PrintPie crisis: Why hasn't it set up yet?
OK.. so I'm making a chocolate cream pie (basically a homemade chocolate pudding/custard poured into a prebaked pie crust and chilled). It's been in the fridge for about an hour now and still hasn't set up. Is there anything I can do? I thought I had cooked it over the stove long enough, it said not to let it boil, and it was plenty hot....
I hope I haven't ruined it!
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13 Comments:
If it was warm, an hour isn't nearly long enough for it to cool to that point. Are we talking egg or cornstarch thickening?
lemons at 11:54PM on 05/02/08
it had 3 egg yolks and 3 tablespoons of cornstarch. the recipe was so vague, it didn't include times in any step - just "heat til thick" and then "cool". So maybe it will take overnight...I guess I'm just used to pudding mixes that seem to solidify immediately.
elizabeth786 at 12:02AM on 05/03/08
How to I tint my royal icing gold and/or silver?
auntcake at 12:37AM on 05/03/08
Was it thick when you put it into the shell? I haven't made chocolate cream pie, but often make vanilla cream for banana cream pies and the mixture thickens significantly when you are whipping it on the stove. It's a highly noticable difference, and not soupy at all when poured into the crust, but for lack of a better term, pudding-like.
Also my recipe (per America's Test Kitchen) calls for cooling it at room temp for about an hour with plastic wrap on the surface, then transferring it to the pie crust, then into the fridge for about 3 hours. Hopefully with time it will thicken up for you!
bobcatsteph3 at 5:40AM on 05/03/08
If you didn't heat the mixture until it bubbled then it wasn't hot enough for the cornstarch to be activated. it has to be somewhat thick (yes pudding-like) when you place it in the pie shell.
Judyep at 8:22AM on 05/03/08
I only tried once to make a chocolate cream pie. I followed every direction to the frippin' letter - and it still didn't set up right. It was, however, DELICOUS - just soupy :(.
Hope it works out for you!
chiff0nade at 10:17AM on 05/03/08
I fixed it! It may sound crazy but I poured it out of the pie crust this morning and re-cooked it over the stove until it had really really thickened, and then put it back in. Doesn't look as pretty anymore, but it's a real pie now!
Thanks for your help everyone :)
elizabeth786 at 10:35AM on 05/03/08
Nice save elizabeth786! Cover it with some whipped cream and some chocolate shavings and it will be absolutely beautiful!
PerkyMac at 10:59AM on 05/03/08
Good for you, Elizabeth! ^5 and nice going! I didn't re-cook my filling but everyone sure enjoyed spooning it out of the pie shell...ROFLMAO.
chiff0nade at 12:30PM on 05/03/08
Good recovery!
I'm sure once you try it, you'll never go back to the boxed pudding mixes again! At least now you know how to get the right consistency for next time, it does take some elbow grease while whipping, but the end result is usually worth it! Now I'm craving choc. cream pie!
bobcatsteph3 at 2:16PM on 05/03/08
E. you do have to cook stuff w/ cornstarch until it boils. I use to have to make large batches of pastry cream at a place I worked & it had eggs & cornstarch. It had to boil & also had to be constantly stirred to avoid scorching. I make lemon curd a lot & use egg yolks only, no cornstarch & do it over hot water. I will check my prof. baking book & see if they have any other kind of variations. When I do curd, I raise it to 175 degrees F on the candy therm & add cold butter when it is off the heat. It sets up great when cold. I use it to fill cakes.
Ask Cookey at 4:13PM on 05/04/08
Some of the tests you can do when making custard are as follows. When you cook custard make sure you stir it with a large spoon. Preferably use a wooden one. As it cooks lift the spoon occasionally to see how the custard sheets off the spoon. As it gets thicker it will start to sheet into two streams instead of one. Also, another sign as starts to thicken up, is to lift the spoon and drag your finger across the back of the spoon. If the custard is thick enough it will retain the mark of your finger. Another test you can do is to freeze a plate and put a dollop of the custard on the plate to cool and put in the freezer to cool it down quickly to see how thick it gets. These are some of the same tests you do when making jellies and jams.
persephone113 at 7:12PM on 05/05/08
Try whisking the corn starch into the egg yolk, and then tempering it with the scalded milk. Then bring the whole thing to a boil, while stirring continually with a long spoon or heat-proof spatula. Careful, here--this will spit. After it reaches a boil, pour it into the shell, and place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the custard to prevent a skin from forming. Should you get lumps while cooking, don't worry about it. Just put it in the blender for a couple of seconds, and then into the pie shell.
beth1 at 12:48AM on 05/06/08