Sunday, October 28, 2007

Daring Bakers Get Bostini!

Hello ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to another installment of the Daring Bakers Challenge! This month, Mary at Alpineberry chose a Bostini Cream Pie for us to make, and I couldn't wait to make it. But, with a week-long vacation in the middle of the month, combined with my brother moving out, I simply had no time to make it! I did, however, print the recipe and bring it with me everywhere, reading it and re-reading it to make sure I'd have enough ingredients in my house for when I decided to eventually make it.

As it turns out, I waited till the very last possible day to get crackin'! I was in a panic when I woke up on the morning of the 28th and realized I had T-minus 16 hours to bake, stir, whisk, mix, photograph, serve and post this bad boy. I got busy as soon as I rolled outta bed! And let me just add that there are a TON of eggs in this recipe. I bought two of those 18-count cartons, and had just enough (after accidentally breaking a few yolks while I was trying to separate them from the whites). I also had to make a last-minute run to Albertson's to grab some OJ, because my husband and brother in-law drank the stuff I had set aside for this recipe (darn them!). Seriously, they downed a half gallon of OJ in less than two days. I have no idea why, they must have just been really thirsty!

It was worth the troubles, though, and the results came out amazing and delicious. Here's the recipe:

Bostini Cream Pie
(from Donna Scala & Kurtis Baguley of Bistro Don Giovanni and Scala's Bistro)
Makes 8 generous servings
INGREDIENTS:
Custard
3/4 cup whole milk
2 3/4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 whole egg, beaten 9 egg yolks, beaten
3 3/4 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 vanilla bean (or vanilla extract, if that's easier for you to find)
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar

Chiffon Cake
1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup superfine sugar
1 1/3 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup beaten egg yolks (3 to 4 yolks)
3/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 1/2 tablespoons grated orange zest
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup egg whites (about 8 large)
1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Chocolate Glaze
8 ounces semi or bittersweet chocolate
8 ounces unsalted butter

INSTRUCTIONS
To prepare the custard: Combine the milk and cornstarch in a bowl; blend until smooth. Whisk in the whole egg and yolks, beating until smooth. Combine the cream, vanilla bean and sugar in a saucepan and carefully bring to a boil. When the mixture just boils, whisk a ladleful into the egg mixture to temper it, then whisk this back into the cream mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Strain the custard and pour into 8 large custard cups. Refrigerate to chill.
To prepare the chiffon cakes: Preheat the oven to 325°F. Spray 8 molds with nonstick cooking spray. You may use 7-ounce custard cups, ovenproof wide mugs or even large foil cups. Whatever you use should be the same size as the custard cups. Sift the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Add the oil, egg yolks, orange juice, zest and vanilla. Stir until smooth, but do not overbeat. Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold the beaten whites into the orange batter. Fill the sprayed molds nearly to the top with the batter. Bake approximately 25 minutes, until the cakes bounce back when lightly pressed with your fingertip. Do not overbake. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. When completely cool, remove the cakes from the molds. Cover the cakes to keep them moist.
To prepare the glaze: Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Place the butter in a saucepan and heat until it is just about to bubble. Remove from the heat; add the chocolate and stir to melt. Pour through a strainer and keep warm. To assemble: Cut a thin slice from the top of each cake to create a flat surface. Place a cake flat-side down on top of each custard. Cover the tops with warm chocolate glaze. Serve immediately.

I had a few variations to the recipe, because after waiting so long, I had realized that all the other Daring Bakers had already made theirs the way I was planning on making mine (grrr!). So, I decided to bake my chiffon cake on a baking sheet and then cut out fun shapes with cookie cutters. I used pumpkin and stars, as you can see in the photo below.

I thought they were so stinkin' cute! I plan on taking one with me in my lunch tomorrow, seeing as how the chiffon cake was my favorite part.


And here are a few photos of the finished product.



I served them in little scotch glasses that my husband had, and decorated the pumpkin one with festive lines, and just doused the star one with loads of chocolate. My husband's favorite part was the custard, though, he practically licked it out of the glass!


And here's a festive photo with one of our plug-in pumpkins (safer than jack-o-lanterns, so we can have it indoors).


Hope you enjoyed it as much as I do! Check out the Daring Bakers Blogroll to right to see how the other guys and dolls of the Daring Bakers did with this month's Challenge. I gotta tell you, they're pretty amazing!


~Mehgan~

45 comments:

Karen Baking Soda said...

Wow, so cute! With all these unknowing men in my house I tend to stick post-it notes on almost anything that say: keep off, mine!

Anne said...

Oh, looks great! Love the work with the cookie cutters! :)

Pille said...

I made mine yesterday evening as well - but I made my sticky buns/cinnamon rolls on the night before the deadline, too, so I'm used to it:)
Lovely cut-out shapes, Mehgan!!

Lis said...

