Polish Carpathian Mountain Cream Cake (Karpatka)

Make the Dough

1. Gather the ingredients.

2. Preheat oven to 375 F. Lightly coat a 13 x 9-inch pan with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper.

3. In a medium saucepan, bring water, 10 tablespoons butter, and salt to a boil.

4. When butter has completely melted, remove from heat and, using a wooden spoon, add 1 cup flour all at once.

5. Return to stove and stir over low heat for 2 or 3 minutes or until dough cleans sides of pan and forms a ball.

6. Remove from heat and stir in eggs one at a time, beating well, either by hand or with an electric mixer, after each addition. The batter should be smooth and glossy and cling to the spoon.

7. Pour dough into prepared pan, but don't smooth it out. You want the finished top to look like a rugged mountain. Bake 30 minutes.

8. Bake 30 minutes.Remove from oven and pierce top all over with a skewer and bake another 10 minutes or until top is golden brown and dry.

9. Remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack before filling.

Make the Filling

1. Gather the ingredients.

2. In a medium saucepan, bring milk, sugar, cornstarch, and 2 tablespoons flour to a boil, stirring frequently.

3. Reduce heat and continue to cook and stir until thickened like pudding, at least 2 minutes. Stir in vanilla.

4. Place in an ice water bath to cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.

5. Make sure filling is completely cool before beating in 20 tablespoons softened butter.

Assemble the Cake

1. Split the cooled pastry in half horizontally.

2. Place bottom half back in clean baking pan and pour cooled filling over, spreading evenly.

3. Top with other half of pastry and refrigerate until cold.

4. When ready to serve, cut into rectangles with a serrated knife and dust heavily with confectioners' sugar to look like snow on a mountain top.