Grab your blender and get ready to impress when you serve up our easy to make Chocolate Crepe Cake! This no bake cake is a mile-high showstopper with layers of chocolate cream filling sandwiched between thin chocolate crepes.
{{ The recipe for this Chocolate Crepe Cake recipe and the post that goes with it was made in partnership with California Prunes! We received compensation and product in exchange for it. Opinions are always our own. If we don’t love it, you don’t hear about it. Thanks for your continued support! }}
What are crepes? Are crepes just thin pancakes?
No, crepes aren't really thin pancakes. The main difference between crepes and pancakes is that pancake batter has a raising agent in it, like baking powder or baking soda, and crepe batter does not. This means that pancakes are thicker and fluffy while crêpes are thin and flat.
Is a special pan necessary to make crepes?
A well-seasoned crepe pan is ideal for cooking crepes because the short sides make them easy to flip, while the heavy bottom ensures consistent heat and even cooking. But if you are like me and don’t have a crepe pan laying around, a medium non-stick or well-seasoned, cast-iron frying pan that heats evenly and has a flat base will do the trick. The size of your pan will depend on how big you want your final crepes for your crepe cake to be, but 7-8 inches is standard.
Full disclosure - my pan in the pictures is a 10-inch skillet. It is quite a bit larger than the standard 7-8 inches because it's all I had, so my crepes are a bit more irregular/larger than they should be. However, I think this is one of those amazing desserts that embraces imperfections, so the size variance won't really matter much at all in the end.
How do you spread crepe batter on a pan?
When I was making this cake again few weeks ago I asked Todd how he would describe the moves I make when swirling the crepe batter all around the hot pan and he said that to him it looked a lot like Elaine Benes' dance moves on Seinfield! Which according to George Costanza "Can only be described as a full body dry heave set to music." While funny and sort of accurate, I'll try my best to explain how spreading the crepe batter on the hot pan actually works.
Crepe batter is very thin and cooks quickly in the hot pan, so you need to work quickly. Set your heat to medium and let the pan get hot (but not too hot). You may need to adjust the heat to medium-low as the crepes cook. If the heat’s too high the batter won’t spread to the edges of the pan before setting, and can result in holes or uneven thickness.
You're going to need to use some fat, don't try to skip it!
Butter is ideal — it keeps the crepes from sticking and adds amazing flavor. I use a pastry brush to coat the bottom and sides of the pan very lightly with melted butter. Too much butter results in greasy crepes that are crispy, dark brown and not as pliable as you’d like. So, you may have to make a few test crepes to get your ratios just right.
No pastry brush? No problem! You can just use a paper towel to wipe a thin layer of melted butter into the pan.
How much crepe batter you will use per crepe varies depends on what size pan you use.
- Standard 7-8 inch pan: 3 tablespoons crepe batter
- Larger 10-inch pan: up to ⅓ cup crepe batter
Now to channel your inner Elaine Benes crepe moves...
Using a small ladle or measuring cup to help get the portion right each time, pour the batter into the center of the preheated pan. Lift the pan from the heat and tilt then roll your wrist so that the batter pours to one side, then swirl it around so it coats the whole pan bottom evenly and just starts to lip up the sides.
Place the pan back over the heat once the batter has spread out completely and has started to set.
When the crepe looks dry on top and the outside edges of your crepe has slightly lightened in color , about 1 minute, it’s ready to flip. Carefully loosen the edges with a thin rubber spatula. I use the spatula to help flip the crepes as well. The second side cooks in about half the time as the first. You’ll know it’s done when the bottom is lightly golden.
The first crepe is going to be a failure, plan on it, embrace it and move on!
Like pancakes, the first crepe is never perfect. So don’t be hard on yourself! Heck sometimes, I burn through a few before I find my crepe making mojo. Consider the first crepe or two a test to see if you have enough batter in the pan, if the heat of the pan is right and if your batter swirling technique needs tweaking.
This Chocolate Crepe Cake has a secret ingredient....
Its prunes, again!! I declared that prunes were the new dates way back in mid-2020 and I am standing by that declaration as we move into 2021! It turns out that not only do prunes taste great, but they also make an excellent sweetener in baked goods and are really good for you too!
- Prunes are rich in antioxidants: Prunes are high in plant substances called polyphenols, which include the antioxidants that protect DNA against damage, decrease inflammation, and may help prevent cancer.
- Blood Sugar Control: Because they are a low-glycemic food, prunes can help to maintain healthy healthy blood sugar levels.
- Prunes are good for your bones too: Prunes are an excellent source of brown, potassium, and Vitamin K which all are great for improving bone health!
- Prunes are the original "good gut food": A daily serving of 3-5 prunes can really help support a healthy microbiome. If you are curious how many prunes it would take to over do it with your fiber intake it would be over 10 a day for the average adult!!!
