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Boston cream pie

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Not to be confused with Cream cake.
"Boston cream" redirects here. For the doughnut, see Boston cream doughnut.

Boston cream pie
A Boston cream pie
CourseDessert
Place of originBoston, Massachusetts
Region or state New England
Serving temperatureRoom temperature or chilled
Main ingredientsSponge cake, custard, chocolate glaze
Boston cream pie with chocolate drizzle

A Boston cream pie is a cake with a cream filling.[1] The dessert acquired its name when cakes and pies were baked in the same pans, and the words were used interchangeably.[2] In the late 19th century, this type of cake was variously called a "cream pie", a "chocolate cream pie", or a "custard cake".[2] The cake has been popular in Massachusetts since its creation.[3]

History

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The dessert is estimated to have been created between 1834 and 1856.[4] The invention of the pie is most commonly credited to French chef Augustine François Anezin[5][6] (also named as M. Sanzian) at the Parker House Hotel in Boston, who reportedly made the dessert for its opening in 1856.[7][8] A direct descendant of earlier cakes known as American pudding-cake pie, Beecher's cream cake,[4] Washington pie, the dessert was referred to as chocolate cream pie, Parker House chocolate cream pie, and finally Boston cream pie on Parker House's menus. The cake consisted of two layers of French butter sponge cake filled with thick custard and brushed with a rum syrup; its side was coated with the same custard overlaid with toasted sliced almonds, and the top coated with chocolate fondant.[9] While other custard cakes may have existed at that time, baking chocolate as a coating was a new process, making it unique and a popular choice on the menu.[2]

The name "chocolate cream pie" first appeared in the 1872 Methodist Almanac.[2] An early printed use of the term "Boston cream pie" occurred in the Granite Iron Ware Cook Book, printed in 1878.[10] The earliest known recipe for the modern variant was printed in Miss Parloa's Kitchen Companion in 1887 as "chocolate cream pie".[10]

Boston cream pie is the official dessert of Massachusetts, declared as such on December 12, 1996.[11]

Variations

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Boston cream doughnut

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Boston cream doughnut
Alternative namesBoston cream pie doughnut
Boston cream pie donut
TypeDoughnut
Place of originUnited States
Region or stateNew England
Main ingredientsDough, chocolate icing, custard

A Boston cream doughnut (or Boston cream pie doughnut, also spelled donut, or simply Boston Cream) is a Berliner filled with vanilla custard or crème pâtissière and topped with icing made from chocolate.[12] It is a round, solid, yeast-risen doughnut with chocolate frosting and a custard filling, resulting in a doughnut reminiscent of a miniature Boston cream pie,[13][14] from which it was inspired.[15]

The doughnut adaptation of the pie is popular not only in Massachusetts but throughout the United States and Canada.[16] Also filled with the same cream, the Dunkin Donut's Bavarian cream doughnut differs from the Boston cream doughnut in that, instead of a chocolate glaze topping, the Bavarian cream doughnut is tossed in powdered sugar.[17]

State doughnut of Massachusetts

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Interior view of a Boston cream doughnut

The Boston cream doughnut was designated the official doughnut of Massachusetts in 2003 (the Boston cream pie itself had already been chosen as the state dessert in 1996).[18] Although the doughnut's popularity made it the natural choice for the state, it is one of only two official state donuts—the only other one being the beignet, the state doughnut of Louisiana.[19][20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Although It Is Called A Boston Cream Pie, It Is In Fact A Cake, And Not A Pie". South Florida Reporter. October 23, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d Byrn, Anne (2016). American Cake: From Colonial Gingerbread to Classic Layer, the Stories and Recipes Behind More than 125 of Our Best-Loved Cakes. Rodale. p. 46. ISBN 9781623365431. OCLC 934884678.
  3. ^ "Boston Cream Pie Fun Facts | Mobile Cuisine". October 23, 2020.
  4. ^ a b Galarza, Daniela (January 30, 2015). "180 Years of America's Classic Desserts: From Baked Alaska to Marionberry Pie". Eater.
  5. ^ "National Boston Cream Pie Day celebrates the state's official dessert". Boston Public Radio. October 23, 2023.
  6. ^ McCourt, Clara. "Is the Boston Cream Pie really a pie?". Boston.
  7. ^ John-Bryan Hopkins (2018). Foodimentary: Celebrating 365 Food Holidays with Classic Recipes. Book Sales. p. 349. ISBN 9781577151531.
  8. ^ "Massachusetts State Dessert or Desert Emblem: Boston Cream Pie". eReference Deck.
  9. ^ Patent, Greg (2002). Baking in America: Traditional and Contemporary Favorites from the Past 200 Years. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 9780618048311 – via Archive.org.
  10. ^ a b Goldstein, Darra; Krondl, Michael; Heinzelmann, Ursula; Mason, Laura; Quinzio, Geraldine & Rath, Eric, eds. (2015). The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199313624.
  11. ^ "Massachusetts Facts". Citizen Information Service, Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth. p. 6. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
  12. ^ "Massachusetts State Donut or Desert Emblem: Boston Cream Donut". www.ereferencedesk.com.
  13. ^ Ellin, Abby (2005). Teenage Waistland: A Former Fat Kid Weighs In on Living Large, Losing Weight, and How Parents Can (and Can't&) Help. New York: PublicAffairs. p. 112. ISBN 9781586482282. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
  14. ^ Steinberg, Sally Levitt (2004). The Donut Book: The Whole Story in Words, Pictures & Outrageous Tales. North Adams, Mass.: Storey Publishing. pp. 146–147. ISBN 9781580175487. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
  15. ^ "Massachusetts State Donut or Desert Emblem: Boston Cream Donut".
  16. ^ "Massachusetts State Donut | Boston Cream Donut". May 20, 2014.
  17. ^ "Boston Kreme vs. Bavarian Kreme vs. Bismark: What's the Difference?". Dunkin'. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  18. ^ "Dunkin' Donuts Celebrates the Official Donut of the Commonwealth - the Boston Cream Donut" (Press release). Dunkin' Donuts. January 31, 2003. Archived from the original on December 30, 2010. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
  19. ^ Anderson, L. V. (August 24, 2014). "The United Sweets of America". Slate. ISSN 1091-2339. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  20. ^ "Beignet State Doughnut | State Symbols USA". statesymbolsusa.org. June 3, 2014. Retrieved February 16, 2022.

Further reading

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