A Trip to Chinatown and Coconut Crêpe Cake

Saturday was a great day to walk around the city and rediscover places. I have been living in New York for over 10 years and I forget sometimes how beautiful New York is. So, once in a while, I like to be a tourist for a day and pretend it's all new to me. This time I picked Chinatown. Let me start by saying this place is like another country.

The little streets, the signs, the food of course. I feel like I need a passport to be there. I like Chinatown but I don't really go there very often because it's ALWAYS CROWDED and I don't really like to be in places where there is a lot of people. That's why I don't like Times Square or Soho on a Saturday by that matter. But overall, I had fun.

                         

On Sunday, I made a crepe cake I had been planing to do for a while. It's quite a lot of  work, I won't lie, but the final product is so good,  it's hard to describe. I went for coconut pastry cream cover with chocolate glaze. Coconut and chocolate is simply an irresistible  combination for me. I love coconut. That's one of the things I miss from Honduras. The accessibility to fresh fruit right from my backyard. I had a nice variety of fruits and veggies, guava, coconut, lemon, avocado, corn, just to mention a few. But on the other hand, I do LOVE the versatility of New York. I guess we can't have it all.

Ingredients:

Crêpe recipe here

(Do double recipe)

Coconut Pastry Cream

    •    6 egg yolks

    •    ½ cup granulated sugar, divided

    •    ¼ cup cornstarch

    •    2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

    •    1 cup whole milk

    •    1¼ cups coconut milk

    •    1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped

    •    2 tablespoons unsalted butter

    •    1 teaspoon coconut extract

Chocolate Glaze

    •    8 oz (225 g) 70% dark chocolate, finely chopped

    •    150 g unsalted butter, cut into pieces, at room temperature

    •    2 tablespoons light corn syrup

Instructions

Make the Coconut Pastry Cream

    1.    In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks with ¼ cup of the sugar until pale and slightly thickened.

    2.    Sift together the cornstarch and flour, then whisk into the egg mixture until smooth. Set aside.

    3.    In a saucepan, combine the whole milk, coconut milk, vanilla bean and seeds, coconut extract, and the remaining ¼ cup sugar. Heat over medium heat until the mixture is just beginning to simmer. Do not boil.

    4.    Slowly pour the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to temper the eggs.

    5.    Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking continuously, until thick and smooth, about 1–2 minutes.

    6.    Remove from heat and whisk in the butter until fully incorporated.

    7.    Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool completely, then refrigerate until cold.

Make the Chocolate Glaze

    1.    Place the chopped chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Make sure the bowl does not touch the water.

    2.    Stir gently until completely melted and smooth.

    3.    Remove from heat and stir in the corn syrup.

    4.    Cover the surface of the glaze with plastic wrap pressed directly on top and let cool to room temperature.

Assemble the Cake

    1.    Place one crêpe on a cake stand or serving plate. Spread a thin, even layer of coconut pastry cream over the surface.

    2.    Repeat with remaining crêpes and pastry cream, stacking carefully.

    3.    Cover and refrigerate the cake for at least 30 minutes to set.

    4.    Just before serving, pour the chocolate glaze over the top of the cake and gently spread to the edges.

    5.    Sprinkle with toasted coconut, if desired.

Note: Add the chocolate glaze right before serving for the best texture and appearance.