Traffic and Cupcakes

A few months ago I was caught in traffic on my way to work.  There was a truck that had gotten stuck under an underpass on the Hutchinson River Parkway.  I spent the better part of two hours getting to work and when I got there I was relaxed, chipper, and in a great mood.

This may seem counter intuitive, as up until that point in my life traffic was a blood pressure raising, rage inducing, affront to my right to drive a car.  But remembering a line from Dan Telfer's comedy routine about the best dinosaur (well worth the time to find on YouTube) I started to think about cupcakes.

Now in my mind cupcakes are over rated and over done.  The Mrs. Petunia has brought me cupcakes from "The City"and Brooklyn and some were good and some were just too big, to overdone and in my mind too gimmicky.  So as I sat in traffic, drinking my coffee my mind turned to one of my favorite cakes: the Boston Cream Pie.

From fresh Boston Cream Pie made for a casual dinner with a co-worker and his wife

My brother had made one when The Mrs. Petunia and I visited him out in Pittsburgh.  I was inspired and went on to make my own, a lot, at any occasion.  I thought that I might be able to turn this favorite into a cupcake.  

The idea turned over and over in my head through traffic and through the next few weeks.  Eventually I was called away from my duties of teaching to score State Tests.  I became friendly (and honestly a bit competitive) with my table mates.  We all agreed to bring something to eat on the last day and I volunteered them to be my Boston Cream Pie Cup Cake taste testers.  

I used my standard BCP recipe.  For the record it is NOT my recipe but one I found online.

I filled the cups of my cupcake pan half way with the cake batter and baked at 350 (rotating positions in the oven twice) for about 20 minutes.  

While the cupcakes were cooking I filled a piping bag with my custard (made before and cooled) and put on a star tip.  (Technically I put the tip on, then filled the bag.  It is easier that way) and filled the cakes with custard.  The trick is to push the tip about half way into the cupcake and squeeze until the cupcake "plumps"

Cupcakes piped full of custard

My mistake was in the frosting.  I did not add enough cream to make the Jaques Torres dark chocolate (The Mrs. Petunia knows how to shop for chocolate) glossy like the topping of the inspiration cake above.  The flavor profile was excellent but I need to work on my gloss.  The cupcakes were well received by table mates and co-workers alike.  

The final product.  Notice the lack of sheen on the frosting.

So there you have it gentle readers, from traffic to table; the BCPCC (BCPCC? sounds like a Boston area community college).

 Desert is served.