Boston Cream Pie is a classic dessert! Two layers of yellow cake are filled with pastry cream and topped off with a chocolate glaze. It is sure to be a favorite!
You can always use the short-cut version of boxed yellow cake and instant pudding, but there’s nothing quite like a Boston Cream made from scratch with spongey yellow cake, decadent pastry cream, all topped with a simple ganache. It is breathtaking.
Why is it called a Boston Cream Pie?
This cake gets its name from a time period when cakes and pies were cooked in the same pans so the names were used interchangeably. Nowadays, we might call this a Boston Cream Cake, but the “pie” part has stuck to this classic dessert.
Do I have to use buttermilk?
The buttermilk in this cake interacts with the baking powder to help the cake rise. If you substitute milk, your cake will not be as fluffy. If you don’t have buttermilk available, it is very easy to make a buttermilk substitute by adding either white vinegar or lemon juice to regular milk. For the full substitute instructions, please see the link.
Pastry Cream Shortcut:
If you don’t have time to make pastry cream from scratch, you can also use 2 small boxes of vanilla pudding mix. The pastry cream is worth the extra effort of making, but if you are short on time, this shortcut will definitely work.
Storage Instructions:
This cake needs to be stored in a refrigerator due to the pastry cream filling. Once it has been sliced into, you’ll need to cover the exposed portion of the cake to keep it from drying out. Plastic wrap is perfect for this.
If you like this recipe, you may also like these other cake recipes:
- The Most Amazing Chocolate Cake
- The Most Amazing White Cake
- Funfetti Birthday Cake
- Strawberry Shortcake
Watch the video below where Rachel will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes on YouTube, Facebook Watch, or our Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
The cake tasted incredible! It wasn’t that visually attractive because the cream squeezed out the side and mixed with the dripping ganache so it was a bit of a mess but we didn’t care much because it tasted so yummy!
Oh, how I love this recipe! I have made it several times, as it’s my husband’s favorite. He chooses it for his birthday dessert, for sure. I followed each portion of the recipe EXACTLY and it comes out perfectly. The cake is moist and a perfect texture to accommodate the cream filling and the chocolate ganache. The cream filling from scratch is delicious! It’s sturdy enough to stay put between the layers, slice beautifully and highlights the best ingredients, like high-quality vanilla.
The chocolate ganache is shiny and just starts to drip on the edges, not too thick, not too thin. I always read the instructions entirely before beginning and, again I say, follow the recipe exactly.
Thank you for this recipe! It’s a consistent winner in our family.
I have been following you for a while now and your recipes are definitely a hit!! Very helpful for a newbie like me!!