Game 6 is tonight! We need a Bruins win! Those of you who have been reading for a while know that Jeff is a big Bruins fan and has gotten me into watching hockey and following the Bruins too. In the past, I've made treats for the games like black and gold cupcakes, black and gold cookies, and hockey puck-cakes (Ring-Ding-like cakes with gold filling). I was trying to come up with something new and fun to make for the Stanley Cup Finals when I realized that there is a dessert out there that's already basically black and gold, no food coloring needed: Boston cream pie.
And having worked at Flour, I knew just what Boston cream pie to make. As I was preparing to make the dessert, I realized I could take it one step farther and make small hockey-puck-shaped Boston cream pies. These were a definite hit: the best of Boston cream pie -- layers of coffee-soaked cake, whipped-cream-lightened vanilla-scented pastry cream, and rich, chocolate ganache -- crafted into a festive, hockey-themed dessert.
I followed the Flour recipes for the components (which you can find in Flour, Too or by following the links below). Once you've prepared each of the components as directed below, just follow my directions to put them all together to make your very own Boston Cream Pie Pucks.
Boston Cream Pie Pucks
Makes 10 pucks
Here's what you'll need to make them:
Sponge cake, removed from pan and cooled on cutting board (recipe calls for 18x13 pan; I used 17x12)
Coffee syrup
Pastry cream, chilled (make this first because it needs to be in the fridge for at least 2 hours)
1 cup heavy cream, whipped after cake is cool and pastry cream is fully chilled
Ganache, made when ready to finish cakes
Gold sugar, for decorating
Here's how to assemble them:
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a 2 3/4-inch biscuit cutter, cut 20 circles from the sponge cake. (Keep your cuts very close together so you actually get 20 circles.) Lay the cutouts bottoms down on the prepared baking sheet.
Brush the cutouts with the coffee syrup, using up all of the coffee syrup.
Fold the whipped cream into the pastry cream to lighten it. Using a piping bag fitted with a round tip, pipe the lightened pastry cream in circles on 10 of the cutouts. (If you don't have a piping bag or you're not comfortable with piping, you can certainly just spread the pastry cream on the circles.)
Top the pastry-cream-covered cutouts with the remaining cutouts (coffee-brushed side down), pressing lightly to adhere. Cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap and place in the freezer. Freeze for about 3 hours or until the pucks feel pretty solid. (You can also wrap the pucks individually once they are frozen for longer storage if you don't plan to finish and serve them that day.)
When ready to serve the pucks, make the ganache and place the pucks on a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet.
Pour warm ganache in the center of each puck (I like to use a liquid measuring cup) and use a small offset spatula to push the ganache over the edge. Go light on the ganache. The aim is a thin coating on top and drips down the sides of the pucks. You should have just enough ganache for all 10 pucks. If you run out, you can reuse and reheat any ganache in the sheet pan, provided it doesn't have crumbs in it (or make a second batch).
Sprinkle the pucks with gold sugar.
Let the pucks come to room temperature and dig in during game 6... or any Bruins game! Let's go, B's!!
(You will have sponge cake left from cutting out circles and you'll also have extra lightened pastry cream. You can use the extra sponge cake and pastry cream to make trifles if you want. The pastry cream is also delicious with fresh fruit.)
Can you think of any other black and gold treats for the Stanley Cup Finals?