Awww how festive for Halloween! You so rocked the Bostini, Mehgan!

I love the jack-o-lantern too. :D

xoxo

Julie said...

They are pretty dang cute! I just want to stab one with a spoon, down into the custard. How did you originally want to make yours?

Annemarie said...

Very sweet little cut-outs, and well done getting it all done just before the deadline (despite your husband's best efforts to derail you by drinking the OJ!).

BC said...

Creative presentation. I love it!

Ilva said...

It looks great, so inviting to stick a spoon into one or maybe three of those glasses!

slush said...

Aww, I love the halloweeny presentation. My kids would really enjoy that!

Anonymous said...

Great idea with the cutouts. I'm so inpressed with how everyone did the same thing, differently. Good job

Sheltie Girl said...

I love your pumpkin chiffon cake cut-outs. A very unique way to serve your dessert. Great job!

Natalie @ Gluten A Go Go

Warda said...

Perfect for the season. Your chiffon cake looks so airy and moist. Bravo!

Unknown said...

so cute, love the cutouts

courtney

Brilynn said...

I love your fun shapes!
The chiffon was my favourite part of the recipe because it actually turned out well for me this time!

Belinda said...

The whimsical shapes are really a cute idea...and even Mr. Pumpkin looks happy with the Bostinis! Great job! :-)

Brittany said...

I love your pics! So "Halloweenie"!! Snaps to you for knockin' these guys out in so little time!

MyKitchenInHalfCups said...

Hooray, somebody else did pumpkins, I love the strips you managed! Your star is really beautiful.

marias23 said...

How festive! Quite appropriate for the upcoming Halloween :)

Deborah said...

I love the different shapes!! I just made mine yesterday as well - there's nothing wrong with procrastination as long as it gets done!!

Jen Yu said...

Mehgan, those cut out shapes are adorable! I like the way you painted the stripes on the pumpkin with chocolate glaze :) I used to have problems with my husband consuming ingredients I had intended for pastries - particularly Italian espresso powder and whipping cream. Now he asks before consuming anything that could remotely be tossed into a dessert ;) Good job!!

-jen at use real butter

kellypea said...

A TON of eggs would be correct. I'm thinking I need some chickens if this keeps up. And if those aren't the cutest shapes I've seen...Very nice!

Julius said...

You're right - the bostinis are cute.

:)

I love all the shapes you cut out. This dessert is so adaptable.

Please feel free to check out my bostini here.

Julius

Lynne Daley said...

Lovely presentation!

April said...

Great presentation! Very appropriate for the Halloween!

Laura said...

Procrastination is my middle name! The stars are my favourite!

Anonymous said...

Waiting until the last minute has its rewards ... like these gorgeous bostinis!

breadchick said...

Whoo HOOO Mehgan!! Great way to slide under the wire and with such wonderful shapes!!! Men...can't leave them alone with the OJ for a minute....

Unknown said...

OH! I love the pumpkin...so cute! That cake just looks wonderful. As I did mine in a full cake, I didn't really get to see the sponge...yours looks great.

Chez Us said...

Very cute! I love the different shapes - what a grand idea! As well, Mr. Pumpkin chomping down on a Bostini is pretty funny!

leslie @ definitely not martha said...

I LOVE the stars, and the way you took the photo in the sunlight is awesome. Also, loving the pumpkin.

Leslie at definitely not martha

Dagmar said...

The chiffon cut outs are super cute! The bostini pies look great!

Mila said...

how cut your bositnis looks... when i started making mines i tought if the unmolding proces didn't work i would go for something like yours!

Jenny said...

Happy Halloween to you and your very thematic Bostini!

Alpineberry Mary said...

Great job! The cutouts really add some whimsy to the Bostini cream pies.

Anonymous said...

I love your shapes - how creative!

Anonymous said...

Great job with the cookie cutters! So cute!

Christine said...

Great job! I liked being able to cut out my own shapes, too.

Dharm said...

Mehgan,
Great idea with the cookie cutters!! As usual your dessert has turned out fabulous. But we all knew that you'd ace it! :)

Dolores said...

I'm so glad you found the time to squeeze these delightful treats in. I love your cookie cutter aproach... and suspending the cakes above the custard in the scotch glasses.

Helene said...

Great job Mehgan! Lovely cutouts!

Inne said...

Your chiffon cakes are very cute - love the way you decorated the pumpkin one.

Cheryl said...

Pumpkins shapes for the bostini. Now you are my kinda gal.

Gabi said...

Mehgan- those are so cut I love the cutouts cookie like cake parts topped with sauce and adorning the custard in the scotch glass.
Great job!
xoxo

Peabody said...

The pumpkin shape is such a cute idea around this time of year. And of course, as someone who made stars too, I am all about those. Great job.

Anonymous said...

I don't even know where to begin this comment. It all looks so good, and I love the presentation of it all. So fun!

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