Lab Bench: Silky Bavarian Cream

The Art.
    Best Friend Hanako has been my steadfast companion on many wonderful baking adventures, but the one I love best is the time we made Bavarian cream. We had just thrown together some spice cake cupcakes, and I had found a new Bavarian Cream recipe for us to use as a filling. As usual, we were focused more on gossiping and giggling rather than baking, and I didn't have high hopes for our end product. We didn't even follow the recipe entirely. However, the resulting Bavarian cream was one of those happy accidents you experience in life that you reminisce about for years to come. It was silky, rich and wonderful. I have attempted to recreate this cream several times with limited success, and each time it falls short of my expectations and I fall into a deep Baking Depression. After my most recent attempt, I decided enough was enough. Today, I will share with you what ensues when a scientist has trouble with a recipe.

The Science.
   This Bavarian Cream is made up of two components: a whipped cream and a vanilla custard. To be honest, the root of all my problems lies within the custard component. I hypothesized that there were a few variables that had changed between the first Bavarian cream and the subsequent batches. First, I know for a fact that I didn't use anywhere near as much gelatin as the recipe calls for. Second, I didn't use a thermometer while cooking the custard, nor record how long I cooked it. (That part really infuriates me.) Third, I'm not sure if I used whole milk or 1%. And fourth, Best Friend Hanako reminded me that I had originally chilled it overnight, because I knew she would have no patience for stirring over a double boiler when she came over.
     Custards can be very sensitive to heat, and according to those who know, they should only be cooked to 170-175^oF [1]. Any higher, and the eggs will begin to "break," and you'll end up with a lumpy custard. Straining through a sieve will only take out large clumps caused by under-stirring, so there's no going back after your eggs have curdled. For this recipe, I needed to figure out the perfect cook time, thickening agent, and chill time to create a custard that is thick enough to be stable once blended with the whipped cream, yet gently cooked so it maintains a rich, silky texture. 
    After several days of painstakingly altering the custard recipe, I finally got fed up with the whole thing, and decided to take a step back. I remembered when my Aunt first taught me to make custard, and threw all the custard ingredients together in a pan and stirred constantly with a spatula. When the mixture just started to bubble (which I admit was way above 175^oF), I strained it and allowed it to set overnight. Voila! Perfect custard, and no thermometers needed.


The Recipe. (Adapted from [2])

6 egg yolks
1 cup  plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 cups whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 (1/4oz) envelope gelatin
1/4 cup boiling water
1 1/2 cups 40% heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon cornstarch

    In a large bowl, beat together egg yolks and powdered sugar until light yellow and fluffy. Bring milk and vanilla to a scald in a saucepan. Slowly add ladles of milk to the egg yolks, constantly stirring until all the milk is combined. Tempering the eggs like this prevents them from cooking up in lumps, and produces a silky texture. Stir the custard constantly over low heat with a spatula, carefully scraping the entire bottom of the saucepan to prevent it overcooking on the bottom. When the custard begins to coat the spatula and just begins to bubble, remove from heat.
    In a small bowl, stir gelatin into 1/4 cup boiling water until dissolved. Slowly add to warm custard while stirring. Strain custard through a wire mesh sieve into a bowl, cover surface with waxed paper, and chill overnight.
    The next day, make the stabilized whipped cream. Chill a large metal bowl and beater blades in the freezer for 10 minutes. Add some ice and water to a slightly larger bowl to create an ice bath, and set the chilled metal bowl inside it. Whip the cream on medium-high until soft peaks stand in the bowl. Add the cornstarch, and continue to beat on high until stiff peaks form. Be careful not to over-whip, as the cream will curdle.
    Before combining the custard and the cream, the custard must be whipped to make the texture more pliable so the whipped cream can be folded in. This can be done by either stirring with a whisk or beating it on low for a couple minutes. Fold the whipped cream into the custard, and stir until smooth. Store Bavarian cream in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.


1. Sawicki, Laura. "Cooking Basics-- How to Make Custard." Edible Austin. Available here.

2. Recipe by Nadia Hassani, in Spoonfuls of Germany. Available here.

Tutorial: 1M Swirl

The Art.
    This is the first in a series of cake decorating tutorials that I'm very excited about. Each time I create a post that uses a standard decorating technique, I will post how-to directions for it a few days before. I think it's important to demonstrate the piping techniques that are used to decorate cakes, cupcakes, and cookies in a step-by-step format, especially for all my readers who are new to decorating.

   The classic 1M swirl is a must-have technique in a cupcake decorator's arsenal.  It is so quick and easy, but still elegant. The term "1M" refers to the decorating tip size that is required. I use a Wilton 1M tip, which can be found at Hobby Lobby or at Wilton's website. This tip can be used for many other techniques, like making large drop flowers, stars, or cake borders.  Definitely worth the $2 investment. This tip can also be used to decorate with a wide range of icings, from chocolate ganache, to whipped cream, to buttercream.

The Science.

    A very important factor for piping beautiful decorations is making sure your icing is the right consistency. When icing is concerned, temperature and consistency go hand in hand. Today, I am demonstrating the 1M swirl with buttercream icing, which is my staple. My recipe uses a mixture of butter and shortening, which simultaneously gives it a nice buttery flavor and a wider temperature range in which it can be used to decorate. All-butter recipes are more difficult to decorate with and transport than those made with shortening. Butter is not a pure fat, but rather an emulsion of oil and water held together by milk protein emulsifiers. It is a hard solid at temperatures below 60^oF because of its high saturated fat content, so cool all-butter buttercream cannot be piped. However, butter also has a low melting temperature of only 90^oF, which means that it will make icing become oily and soft if left at room temperature for a while [1]. Shortening, on the other hand, is full of hydrogenated fats and is fairly soft at cold temperatures, yet doesn't melt until about 117^oF [2]. These qualities make it an ideal fat for decorating icing, but not so great on the flavor front. By blending together butter and shortening in buttercream, you can achieve the best of both worlds and have buttery flavor and temperature tolerance.

The Recipe.

Fluffy Buttercream
1 cup salted butter, room temperature
1 cup vegetable shortening
5-7 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla

    In large bowl, beat together butter and shortening on medium speed until fluffy. Beat in powdered sugar, one cup at a time. Add sugar until icing makes stiff, jagged peaks. Beat in vanilla. If icing tastes too sugary or grainy, add a couple tablespoons of milk. Use immediately or store in an airtight container for up to two weeks. Makes enough icing for one 9" round cake or 24 cupcakes.

1M Swirl Technique:
   Place a 1M decorating tip in a piping bag and fill with icing, twisting the top shut. Beginning at the outer edge, anchor the frosting on the cupcake by holding the tip at the surface and applying pressure to the bag. Once anchored, raise the tip slightly above the surface.
Pipe around the periphery with constant pressure until you reach your starting point. Continue to pipe, slightly overlapping your first round of icing. Keep on going around until you reach the center of the cupcake. When you come to the point where you want your swirl to end, stop pressure on the piping bag, push the tip down slightly to anchor the end of the swirl, then pull up to release. Please note that I am left-handed, so all you righties might want to mirror what I do in the photos.









1. American Baking Essentials Course 201. "Butter, Shortening, and Oils: The Fats We Bake With." The Prepared Pantry, 2005.
2. O Chef, "Turning the Heat up on Crisco (and Lard)." http://www.ochef.com/1157.htm