Boston Cream Cupcakes

There’s just something so nostalgic and comforting about a Boston cream pie.

It always reminds me of family gatherings growing up in Massachusetts – that luscious vanilla cake filled with velvety pastry cream and topped with a rich chocolate glaze. My mom made the best Boston cream pie from scratch every year for my dad’s birthday.

The whole house would be filled with the most incredible aroma as she carefully tended to the pastry cream on the stovetop.

As a kid, I would impatiently hover around the kitchen, trying to sneak a fingerful of that dreamy custard whenever I could.

Mom would shoo me away, telling me I had to wait until after dinner for a slice of the real deal. And it was always worth the wait – that first bite of tender cake giving way to the cool, silky cream and fudgy chocolate topping was absolute heaven.

Ingredients

Pastry Cream Filling:
1 cup whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup granulated sugar divided
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 large egg yolks room temperature
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
Cupcake Batter:
1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk room temperature
Chocolate Ganache Topping:
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons light corn syrup optional
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar