Celebrating cross-border ties with a Boston Cream Pie

by CRYSTAL MURRAY

photography by STEVE SMITH, VISIONFIRE STUDIOS

Like many East Coast families, ours had ties to New England, which my grandparents often referred to as the “Boston States.” My mum still remembers her long car rides from Nova Scotia to Massachusetts with her parents. She would stretch out in the back seat of her dad’s sedan, munching potato chips and napping away the hours on bumpy, twisting roads long before divided highways. Her aunt, uncle, and cousins would make return visits north of the border, a tradition that continued for many years, and a connection the next generation still maintains.. Boston Cream Pie was part of my grandmother’s dessert repertoire, usually reserved for a “fancier” dinner like New Year’s Day, but it was a treat I always associated with our cousins in the States. I’m not sure if she had a recipe passed along to her or if she simply used her own sponge cake and vanilla custard method beneath a glossy chocolate glaze, but it was always one of my favourites.

It’s been years since I’ve made the dessert for my own family, but with one of our Nova Scotian Christmas trees making its way over the border this November for the annual Boston tree lighting, I can’t help but think of that connection once again. Just as the tree symbolizes friendship between our regions, Boston Cream Pie feels like a little slice of my family’s own history and connection.

Classic Boston Cream Pie Recipe

Makes about 12 servings

INGREDIENTS

Sponge cake

1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour

1 tsp (5 mL) baking powder

¼ tsp (1 mL) salt

4 large eggs

1 cup (250 mL) granulated sugar

½ cup (125 mL) whole milk

2 tbsp (30 mL) unsalted butter

1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract

Pastry cream

2 cups (500 mL) whole milk

½ cup (125 mL) granulated sugar

4 large egg yolks

¼ cup (60 mL) cornstarch

2 tbsp (30 mL) unsalted butter

1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract

Chocolate glaze

4 ounces (113 g) semisweet chocolate, chopped

½ cup (125 mL) heavy cream

1 tbsp (15 mL) unsalted butter

1. Make the sponge cake: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, beat eggs and sugar until thick and pale. Heat milk and butter until just warm; stir in vanilla. Gently fold dry ingredients into egg mixture, then fold in warm milk mixture. Divide batter between pans and bake 20–25 minutes, until golden and springy. Cool completely.

2. Make the pastry cream: In a saucepan, heat milk until steaming. In a bowl, whisk sugar, egg yolks, and cornstarch until smooth. Slowly whisk hot milk into yolk mixture, then return all to saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thickened. Remove from heat, stir in butter and vanilla, and let cool with plastic wrap pressed directly on the surface. Chill until firm.

3. Make the glaze: Heat cream until just simmering. Pour over chopped chocolate and butter. Let sit 2 minutes, then stir until smooth and glossy.

4. Assemble: Place one cake layer on a platter. Spread pastry cream evenly on top. Add second cake layer. Pour warm chocolate glaze over the top, letting it drip slightly down the sides. Chill briefly to set before serving.

Pie or cake?

Despite its name, Boston Cream Pie is actually a cake, with layers of airy sponge filled with pastry cream and topped with chocolate. The dessert was first created at the Parker House Hotel in Boston in the mid-19th century. At the time, “pie” and “cake” were often interchangeable terms, and the name stuck. In 1996, the state government declared it the official dessert of Massachusetts.