Here we are sharing a special winter cake recipe from a recent cooking demo with Esse and Philippa Vine, hosted at Rangemoors. Read on to get this stand out dessert recipe.
Crêpe Cake layered with apple and topped with a butterscotch sauce
This makes 8 pancakes – serves 8 This is a dream to cook as the pancakes are cooked directly on the hotplate of the ESSE without any oil!
For the pancakes:
100g plain flour
2 large eggs
300ml plus milk
1 tablespoon butter, melted
For the filling:
4 Bramley apples, peeled, cored and sliced
2 teaspoons cinnamon
For the butterscotch sauce:
100g caster sugar
25g butter
300ml double cream
Sea salt
To make the apple filling: Tip the apples into a pan, adding a splash of water and cinnamon. Place the pan on a low heat or in the ESSE oven for about 20 minutes until the apples break down into a puree. Then give it a good stir and put to one side while you make the pancakes.
Set the ESSE hotplate to ’12 o’clock’. Put the flour in a mixing bowl, then add the eggs, beat in the flour with a little of the milk to form a smooth batter and then whisk in the melted butter. You need the consistency of single cream. The thinner the batter then thinner the pancake/crêpe. Add a little more milk if necessary. Cook the pancakes direct on the hotplate for about 1 minute on each side, use a palette knife to flip them over. Then stack them on a plate.
To make the butterscotch sauce: Dissolve the sugar with 3 tablespoons of over a low heat in a saucepan. (The induction hob is perfect for this as you can control the heat brilliantly). Then bring to the boil, but don’t stir it. Give the pan a careful movement to swirl around the caramel. Then when the sugar has got a dark caramel colour whisk in the butter and then the cream and a good pinch of sea salt. Bring to the boil until blended. Take off the heat.
To assemble the ‘cake’: Layer the pancakes with a little apple puree, spreading it evenly to the edges, alternating between filling and pancake. Finish with pouring over a little of the butterscotch sauce (any extra sauce can be stored in a jar and kept in the fridge for another dish/meal). Cut into slices to serve.
Philippa Vine is a cookery tutor and food writer passionate about British seasonal, farm-to-table cooking. A long-time collaborator with ESSE Range Cookers, she lives the true ‘range cooker life’ with her husband Michael on their working farm in Arlington, East Sussex, where ESSE sits at the heart of the home. With deep product knowledge and a love of honest, garden-grown ingredients, Philippa helps shape ESSE’s cookers and leads inspiring cookery courses. Why not take a look at this delicious Stuffed Whole Crown Prince Pumpkin recipe by Philippa.