Siege of Boston
PG tested
Remember the shot heard round the world? In his 1837 poem “Concord Hymn,” Ralph Waldo Emerson was referring to the shot that rang out at the Old North Bridge in Concord, Mass., during the battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. Those first military engagements led to the 11-month-long battle, which began when the newly created Continental Army bottled up 6,500 British troops commanded by Gen. Thomas Gage in Boston in April 1775.
As its new commander, Gen. George Washington prepared to bombard the city with cannons and artillery. But on March 17, 1776, the British decided to instead evacuate, and Washington got the city back without firing a single shot.
This official dessert of Massachusetts is said to have originated at Parker House Hotel in Boston sometime between 1865 and 1881. It’s basically a two-layer yellow sponge cake filled with custard or cream and topped with chocolate glaze.
A recipe for it first appeared in print in 1887, when it was included in “Miss Parloa’s kitchen companion: a guide for all who would be good housekeepers.” Only it had four layers, and went by a different name: Chocolate Cream Pie.
If you’re pressed for time, substiute a boxed yellow cake and boxed pudding mix. For cake 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for pan
1½ cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for pan 1½ teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon salt ½ cup milk 3 large eggs 1 cup sugar Instant vanilla pudding, prepared according to package For glaze ¼ cup heavy cream 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9inch round cake pan. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. Combine milk and butter in a small saucepan; set over very low heat.
With an electric mixer, beat eggs and sugar on high speed until thick, lightened in color, and mixture holds a trail for several seconds when beater is lifted, 4 to 5 minutes. Gradually whisk in dry ingredients just until incorporated.
Bring milk and butter to a boil. With mixer on low speed, add hot milk mixture to batter; mix just until smooth. Mix in vanilla; transfer batter to prepared pan and smooth top.
Bake until golden and pulling away from sides of pan, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool cake 10 minutes in pan; remove from pan, and transfer to a rack to cool, right side up.
Fill cake: With a serrated knife, split cooled cake horizontally (leave bottom half on rack). Spread bottom half with vanilla pudding to within ½ inch of edge; gently place top half of cake on pudding layer.
To make the chocolate glaze: In a small saucepan, bring heavy cream to a boil. Remove from heat and add chocolate; stir until smooth.
Set aside to cool to room temperature and to thicken slightly, about 10 minutes. When glaze has thickened, pour over filled cake. Using a small metal spatula, spread glaze to edges of cake, allowing it to drip down sides. Let glaze set, 15 to 20 minutes. Leftover cake can be refrigerated, loosely covered, up to 2 days.