Want to know how to include more prunes in your diet? Let me share with you some of our most delicious prune recipes with you!
Chocolate Covered Prune Fudge Cake
This decadent, fudgy chocolate cake is naturally sweetened and grain free, but your tastebuds will be none the wiser! Each bite is like a little slice of chocolatey heaven for your tastebuds!
Quick and Easy Sheet Pan Chicken Marbella
This retro redo is a simple chicken dinner idea that packs BIG, BOLD flavor with ingredients like sweet prunes, green olives, and caper. Bur requires very minimal effort.
Weekend Coffee Cake Crumble
This cake is easy to make and packs a HUGE flavor punch from the addition of vanilla beans, cinnamon, and ginger. This cake is great warm from the oven, but any leftovers just get better with time.
The Most Delicious Snack Cake
This gluten free snack cake recipe calls for basic pantry ingredients, only needs one bowl to mix, and uses less sugar than traditional snack cake recipes thanks to the help of prunes!
If you’ve made this Chocolate Crepe Cake I would be so grateful if you would rate the recipe and let me know what you think in the comments below, I just love hearing from you and your reviews and comments really help others that visit This Mess is Ours.
PrintChocolate Crepe Cake
Don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know what you think about this Chocolate Crepe Cake in the comments below, I just love hearing from you and your reviews/comments really help other people that visit This Mess is Ours!
- Prep Time: 40
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 8
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: French
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
For the chocolate cream filling
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups powdered sugar
½ cup cocoa powder
For the chocolate crepes
2 ¼ cups superfine blanched almond flour
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons sweet rice flour
2 ¼ cups whole milk
6 large eggs
5 soft California prunes, roughly chopped
2 ½ tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons salted butter, melted and cooled, plus more for pan
1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
¾ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
Optional garnishes: toasted slivered almonds, chopped dark chocolate, cocoa powder
Instructions
Place the heavy cream in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip the cream until stiff peaks form. Sift the powdered sugar and cocoa together and fold into the whipped cream until completely incorporated. It will seem like there are too much dry ingredients for the whipped cream, but keep folding and it will completely incorporate. The chocolate cream filling can be made up to two days in advance of assembling the cake and stored in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Prepare a cooling rack over a baking sheet or parchment paper next to your stovetop.
Combine all the crepe ingredients in a high speed blender and blend for 30 seconds until completely smooth. Set aside for 5 minutes to rest.
Preheat a 10-inch non-stick skillet over medium-low heat until thoroughly heated through but not smoking hot. Use a silicone pastry brush or paper towel to lightly sweep across the pan with butter. Then holding the skillet off the heat in one hand, measure ⅓ cup of the crepe batter into the center of the pan with the other hand.
Working quickly, begin rotating the pan with your wrist to spread the batter around the entire surface of the skillet and a little bit up the sides to create the curled crepe edges. The batter will begin to set in the hot pan as you swirl, once you can no longer reposition any of the batter by rotating the pan, place the pan back onto the heat and cook for 1- 11/2 minutes until you see air pockets or bubbles forming and the edges of the crepe are slightly golden and lighter in color than the rest of it.
Gently, using a silicone spatula, loosen the delicate edges of the crepe by gently sliding the spatula under the crepe and loosening all the way around the pan in one continuous motion. If this is not easily done and the crepe begins to tear or scrunch allow the crepe to cook for a few more seconds then try again. Once the spatula is under the crepe, flip the crepe like a pancake back into the pan and cook the other side for 1 minute. Remove the crepe to the cooling rack and repeat the process with the remaining batter. It may require a sacrificial crepe or two to get the hang of the pan rotation process, but if any crepes tear or have a hole it’s ok, they will be stacked and you can cover their imperfections with chocolate cream. There is enough batter to make 16 crepes.
Place one crepe on a cake stand/plate and spread 2-3 tablespoons of the chocolate cream evenly across the top almost to the edge. Top with another crepe and an equal amount of the chocolate cream filling. Repeat this stacking and filling process until all of the layers have been stacked. Top the last crepe with the remaining chocolate cream to create a heaped mound on top. Level the icing with the back of a spoon using a swooping motion to create valleys and peaks in the chocolate cream on top of the cake. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes before serving. Right before servings garnish with desired toppings like toasted slivered almonds, chopped dark chocolate, and cocoa powder.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 590
- Sugar: 39.2 g
- Sodium: 231.7 mg
- Fat: 24 g
- Carbohydrates: 61.2 g
- Protein: 14.4 g
- Cholesterol: 182.4 mg
Keywords: crepe cake, crepes, gluten free crepes, gluten free crepe cake, prune, baking with prunes, prune dessert, chocolate crepes
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