Darkest Chocolate Crepe Cake

I want to start by thanking my dear fellow Daring Baker Brilynn for choosing this recipe – it was a challenge, indeed, and one of the most interesting recipes I have ever made. Joao kept telling me how beautiful the cake looks – and he’s not into sweets, I have to say.
I guess I would never have chosen something like this to prepare and I’m so glad I have made it.
Not only it looks superb, it also taste delicious – I must confess I ate 2 crepes that remained after the filling was over. If the crepes alone were yummy, what to say of them combined with a filling made with whipped cream, meringue and Nutella, a ganache icing and hazelnuts dipped in caramel?? Heavenly.

I was worn out after standing up for 2 hours preparing the crepes but it paid off – beautifully.

If you liked my cake, go check the other cakes prepared by the lovely Daring Bakers – the links are on the side bar.

Darkest Chocolate Crepe Cake
recipe by Martha

Crepe batter:
170g (¾ cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus melted for pan
225g (8 ounces) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped – I used a 51% cocoa solids chocolate
210g (1 ½ cups) all-purpose flour
67g (1/3 cup) sugar
½ teaspoon salt
600ml (2 ½ cups) whole milk, room temperature
6 large eggs, room temperature
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Bring ¼ cup water to a rolling boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add butter, 1 piece at a time, whisking to combine after each addition. Remove from heat; stir in chocolate until completely melted. Set aside.
Whisk together flour, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk together milk, eggs, and vanilla in another medium bowl. Gradually add milk mixture to flour mixture, whisking until smooth. Add chocolate-butter mixture, whisking until smooth. Pour through a fine sieve into an airtight container; discard lumps. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to overnight.
Lightly coat an 8-inch crepe pan or nonstick skillet with melted butter - the three crepes that were torn were made with greased pan. The minute I stopped brushing it with butter I gor all the crepes perfectly shaped. Heat over medium heat until just starting to smoke. Remove pan from heat; pour about 2 tablespoons batter into pan, swirling to cover bottom – here I used a ladle that holds 3 tablespoons batter. Reduce heat to medium-low; return pan to heat. Cook, flipping once, until edges are golden and center is dry, about 30 seconds per side.
Slide crepe onto a plate. Repeat process with remaining batter, coating pan with butter as needed. Crepes can be refrigerated, covered, up to 1 day.
Place a crepe on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Spread with about 3 tablespoons hazelnut filling. Top with another crepe. Continue layering with hazelnut filling and crepes, using about 32 crepes and ending with a crepe on top. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.

Spoon ½ cup glaze on top of the cake, spreading to edges. Spread remaining glaze around sides of cake, coating completely. Refrigerate until glaze is firm and set, about 20 minutes. Cake can be refrigerated up to 3 days. Garnish with toasted and candied hazelnuts.

Makes 32 crepes – I got 28 OK and 3 completely torn (which I gladly ate straight from the crepe pan)


Hazelnut filling:
160ml (2/3 cup) heavy cream
6 large egg whites
330g (1 2/3 cups) sugar
395g (1 3/4 cups) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, softened
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
100g (1/3 cup) hazelnut cream – I used Nutella
pinch of salt

Put cream into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment; beat on medium-high speed until soft peaks form, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl. Refrigerate 1 hour.
Whisk egg whites and sugar in the clean bowl of mixer set over a pan of simmering water until sugar has dissolved and mixture registers 70ºC/160ºF, 2 to 3 minutes.
Attach bowl to mixer fitted with the clean whisk attachment; beat on high speed until slightly cooled and stiff (but not dry) peaks form, about 5 minutes.
Fit mixer with paddle attachment. With mixer on medium-low speed, add butter, several pieces at a time, mixing well after each addition (meringue will deflate slightly as butter is added). Add vanilla, hazelnut cream, and salt; mix until mixture comes together, 3 to 5 minutes. Fold in whipped cream with a rubber spatula. Use immediately.

Makes about 8 cups


Chocolate glaze:
300ml (1 ¼ cups) heavy cream
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
pinch of salt
280g (10 ounces) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped – I used the same 51% chocolate

Bring cream, corn syrup, and salt to a boil in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium- medium-high heat. Remove from heat. Add chocolate; swirl pan to cover completely with cream. Let stand about 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Let cool completely.

Makes about 2 cups - sobrou cerca de 1/2 xícara


Candied hazelnuts
9 hazelnuts, toasted and peeled
200g (1 cup) sugar

Thread each hazelnut onto tip of a long wooden skewer; set aside. Place a cutting board along the edge of a countertop; set a baking sheet on floor next to edge.
Cook sugar and ¼ cup water in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar has dissolved. Continue to cook, without stirring, until syrup comes to a boil, washing down sides with a wet brush to prevent crystals from forming. Let boil until syrup turns light amber, about 5 minutes; remove from heat. Let stand until slightly cooled, 8 to 10 minutes.
Dip 1 skewered hazelnut into syrup, coating completely and letting excess syrup drip back into pan. When dripping syrup becomes a thin string, secure end of skewer under cutting board, letting caramel string drip over edge onto sheet. Repeat with remaining hazelnuts. Let stand until caramel has hardened, about 5 minutes. Break strings to about 10cm (4 inches).
Carefully remove skewers.

Makes 9