“…goes into everything from pastries to cupcakes, lending a smooth, creamy and almost vanilla pudding flavor.”
There was a bakery not too far from the house I grew up in. It was a tiny, little old-school bakery with a charming elderly italian woman that could barely speak English. For at least ten years, we smiled at each other, I pointed to what I wanted and she put it in a bag. I consider it the best relationship I had with a woman until I met Angie. I will never, ever, never, get over their raspberry filled doughnuts, which had the most amazing real raspberry filling (seeds and all) tucked into a perfectly fried doughnut. What little money didn’t go into the video games at the local 7-Eleven, went into the pastries of Vitale’s Bakery. But their doughnuts weren’t my only love affair. They served an equally perfect cannoli, filled with a whipped bavarian cream that I’d scoop out on to my fingers and eat before finishing off what was left. This Bavarian Cream filling is my ode to those memories. Traditional (or should I say “real”) Bavarian Cream doesn’t include the whipped cream and there are many that do not use gelatin (which is an animal product for you vegans), but this one is my personal favorite and the one that most reminds me of a bakery that was a part of my childhood. It was used in our recent crepe cake and goes into everything from pastries to cupcakes, lending a smooth, creamy and almost vanilla pudding flavor.
Yields: About 2 Cups. Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
3/4 Cups organic heavy cream (30-40%)
1 (1/4 ounce) envelope unflavored gelatin
2/3 Cup cold water
3 egg yolks
1/2 Cup confectioners’ sugar
1 cup organic low-fat milk
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Directions:
In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the cream until soft peaks form. Set in the refrigerator until needed. Sprinkle the gelatin into 2/3 cup cold water and allow to soak for 10 minutes. With a hand whisk, beat the egg yolks and the confectioners’ sugar in a large bowl until the mixture turns pale yellow and has a thick, creamy texture. Set aside.
In a medium sized sauce pan over medium-high heat, bring the milk and the vanilla to a boil, stirring on occasion to make keep the milk from scorching to the bottom of the pan. Once at a boil, remove from heat and slowly pour the milk mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Place the bowl over a over a sauce pan of simmering water, creating a bain-marie. The bowl is not to touch the water so use just enough water to boil without evaporating too quickly. About 1/4″ is enough. Stir constantly until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Gradually stir in the dissolved gelatin then place the bowl over a large bowl of ice water (or a couple of bags of frozen corn if you forgot to buy ice like us). Make sure that the mixture is lump-free. Continue to stir vigorously until the cream starts to cool and stiffen to a pudding-like consistency. Gently fold in the whipped cream that you set in the refrigerator earlier. Chill until you’re ready to use as a cake filling or pastry filling.
This recipe will keep fresh in an airtight container for 1 week in the refrigerator. It does not freeze well. If chilled in the refrigerator, let stand for ten minutes at room temperature, then gently whisk for 10-20 seconds to smooth the texture before using.
