Crepe Cake With Granola And Plums Recipes

CHEF JOHN'S STRAWBERRY CREPE CAKE

Steps:

• Pour eggs, flour, sugar, salt, oil, milk, and vanilla extract into a blender. Blend, starting on low speed and finishing on high, until combined. Refrigerate batter for at least 30 minutes.
• Scoop strawberry jam into a saucepan. Rinse out jar with water and pour into the saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and stir. Simmer for 1 minute, remove from heat, and stir. Let cool to room temperature.
• Brush some butter over a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Pour in 1/4 cup batter; tilt pan to coat evenly. Cook until crepes bubble and brown, about 1 1/2 minutes per side. Transfer to a baking sheet. Repeat with remaining batter, buttering the pan between crepes. Let cool completely before stacking, at least 15 minutes.
• Combine mascarpone cheese, cream, sugar, and vanilla extract in a bowl. Whisk together until stiff peaks form.
• Lay a crepe onto a large plate. Spoon on 2 or 3 tablespoons of the cream mixture, spreading it almost to the edge. Swirl in some strawberry jam. Transfer finished crepe onto a flat serving plate. Repeat with remaining crepes, cream, and jam. Center each crepe over the previous one in a stack. Gently press on a final plain crepe to finish.
• Refrigerate until completely chilled before cutting and serving.

STRAWBERRY LEMON CREPE CAKE

Steps:

• For the lemon curd: Whisk together the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar, salt and eggs in a medium heatproof bowl. Place the mixture over a pot of gently simmering water. Whisk frequently, until the curd coats the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes. Whisk in the butter a pat at a time. Remove from heat, stir in the almond extract and white chocolate until melted. Cover the surface of the curd with plastic and transfer to the fridge to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, for the crepes: Combine the buttermilk, water, eggs, lemon zest, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, almond extract, melted butter, granulated sugar and salt in a blender and blitz to combine. Add the flour and blitz again until smooth. Set the crepe batter in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours to rest.
• Once the batter has rested, heat a 9-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Pour about 1/3 cup of batter into the pan and quickly swirl the batter around so that it coats the bottom of the pan. Allow the crepe to cook for about 30 seconds to 1 minute on the first side, flip and cook for another 15 to 30 seconds, or until lightly golden. Transfer the crepe to a baking pan and continue with the remaining batter, adding a small amount of butter to the pan between crepes if they're sticking. Allow the crepes to cool to room temperature.
• Meanwhile, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar in a large bowl with a hand mixer. Add in remaining 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and gradually beat in the cream. Whip on high until stiff.
• To assemble, lay one of the crepes onto a serving plate and add a heaping 1/4 cup of cream mixture onto the crepe and spread evenly. Top with another crepe and spread with 2 to 3 tablespoons of lemon curd. Continue layering, alternating fillings, until all of the crepes are used. Wrap the cake with plastic wrap and transfer the cake, as well as any remaining cream and curd, to the fridge for at least 1 hour or up to two days to set up.
• When ready to serve, peel away the plastic and dollop, spread or pipe the remaining cream and/or curd overtop and decorate with halved strawberries and toasted almonds.

CARAMEL-CINNAMON CREPE CAKE

Steps:

• For the caramels: Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat.
• Reserve 1/2 cup caramels for serving. Put 6 of the remaining caramels on the prepared baking sheet and bake until bubbly and slightly dark around the edges, about 5 minutes. Let cool completely on the baking sheet, then crush into a fine powder in a food processor; set aside.
• For the filling: Combine the remaining caramels with the milk, salt and 1/4 cup of the granulated sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to just below a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Meanwhile, whisk the cornstarch, egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar in a large bowl until smooth. While continually whisking, slowly pour in about half of the milk mixture until combined. Transfer the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thickened like pudding, 2 to 4 minutes.
• Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly on the surface, and refrigerate until chilled, 2 hours to overnight.
• For the crepes: Puree the milk, flour, granulated sugar, butter, vanilla, salt, cinnamon and eggs in a blender on high speed until well mixed. Let the batter rest in the blender for 1 hour at room temperature or refrigerate up to 24 hours.
• Before cooking, re-blend the batter on high speed for 30 seconds. Wipe 1/2 teaspoon butter on a medium crepe pan or 8-inch nonstick skillet in a very thin layer with a paper towel. Heat the pan over medium until hot.
• Ladle 3 tablespoons batter into the pan. Working quickly off the heat, swirl and shake the pan to evenly coat the bottom. Return to the heat and cook the crepe, reducing the heat if it's browning too quickly, until the edges are light golden, about 2 minutes. Carefully loosen the crepe from the pan and flip it with a spatula. Cook until a few brown spots appear, 15 to 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with the remaining batter, wiping the pan with butter each time. Stack the crepes on the plate as you go (you should have about 20). Let them cool for 10 minutes before filling.
• Finish the filling: Beat the heavy cream and confectioners' sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes. Stir one-quarter of the cream mixture into the caramel filling, then gently fold in the rest.
• Put 1 crepe on a platter and top with a 1/4 cup filling, spreading it to the edge. Repeat, stacking the remaining crepes and filling, and ending with a crepe. Refrigerate overnight.
• Microwave the reserved 1/2 cup caramels, stirring every 30 seconds, until melted, about 1 minute. Top the cake with whipped cream, drizzle with the melted caramel and sprinkle with the caramel powder.

