill for at least 5 hours or as long as overnight, before serving.

Steps:

• Make the custard: In a medium saucepan, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until well combined. Whisk in cornstarch and salt. In a slow, steady stream, whisk in milk and then the cream. Add butter. Cook mixture over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, just until it starts to thicken. Immediately whisk mixture until smooth, then continue to cook and stir custard until it has come to a very low boil for 2 minutes, about 6 to 8 minutes total. Strain custard through a fine mesh sieve into a small bowl, pushing it through with a small spatula. Stir in vanilla. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic directly onto the surface. Chill for at least 3 hours and up to 24 hours.
• Prepare the cake: Heat oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 9-by-2-inch round baking pan, generously greasing the sides, and line it with parchment paper. Butter parchment paper. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
• In a small saucepan, bring the milk and butter to a simmer over medium heat. When the butter is melted, remove pan from heat. In a large bowl, beat eggs and sugar with an electric mixer until pale and thick, about 4 to 6 minutes. With the mixer running on low, add the milk mixture and beat until combined. Then add flour mixture and vanilla and beat until combined.
• Transfer batter to the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.
• Transfer to a rack and let cool 10 minutes. With a very thin knife, cut around the edge to release the cake from the side of the pan. Carefully flip the cake onto the rack, then turn it right-side-up to cool completely.
• Assemble the cake: Using a serrated knife, carefully cut the cake into two layers and place the bottom layer on a serving plate. Stir custard, and spread it onto the cut side of the bottom half. Replace the top half of the cake, cut side down.
• Prepare the glaze: In a small saucepan over medium-low, heat the cream to a simmer. Remove the pot from the heat and pour cream over the chocolate chips, oil, salt and let stand for 3 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Spread the glaze evenly over the top of the cake.

Steps:

• Place an egg separator over a small bowl. Crack open 1 egg over the egg separator to seperate the yolk from the white; then separate the other egg. (Save the whites for another recipe.) In a small bowl, place the yolks. Beat the egg yolks with a fork or wire whisk until mixed. Stir in 1 1/2 cups milk; set aside.
• In a 2-quart saucepan, stir 1/3 cup granulated sugar, the cornstarch and 1/8 teaspoon salt until mixed. Gradually stir egg mixture into sugar mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils. Boil and stir 1 minute; remove from heat. Stir in 2 teaspoons vanilla. Press plastic wrap on surface of filling to prevent a tough layer from forming on top. Refrigerate at least 2 hours until set but no longer than 24 hours. While filling is chilling, continue with recipe.
• Heat the oven to 350°F. Spray just the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan with baking spray with flour.
• In a large bowl, beat all cake ingredients with an electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, stopping frequently to scrape batter from side and bottom of bowl with a rubber spatula. Beat on high speed 3 minutes, stopping occasionally to scrape bowl. Pour batter into the pan; use a rubber spatula to scrape batter from bowl, spread batter evenly in pan and smooth top of batter.
• Bake about 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on a cooling rack 20 minutes, then remove onto cooling rack to finish cooling completely, about 1 hour.
• In a 1-quart saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons butter and the chocolate over low heat, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, in 1-cup glass measuring cup, microwave the water uncovered on High 15 to 30 seconds or until hot. Remove chocolate mixture from heat. Stir in the powdered sugar and 3/4 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in 3 tablespoons hot water. Stir in additional water, 1 teaspoon at a time, until icing is smooth and thin enough to spread.
• To split cake horizontally in half, mark middle points around side of cake with toothpicks. Using toothpicks as a guide, cut through the cake with a long, sharp knife, using a back-and-forth motion. On a serving plate, place bottom layer with the cut side up. Spread filling over bottom layer. Top with top of cake, cut side down.
• Spread glaze over top of cake, using a metal spatula or back of a spoon, letting some glaze drizzle down side of cake. Refrigerate uncovered until serving. Store any remaining cake covered in the refrigerator.

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until crumbly. Add eggs and mix well. Beat in applesauce and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add dry mixture to the butter mixture alternately with milk until blended.
• Coat two 9 inch round baking pans with cooking spray and sprinkle with flour; add batter. Bake at 350°F for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. cool for 100 minutes before removing from pant to wire racks. Let cool completely on wracks.
• For Filling, in a small bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set. Place one cake layer on a serving plate; top with filling and remaining cake layer.
• For glaze, in a small bowl, combine confectionery sugar, cocoa, and vanilla. Add enough milk to achieve desire consistency. spread over top of cake, allowing some glaze to drape down the sides.