I love Boston Cream in any incarnation – whether it’s doughnuts, or the traditional cake, or these perfect little cupcakes…I love ’em all! Last month when I made the homemade paczki, I had some leftover pastry cream. So, I thought what better to do with them than make these cupcakes?
I used my favorite vanilla cupcake recipe, filled them with a bit of the pastry cream, then topped with a decadent chocolate ganache. I loved the way the chocolate dripped down the side of the cupcakes. As you can imagine, they were nothing short of spectacular! The guys declared them one of the best cupcakes I’ve made, which really speaks volumes I think.
Leftovers went into work with Jon the next day, and all his coworkers at NASA loved them too. There’s not much that crew won’t gobble up! I’m looking forward to trying this recipe as a traditional Boston Cream cake too, using two 9-inch cake pans instead of baking cupcakes.
I hope everyone has a great weekend! We’re still on “baby watch” – 2 weeks left to go! Jon’s mom is in town for the weekend , so we’re looking forward to spending some time with her and Grandpa Matt since we haven’t seen them since Thanksgiving. Kicking it all off by taking the boys to the local baseball game tonight. It’ll be their first time, and they’re super excited. Go Shorebirds!
Boston Cream Cupcakes
1 batch your favorite vanilla cupcakes (about 24 cupcakes)
For the pastry cream:
2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup white sugar
2 egg yolks
1 whole egg
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/3 cup white sugar
2 Tablespoons butter, cubed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the ganache:
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup light corn syrup
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
To prepare the pastry cream, stir together the milk and 1/4 cup of sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and whole egg. Separately mix the remaining sugar and cornstarch; then whisk them into the eggs until smooth. When the milk comes to a boil, drizzle it into the egg bowl in a thin stream while stirring to temper the eggs. Return the mixture to the saucepan, and slowly bring back to a boil, immediately stirring so the eggs do not curdle or scorch on the bottom.
When the mixture comes to a boil and thickens, remove from the heat. The mixture will continue to thicken as you stir. Stir in the butter and vanilla, mixing until the butter is completely melted. Pour into a heat-proof container and cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until completely chilled before using.
To make the ganache place the chocolate in a small bowl. Combine the heavy cream, corn syrup, and vanilla in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until simmering. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and whisk until completely smooth and combined. Set the ganache aside to cool and thicken at room temperature for 30 minutes.
To assemble the cupcakes, cut a small hole about 3/4-inch wide and 1/2-inch deep in the top of the cake using a pairing knife. Fill the hole with about 3 tsp of the pastry cream, then top off with the piece of cake you removed. Repeate process with remaining cupcakes.
Top each cupcake with about 1 tablespoon of the cooled ganache. Let sit for 1 hour before serving.
Source: pastry cream adapted from All Recipes
