A lovely dessert that doesn’t require an oven. Make the crepes on the stove, spread with custard and stack one on top of the other. Then top with dark chocolate ganache. It’s like Boston cream pie (which isn’t really a pie but a cake) but, instead of two layers of sponge cake, there are twenty layers of crepe. Consider it a dry run for Speedy’s birthday and Father’s Day which fall a few days apart every year.
Sam had been egging me to make this dessert for the longest time but the amount of work tired me before I could even start. We split the work to create this crepes cake. I made the custard and the ganache; she cooked the crepes and assembled the cake. I remarked how shiny her face was from the perspiration by the time she finished but she ought to be proud of her work. The crepes cake is fantastic.
If you have a crepe pan, use it. The diameter of the pan will determine how many crepes you will be able to make. If you want a tall cake (Sam wanted a super tall cake), use a small pan. If you want a large but not-so-tall cake, use a larger pan.
Note, also, that because the amount of custard is not unlimited, more crepes means less custard between them. Personally, this 20-layer cake with a thin layer of custard in between was just perfect. Too much custard and the crepes might slide down during assembly.
- custard filling (follow the recipe in the cream puffs post), chilled
- crepe batter (follow the recipe in the Nutella crepes; double the amount)
- butter for occasionally greasing the pan
- 1/3 cup dark chocolate ganache (get the recipe)
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Using a small non-stick frying pan, make the crepes. Follow the directions in the Nutella crepes recipe minus the Nutella part and the folding. Keep the crepes flat.
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Place a crepe on a plate. Using an offset spatula, spread a thin layer of custard on it. Cover with another crepe and spread with custard again. Repeat until all the crepes are in place. DO NOT spread custard on the last piece of crepe.
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You can just pour the ganache directly over the stack of crepes (see how). Sam wanted a thicker topping, a consistency between a fudge and a ganache, so she put the bowl of ganache in a bowl with pieces of ice. Ganache thickens as it cools and that is why it has to be used the moment it reaches the desired consistency. Sam stirred the ganache until it thickened just so then spread the chocolate on the cake.
It is best to chill the cake for at least an hour before slicing but if, like us, the temptation is much too strong, go ahead and slice into wedges and serve.
