The other day I was at Lady M‘s, trying their seasonal chestnut mille crepe cake (million pancakes in French), a divine dessert that melts in your mouth. My friend mentioned that she tried making it before, which surprised me since the cake looked like such a complicated and delicate masterpiece. Upon closer inspection however, I realized that maybe it wasn’t as difficult as it looked. After all, it was just 15-20 crepes layered in-between pastry filling. I figured if I could master the art of crepe-making, then a mille crepe cake wouldn’t be so out of reach.

The following is adapted from Tiffin Tales’ wonderful recipe.

CREPE BATTER

6 tbsp butter

3 cups milk

6 eggs

1 1/2 cups flour

6 tbsp sugar

pinch of salt

3 tbsp Kahlua

I made the crepe batter THE NIGHT BEFORE, so it could chill overnight and have a reduced risk of tearing during the cooking process. First, I boiled 6 tbsp of butter in a pot until it turned a nice brown color. I made sure to stir frequently so it wouldn’t burn the bottom of the pan. The butter develops a nutty aroma when it’s cooked. I set it aside to cool.

Next, I boiled the milk until it started bubbling. I set it aside to cool.

In a separate bowl, I whisked the eggs until foamy, and slowly added flour, sugar, salt, and Kahlua and continued whisking on high speed until they were well-blended. Then, I slowly added the cooled butter and milk, and whisked until they were well-blended. I covered the bowl in plastic wrap and let it chill in the fridge overnight.

After it chilled overnight, I took the batter out and let it come to room temperature.

Now for the fun part: making the actual crepes. I had zero crepe-making tools, so despite recommendations for a non-stick pan and a crepe spreader (who needs fancy equipment anyway??), I relied on a regular pan and my innate crepe-making prowess instead. I must say, this part was NOT EASY.

My first few just straight-up sucked. At least they tasted good though, so I would munch on them as a consolation prize while working on my next crepe. I messed up 5-6 crepes before I finally figured out the proper technique. I used a 6″ frying pan, and poured a bit of vegetable oil on the bottom and used a paper towel to spread it around. The first crepe was oilier than normal, but the ones thereafter were better. I found that butter burned too easily, since it has a much lower smoking point than vegetable oil. I set the fire to just shy of medium, since the lower the heat, the more time you have to flip! But the pan needs to be HOT or else the crepe will stick to the pan.

Now, onto pouring/flipping technique! Make sure to STIR the batter before you start! This was my mistake. I was getting extremely fragile crepes that kept tearing, before I realized that the flour must have sunk to the bottom. After a good stir, my crepes were strong enough to flip. I scooped out 1/4 cup of the batter and poured it in the middle of the pan with my left hand, while my right hand slowly swirled the pan in a clockwise motion, just so that the batter evenly coated the edges. This had to be done FAST, or else the batter cooked and I would get holes of empty space, or an uneven coat. After 10-20 sec, I saw browning of the edges and bubbles forming under the now-solid crepes. This meant it’s time to flip. I used my fingers and chopsticks to lift up the crepe, and quickly flipped it down. The crepe can be hot, so this had to be done fast. I burned myself a few times doing this 😦 But it was the easiest way for me to flip without breaking the crepe.

After 5 sec or so, I scooped the crepe onto a plate for cooling. Crepes can cool on top of each other without sticking together. Repeat! Every 3-4 crepes, I re-swiped my pan with that paper towel doused in vegetable oil from the first crepe.

TIRAMISU FILLING

3 large eggs, separated

pinch of salt

3/4 cup sugar

8 oz container mascarpone cheese

1/2 cup chilled heavy cream

1/3 cup Kahlua

unsweetened cocoa powder

I actually made the tiramisu filling before I started cooking the crepes, since the filling needs to chill for 1-2 hours in the fridge. First, I separated the eggs into two bowls. I whisked the egg yolks over a small fire, while I stirred in 0.5 cup of sugar until they were well-blended. Make sure it’s not too hot, or else the egg yolks will start cooking. I set it aside to cool.

Next, I whisked the egg whites for a few minutes (make sure there are no egg yolks left on the whisk) with a pinch of salt until I saw soft peaks form. I added the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and kept whisking on medium speed until stiff peaks formed.

In a separate bowl, I whisked the chilled heavy cream until soft peaks formed.

Next, I added the entire 8 oz container of mascarpone and Kahlua to the cooled egg yolk mixture, and whisked on high speed until it was well-blended.

Then, I folded the heavy cream into the egg yolk mixture, and then I folded in the egg white mixture. The filling is delicious at this point! I chilled it in the fridge for 2 hours.

ASSEMBLY

This was the most relaxing part of the crepe caking-making process, considering how stressful the actual crepe-making process was. I sat at the dining table, put on some Spotify and began assembling. I spread about 1 tbsp of the tiramisu filling onto one crepe, and then sifted cocoa powder on top. Repeat until the crepes are completely stacked!

One thing I noticed was that my crepe cake was developing a dome shape. I think this might be because I was putting too much filling in the center, and not enough on the sides. Next time, I will be more careful about spreading the cream.

I popped the crepe cake into the fridge to chill for 1-2 hours, so it wouldn’t start sliding all over the place.

This crepe cake tastes AMAZING! The tiramisu filling definitely tastes like actual tiramisu. I couldn’t really taste the rum in the actual crepe batter, however. Also, I have no idea how Lady M makes their crepes so thin! I definitely need to work on my crepe technique if I want that same melt-in-your-mouth texture that Lady M is known for. But, I encourage everyone to try this recipe out. It has a special WOW factor if you’re looking to impress. Just be ready to burn some fingers (haha naw…).