So what is a 'piecaken' anyway?

If you have never heard of the term 'piecaken' before, be prepared to find a new passion here on this website. If you are any kind of foodie, or just a person who likes pie and cake, it is likely that once you hear about 'piecaken' you will want to make one for yourself.  Then you might find yourself lying awake at night, thinking up endless combinations of piecaken that you can make for your family and friends.  That is what happened to me and to  many of my friends and family, once they learned about piecaken.

So what is a PIECAKEN anyway?  It is a whole pie that is baked inside of a whole cake. If the pie is not baked into the cake, but simply placed in the middle of a pre-baked cake, that is a 'Faken' Piecaken'....but that is another story which will be addressed in a future article.

A piecaken can be simple or it can be complex. A Simple Piecaken is when you go to the grocery store and purchase a pre-baked pie and a cake mix. Then you 'simply' follow these directions:

1. Whip up your cake mix as per the instructions on the cake mix box.
2. Pour half of the cake mix in the bottom of a cake pan that is slightly larger than your pie (ie. for an 8-inch pie, use a 9-inch round cake pan).
3. Take your pre-baked pie out of the package and flip it upside down onto the cake batter in the pan and remove the foil pie plate.
4. Pour the remaining batter on top of the pie and spread it around the edges of the pie.
5. Bake for about 1 hour or until an inserted knife comes out clean.
6. Let cool on a cooling rack until it sets a little, then flip the cake upside-down onto a cake plate. 
7. Decorate with pre-mixed store-bought icing, and Voila! you have a Piecaken.

A Complex Piecaken is when you make a pie from scratch and bake it.  Then you make a cake batter from scratch and bake your pie into it.  Then you whip up some chocolate ganache or buttercream icing and decorate your Piecaken.

But whether it is simple or complicated, a  PIECAKEN is still delicious and still offers endless opportunities to create unique flavours.  Just think about it: Cherry Pie inside of a Chocolate Cake, Strawberry Pie inside of an Angel-Food Cake, Apple Pie inside of a Vanilla Ice Cream Cake and so on to infinity.

An example of a Savoury Piecaken: 
A Tourtiere (Meat Pie) baked
inside of a savoury Cornbread Cake!

Coming soon to this blog: Tips for Baking a Piecaken and a fantastic recipe for Pumpkin-Pie-in-a-Vanilla-Cheesecake Piecaken and something that has not yet been discussed on any other website devoted to piecakens: Savoury Piecakens.