Crepe Cake or Mille Crepe

Although this is dessert resemble a cake it is not a real cake. The “cake” is made of layers of crepe in between pastry creme.

Crepe cake or mille crepe…is originated in France and yes, this crepe cake requires a labor of love…in reality it is very simple and you will not have the issue of the cake not rising of collapsing…

The intense hands on are mainly when cooking the crepes one by one…and making sure that they do not tear up. I patted myself on the shoulder when cooking the crepes, somehow, from the very first to the very last crepe, they all came out intact…phew! I gave myself some room for error, since there was none, the crepe cake was made of exactly 23 layers…I was “wow”, that is cool!

This recipe was mainly from here, with some minor change. I cut the crepe batter recipe in half but kept the cream the same…the leftover cream can be served with fresh fruits, as a filling for cream puffs or pavlova…you will not have any problem using the cream. Since I love a touch of rose, I added a little rose water when whipping the heavy cream…

The day before assembling the crepe cake prepare the following:

Crepe Batter

3 tablespoons butter 1 ½ cups milk 3 eggs 90 g all-purpose flour 3 tablespoons sugar Pinch salt

Melt the butter in a small pan until lightly browned remove immediately from heat and set aside.

In another small pan, warm the milk until steaming, remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.

In a medium bowl using hand mixer at a low speed, mix together the eggs, flour, sugar, and salt. Slowly add in the warm milk and browned butter. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight.

Pastry Crème

1 egg 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon cornstarch 1 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a small bowl, add egg, flour, sugar, and cornstarch, mix well until a smooth paste forms.

In a saucepan over low heat, bring milk almost to a boil and slowly whisk the milk into the egg mixture. Return all ingredients to the saucepan, over low-medium heat, cook until the cream has thicken, by stirring constantly stirring. Make sure that the cream boils.

Remove from the heat and add vanilla extract .Set aside and cover with a plastic film to cool.When the cream has cooled refrigerate overnight. On the day of assembling the cake:

Remove the crepe batter from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature.

Set two large flat plates aside to layer the crepes.

In a 6 ½ inch lightly oiled nonstick pan over medium-low heat pour ⅛ cup of crepe better, swirl to cover the pan surface. Cook until the batter has settle and becomes lightly browned. Gently using a spatula turn the crepe over and continue cooking until the other side is lightly browned as well. Remove the crepe and set on the plate. Make sure to not stack the crepes on top of each other. I alternate the crepes on the two flat plates. Repeat the process until all the batter is gone (I was able to make exactly 23 crepes).

Rose water infused whipped cream

2 cups heavy cream 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon rose water

In a large bowl whip the heavy cream with the sugar and rose water. Fold gently the prepared chilled pastry cream with the whipped cream.

Assembly of crepe cake

Place one prepared crepe on a large cake plate.

With a spatula cover the crepe with a thin layer of the pastry cream mixture.

Cover with another dry crepe and repeat covering with the pastry crème until you have used up all the crepes (23 layers). Do not cover with cream the last layer of crepe.

Refrigerate the prepared cake for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight. Before serving remove the cake from the refrigerator. Garnish with fresh fruits, compotes, jams or dust with powdered sugar.

Slice and serve.

If you enjoy this fun way of making cake, you might want to try Ice Cream Swiss Roll.

Did you know that in many countries, crepes are also known as pancakes? Crepes varies from sweet to savory.

Thank you for stopping by Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week! Pavlova with Rose Cream

This is a easy and simple recipe for a very elegant dessert made mainly with egg whites, whipped cream and fresh fruit. What makes this pavlova especial is the hint of rose in the whipped cream. For the longest time I wanted to make pavlova…and I was able to try it for the first time this last July 4th, for the celebration of our Independence day…but could not take many photos…that is okay because I got to bake again for my niece Erica’s 16th birthday. Instead of topping the pavlova with only strawberry and blueberry (blue, read and white) I got to try again with all kind of fruits, which turned out to be prettier.

This is such a simple and easy recipe, in a way refreshing due to all the fruits on it…the combination of the delicate meringue (crispy) with the creamy fresh whipped cream with a touch of rose and the fresh fruit is just indescribable enjoyment for the palate.

The great about this simple and elegant recipe is that you can make the meringue a day ahead, just keep it in an airtight container.

Ingredients:

4 egg whites ½ cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 teaspoon white vinegar 2 teaspoons cornstarch

2 cups heavy cream 1 tablespoon sugar 2 teaspoons rose water

All kind of fresh fruits that your eyes and palate desire…

Method:

Preheat oven to 250F degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Draw a 9-inch circle on the parchment paper and flip the parchment paper, transfer the paper to a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, beat egg whites on low speed. Gradually add in the sugar, and increase the speed to medium high beating well until soft peaks form. Gently mix in rose water, vinegar, and cornstarch and continue beating until very stiff and glossy peaks.

Spoon the egg white mixture inside the circle drawn on the parchment paper. With a spoon gently work from the center to the side of the circle, building an edge.

Bake for 15 minutes at 250F and then 200F for another 1 ½ hour. The outside of the meringue should be crispy and lightly brown. The time to reach the crispy meringue is increased due to the less amount of sugar in the meringue. Cool on a wire rack. In a medium bowl, beat heavy cream with the sugar and rose water until stiff peaks.

Gently fill the center of the meringue with the whipped cream. Top it with the fresh fruit. Serve immediately.

I hope you enjoy this simple and elegant dessert using meringue…for more recipes using meringue you might want to check the recipe for Meringue Kisses Cookies.

Did you know that pavlova was named after the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova? Two countries claim to be the creator of this dessert, Australia and New Zeland.

Thank you for stopping by Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week!