A VERY DRAMATIC CRêPE CAKE

Steps:

• Combine the cake flour, sugar, eggs, milk, melted butter, orange zest, salt, and orange liqueur (if using) in a blender on low speed for 10 seconds. Increase the speed to medium for 10 seconds, then stop the blender and use a spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom. Blend on medium speed an additional 10 seconds. Let the batter rest, covered, at room temperature for 1 hour or in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
• Heat a 9- or 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. When the skillet is hot, brush it lightly with melted butter. (You'll know the skillet is hot enough because the butter will sizzle and dance around the skillet.)
• Measure a scant ¼ cup of batter in the center of the skillet. Pick up the skillet by the handle and swirl in a circular motion so that the batter coats the bottom in an even layer, avoiding hitting the sides of the skillet (the batter will start to set immediately, so swirl quickly). It's okay if there are a few spots that the batter doesn't get to before it sets-just leave it be.
• Cook until the crêpe starts to brown around the edges and the bottom side is set, about 90 seconds. Use a spatula to loosen the edges, following the circumference of the crêpe. Then, carefully slide the spatula under the crêpe and flip. (If you're having a hard time flipping, let the crêpe cook a little longer.) It's okay if the crêpe folds on itself as you flip-just straighten it out.
• Cook on the other side until the crêpe is golden, about 60 seconds. Shake the skillet back and forth, then slide the crêpe out of the skillet onto a plate. Keep cooking and stacking, one crêpe on top of the next, adding more butter to the pan as needed. Continue until all the crêpes are cooked. (If you notice the crêpes getting darker and crisper as you cook, turn the heat down a notch.)
• Place 2 cups of the heavy cream in the bowl of a stand mixer or large bowl (if using a hand mixer). Whip on medium until soft peaks form, about 6 minutes. Fold the whipped cream into the cheat pastry cream until combined and smooth.
• Place a single crêpe on a cake plate or cake board. Measure a scant ¹⁄³ cup of the filling onto the crêpe and use a small, offset spatula or a butter knife to smooth it into an even layer. Place the next crêpe on top and continue layering until you are out of filling (you will have several crêpes left over, which are perfect for snacking while the cake chills).
• Wrap the cake in plastic and refrigerate for at least 6 hours so the filling can set.
• When ready to serve, whip the remaining ½ cup heavy cream in the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until medium-stiff peaks form. Dollop the whipped cream on top of the cake. Slice and serve like a traditional layered cake.

LEMON DRIZZLE MILLE CRêPE CAKE

Steps:

• Put the flour, eggs, milk, 1 tbsp melted butter and a pinch of salt in a bowl or large jug, then whisk to a smooth batter.
• Set aside for 30 mins to rest if you have time, or start cooking straight away.
• Set a frying pan or crêpe pan that has a base measurement of 15-16cm over a medium heat and, using kitchen paper, carefully wipe it with a little melted butter. When hot, cook each pancake for 1 min on each side until golden, keeping them warm in a low oven as you go. You should end up with 12.
• For the filling, whisk together all the ingredients until semi whipped and still spreadable, the more you whisk it the harder it will be to spread on the pancakes. You can adjust the consistency by whisking more as you go along or loosening the mix by adding a little double cream.
• Layer the pancakes with 2-3 tbsp of the filling, spreading it evenly to the edges, alternating between filling and pancake, finishing with a layer of filling. Put in the fridge to set for 1 hr, or leave overnight.
• Meanwhile, make the drizzle to go on top. Boil together the sugar, lemon juice and 100ml water until the sugar has dissolved and you have a syrup, then set aside to cool.
• For a neater finish, trim the edges of the chilled crêpe cake with a sharp knife so you can see the layers, if you like. Drizzle over the lemon syrup and cut into slices to serve.