France Mille Crêpe (Thousand Crepe Cake)
Decadent and rich, the mille crêpe is a classic French dessert that never fails to impress guests. The name of this cake translates to “one thousand crepes,” and the only key to the dish is trying to stack the crepes as high as gravity will allow. Perfecting the art of crepe making is paramount to successfully constructing this cake, but the skill is well worth the effort to master, if only for the light-as-air texture that makes this dessert something truly special. Recipe Servings: Serves 10
Prep Time
1 minute
+ 3 hours resting
+ 3 hours resting
Cook Time
50 minutes
Total Time
3 hours 51 minutes
Vegetarian
Vegan
Gluten Free
Dairy Free
Kosher
Halal
Ingredients
- Cake and filling
- 1 cup (220 g) unsalted butter, plus extra for cooking the crêpes
- 4 1/3 cups (550 g) plain flour
- 1 1/2 cups (315 g) golden caster sugar
- 1 tsp (5 ml) of salt
- 15 large eggs
- 40 fl oz (1.2 l) milk
- Zest of 1 orange
- 2 1/2 cups (500 g) finely ground hazelnuts
- 3/4 cup (150 g) golden caster sugar
- 32 oz (900 g) dark chocolate, chopped
- 1 cup (220 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 cups (500 ml) heavy cream
- 2 tsp (10 ml) salt
- Glaze and decoration
- 16 oz (400 g) dark chocolate, chopped
- 1 2/3 cup (400 ml) heavy cream
- 3 Tbsp (45 g) unsalted butter, softened
- Toasted or candied hazelnuts, for garnish
- Candied orange peel, for garnish
Directions
- Cake and Filling
- In a saucepan, melt the butter and cook it until it just begins to brown. Set aside.
- Sift together the flour, sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the milk, orange zest, and eggs.
- Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour the milk mixture into the middle. Mix to combine.
- Slowly add the melted butter to the batter and gently fold it in. Chill the mixture for at least 3 hours.
- Grease a small frying pan with butter and heat over a medium flame.
- Remove the pan from the element and add about 3 tablespoons (45 ml) of the crepe batter. Twist the pan and swirl the batter to evenly coat the base of the pan.
- Reduce the heat of the element and return the pan to the heat. Cook the crepe for 30 seconds, until the edges turn golden. Flip and cook for another 30 seconds.
- Move the crepe to a plate to cool.
- Repeat this process with the rest of the batter, which should make about 30 crepes.
- In a small bowl, mix together the ground hazelnuts and caster sugar to form a smooth paste.
- Melt the chocolate and whisk with 1 cup (220 g) butter until combined.
- Pour in the heavy cream and season the mixture with salt before combining it with the hazelnut paste. Set aside to cool.
- Place one crepe in the center of a cake stand or serving platter. Spread a layer of the hazelnut filling over the top, coating the crepe evenly.
- Layer another crepe on top of the hazelnut paste and repeat the process until all of the crepes and filling are gone.
- Place the cake in the fridge to set.
- Glaze and Decoration
- In a small saucepan, heat the heavy cream and butter over medium heat. Stir frequently until combined.
- Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and pour the hot cream mixture over the chocolate. Stir until the mixture forms a smooth ganache without any lumps.
- Spread the ganache over the top of the cake and smooth it out to the edges. Any remaining ganache should be used to glaze the sides of the cake.
- Arrange the hazelnuts and orange peel on top of the cake as desired.
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