Boston Cream Pie

Although the name suggests otherwise, Boston cream pie is not a pie, but a cake consisting of two layers of sponge cake which are filled with a rich vanilla custard, while the whole thing is finished with a chocolate glaze, or in some cases, with sprinkled confectioners' sugar. It was named a pie because the first versions were baked in pie tins, which were more common than cake pans in the mid-19th century. The inventor of the Boston cream pie is a French chef named Sanzian, who worked in the Parker House, a hotel that claims to have served the dessert since its opening in 1856. Originally, the cake was served under the name Parker House Chocolate Cream Pie. Today, this classic cake is a favorite throughout the country, not just in Massachusetts where it became the official state dessert in 1996.