Mushroom Crêpe Cake

Here’s another recipe I made when I was in Virginia using mushrooms. It’s a good thing my cousin La loves mushrooms too since all the meals I cooked in her house contained mushrooms.

I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen and I filed it on my simplenote iPad app for cooking in the future. Since I had mushrooms leftover from the creamy mushroom truffle pasta I made previously, it was the perfect time to finally make mushroom crêpe cake.

I sliced the already sliced mushrooms even thinner so it will lay flat in the crêpe layers. 

We only had sliced provolone cheese at home so I used that.

I cut the cheese into smaller pieces so it will melt easier. 

Make the mushroom filling and set it aside to cool. It will be a thick, gooey mixture when cooled.

It was my first time to make crepes.

I made the mushroom filling and the batter but La cooked the crepes.

Our first few crêpes were a disaster but that’s to be expected according to Alton Brown who made the original recipe.

La finally got the technique down to pat. She put a little butter on the non-stick skillet after every 3 crêpes.

I placed a crêpe on a baking sheet and did the layering directly on it. It doesn’t have to be perfectly round. You can trim off the excess crepes when all done.

This was around 8 inches in diameter and maybe 10 layers.

Super cheesy, earthy mushrooms nestled in soft layers of buttery crêpes. Can mushrooms be more decadent than that?

The mushroom crêpe cake was so delicious but a bit too rich. A small wedge  with a side salad was just perfect for our dinner.  It wasn’t really hard to make. Try this at home!!!

Mushroom Crêpe Cake
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen and Alton Brown

Serves 6

1 cup yellow onion, diced
3 tablespoons butter
1 pound button and baby bella mushrooms, thinly sliced (use any combination you want)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon flour
1/2 cup  milk
1/2 cup mild white cheese, mozzarella or provolone, shredded
Savory crêpes, recipe follows
2 tablespoons chives, thinly sliced (I skipped this)
1/4 cup Parmesan, shredded

In a large sauté pan over medium-low heat, melt one tablespoon of butter and begin to cook the onion so that it “sweats” but does not gain color. Turn the heat to medium-high, add all of the mushrooms and remaining two tablespoons butter. Season with salt and pepper and sauté until mushrooms are soft. Stir in the flour, then drizzle in the milk while you stir. Reduce the liquid in the pan by half. Add the provolone or mozzarella and let it melt. Immediately take filling off the heat.

Layer two crêpes on a buttered sheet pan (Brown says that this allows you to still save your cake if the bottom one sticks — smart!). Spread a thin layer of the filling onto the crêpe, then a few chives. Top with another crêpe and spread more filling. Repeat this process until you are out of filling. (You’ll likely run out of filling before crêpes.)

Top with the final crepe and sprinkle on Parmesan. Place under broiler until Parmesan is melted and golden brown. Place onto a cutting board and slice into wedges. Serve immediately.

Savory Crêpes

The original recipe suggested one include herbs, spinach or sun-dried tomatoes in the crepe batter. I used herbs and honestly felt it added nothing; I vote for you to skip this. If you want to add those flavors, do it where they will be more effective, in the filling. I was able to eke out 6 crêpes in an 8 1/2-inch skillet. I would have had extras were the first couple not duds.

2 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 cup flour
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon salt
Butter, for coating the pan

In a blender combine all of the ingredients (excepting the butter for coating the pan) and pulse for 10 seconds. (I used an immersion stick blender) Place the crepe batter in the refrigerator for one hour, or up to 48 hours.

Heat a small non-stick pan. Add butter to coat. Pour a couple tablespoons of batter into the center of the pan and swirl to spread evenly. Cook for 30 seconds and flip. Cook for another 10 seconds and throw the crepe in the garbage; seriously, the first one is always cursed. Sometimes the second too. By the time you get to the third one, go ahead and keep what you made, even if it’s not perfect. Lay the crêpe flat on a large cutting board to the cutting board to cool; continue cooking until all of the batter is gone.

Do ahead: Crêpe batter can be made up to two days in advance, stored in the fridge. Cooked, cooled and well-wrapped, crêpes can be stored for several days in the fridge or up to two months in the freezer. Frozen crêpes can be thawed on a rack; gently peel them as you need. Filling can be made a day in advance; reheat slowly, over a low flame.