Chocolate Crepe Cake With Salted Chocolate Orange Sauce Recipes

SALTED CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the inside of two 9-inch round cake pans. Line the bottoms with parchment paper and butter that as well. Dust with cocoa powder, being sure to tap out the excess. Set aside.
• Whisk together the cocoa, flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large bowl until there are no large lumps. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the eggs, melted butter, sour cream, instant espresso and 1 1/2 cups water. Slowly start to work everything together, adding the dry to the wet ingredients as you go until everything is combined and you have a smooth batter. Do not over mix. Divide evenly in the prepared cake pans and bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes in the pans. Unmold onto a wire rack and cool completely.
• For the frosting: Beat the butter in a medium bowl on medium speed using a hand-held mixer until light and fluffy. Add the confectioners' sugar, cocoa powder, heavy cream, vanilla and kosher salt and continue to beat on medium speed until light, fluffy and creamy.
• Place one layer of cake on a plate or cake stand. Spread one-quarter of the frosting on the cake evenly all the way to the sides using a small offset spatula. Place the other layer of cake on top and press gently. Spoon the remaining frosting on top and spread evenly, pushing the frosting over the edge and spreading it around the sides. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. Sprinkle the top evenly with the flake salt to serve.

DARKEST CHOCOLATE CREPE CAKE

Steps:

• Bring 1/4 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. Heat over medium heat until just starting to smoke. Remove pan from heat; pour about 2 tablespoons batter into pan, swirling to cover bottom. 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 1/2 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.

CHOCOLATE CREPE CAKE WITH SALTED CHOCOLATE ORANGE SAUCE

Steps:

• Mix milk, flour, cocoa powder, confectioners' sugar, eggs, vanilla and Diamond Crystal® Kosher Salt in a large mixing bowl until smooth and well blended.
• Melt about 1/3 teaspoon of the butter in a small skillet over medium high heat. Add about 1/4 cup of the batter to the skillet; tilt pan with a circular motion to evenly distribute batter. Cook until bubbles appear and the surface looks dull. Turn the crepe and cook on the other side approximately 1 minute. Place crepe on a plate. Repeat for the remaining crepes, separating them with a layer of waxed paper to prevent them from sticking to each other. Batter is enough to make about 16 crepes.
• For Chocolate Orange Sauce, place the cream into a medium pan and heat until very warm. Remove pan from heat. Add chocolate and stir until combined and silky. Add orange juice concentrate, vanilla, sugar and Diamond Crystal® Kosher Salt; stir until thoroughly mixed.
• Whip 2 cups whipping cream in a bowl until stiff.
• To assemble the cake, place a crepe on a serving plate. Spread a thin layer of whipped cream onto crepe; top with another crepe. Continue layering whipped cream and crepes, ending with an unfrosted crepe. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to firm up the cake before serving.
• To serve, spoon about 4 tablespoons of sauce on a dessert plate in a small circle. Slice cake into wedges. Place a wedge of cake on top of the chocolate orange sauce.
• Optional garnishes: Peeled orange sections, mint sprigs, or shaved chocolate.