Birthday in Photos + A Crepe Cake Recipe

From cocktails on Saturday evening to brunch on Sunday morning, my birthday weekend was wonderful. It was full of yummy drinks, a crepe cake, macaroni and cheese, and most of all I got to spend it with my favorite people here.

Instead of serving a cake at brunch, I made a crepe cake! It was delicious and I can't wait to make it again. I've been wanting to make this berry filled crepe cake after seeing this recipe on Pastry Affair. I use a different crepe recipe normally but I thought I would just follow the recipe on Pastry Affair. Unfortunately, the buttermilk pancake/crepe recipe just didn't work for me. The batter was thick on the pan and it didn't cook properly. It was difficult to flip and the texture just seemed off. So I threw out that batter and turned to my usual crepe recipe instead. After my crepe crisis, everything turned out beautifully! I absolutely loved the addition of skyr to the whipped cream. It gave it more body and the cream held nicely in the cake. Yum!

Crepe Cake with Forest Berries and Cream (adapted from A Tasty Love Story's recipe on Pastry Affair and Cakies)
Enough cake for about 8 people

Crepes (slightly adapted from Sweet and Savory Tooth)

Makes about 10 large crepes

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/3 cup water

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tbsp sugar (I used homemade vanilla sugar)

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp butter, melted

With a blender or with a whisk, blend or mix all the ingredients until smooth. The batter should be the thickness of heavy cream. 

Heat a non-stick pan or skillet on medium high heat until hot and grease the pan with a little bit of butter. Take the pan away from the stove top and pour in about 1/3 cup of batter. Tilt and rotate the pan so that the batter coats the surface. Cook until almost dry on top and lightly browned on the edges, about 1 minute. Loosen the edges with a spatula and flip the crepe over. Cook the other side for another 30 seconds or so until it is lightly browned. Place the crepe on a plate to cool. Continue with the rest of the batter remembering to grease the pan after each crepe. (I placed a sheet of baking paper between each crepe to ensure that they wouldn't stick together.) Allow the crepes to completely cool on the counter or in the fridge before putting your crepe cake together.

Berry Compote

2 1/2 cups (300g) mixed forest berries (blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, red currants, etc.), fresh or frozen

2 tbsp sugar (I used homemade vanilla sugar)

Place the berries in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the sugar and gently mash the berries with a potato masher. Allow the berry sauce to simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, until it is not runny but also not as thick as jam. Fully cool before using. This can be made a day or two in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

Topping and Layers

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup greek yogurt or skyr

2 tbsp sugar

fresh berries (I used strawberries and pomegranate seeds)

Whip the heavy cream and when it starts to thicken up, add the sugar. Continue to whip the cream until you get soft peaks. Gently fold in the skyr or whipped cream. 

Assembling the Cake

Place a crepe on a plate or a cake stand. Add a layer of cream or the berry compote or both and top with another crepe. Continue with this until you reach the last crepe. Top with the rest of the cream and pile some fresh berries on top and voila! 

I know this crepe cake sounds like a lot of work, but it is really tasty, perfect for brunch, and it is a great alternative to a birthday cake! What do you think?