The following recipe and excerpt for Over the Rainbow Crepe Cake are from “The Wizard of Oz: The Official Cookbook” by Elena Pons Craig, Emma Carlson Berne, and Liz Fish. It’s available for purchase on Amazon.
After the tornado, Dorothy finds herself in beautiful, colorful Munchkinland, surround by Glinda the Good Witch and all the munchkins. Thin, elegant crepes spread with fluffy vanilla cream cheese filling make for a gorgeous Hollywood moment when you cut into this unusual cake. Use food coloring to make different rainbow-colored crepes, then roll your creations around a strawberry sunset center framed by a perfect rainbow arch. No baking necessary — just wrap it tightly and refrigerate until it’s firm. It’s the perfect way to commemorate Dorothy’s adventure over the rainbow.
Over the Rainbow Crepe Cake
Ingredients
Instructions
Make the crepes: In a microwave-safe ramekin or small bowl, heat 6 tablespoons butter in a microwave, heating for 15 seconds at a time and stirring, until melted. In a blender, combine the milk, heavy cream, flour, salt, sugar, eggs, and the melted butter. Blend until the mixture is well blended and smooth. Let the batter sit in the blender at room temperature for 15 minutes while you make and then refrigerate the filling.
To make the cream cheese filling: Add the heavy cream to a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Use a hand mixer or the whisk attachment to beat the cream on high speed until medium-stiff peaks form, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the whipped cream into another bowl. Add the cream cheese to the now emptied bowl. Sift the powdered sugar over the cream cheese. Switching to a paddle attachment, or using your hand mixer, add the vanilla and beat until thick and smooth. Using a rubber spatula, fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture, ½ cup at a time. Refrigerate for 30 to 60 minutes, or overnight for a more spreadable consistency.
After making the filling, preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper for cooling your cooked crepes. Put an ungreased quarter sheet pan into the oven to heat it up. Using a 10-to 16-ounce jar with a tight-fitting lid, pour ½ cup of the crepe batter into the jar. Add one drop of yellow food coloring gel. Cover the jar with the lid and shake vigorously. Adjust color by adding another drop of color at a time and shaking between each addition.
Remove the hot pan from the oven and lightly grease with some of the remaining butter, remembering that the pan is hot. HINT: Rubbing the pan with one end of a stick of butter is the easiest and fastest way to grease a hot pan.
Using an oven mitt, lift one side of the hot pan and pour the batter along the top edge of the pan. Lift the pan and swirl the batter to evenly cover the pan. Place in the preheated oven for 5 minutes. Remove and place the pan upside down on a cooling rack to cool for 5 minutes. If you have a second quarter sheet pan, place it in the oven now to heat.
If you are working with one pan, gently remove the crepe from the sheet pan. If it sticks, very gently coax it from underneath with a bench scraper, a metal spatula, or a butter knife. It is perfectly fine if there are slight tears in the middle layers. Place the crepe on the parchment-lined baking sheet to cool completely. Rinse off any stuck pieces of crepe and place the pan in the oven for 5 minutes to get hot.
Continue to make 2 orange, 2 red, 1 purple, 1 blue, and 1 green crepe, following the directions for the yellow, making sure the pan is hot and greased again each time before adding the batter. Rinse the jar as needed to start a new color (yellow into orange does not need rinsing, etc.).
Once all the crepes are completely cool, place a 3-foot piece of parchment paper down on a work surface. Take the filling from the refrigerator. Wipe the strawberries well with a paper towel. If you wash the strawberries, make sure they are very dry before continuing.
Fold the purple crepe in half so the short ends meet. Place the folded end in the center of the parchment, on the edge closest to you. Using an offset or rubber spatula, spread the entire surface of the purple crepe with about ½ inch of filling. Lay out the blue crepe lengthwise, tucking one shorter edge under the edge on the far side of the purple crepe. Spread a thin, even layer of filling over the blue crepe. Slice the ends off each strawberry. One inch from the folded purple edge, make one line of strawberries, making sure they are touching, from one end to the other. Tightly roll the purple crepe over the strawberries and continue rolling until you have run out of blue crepe. Carefully lift the roll and bring it back to your end of the parchment paper. Place the green crepe down on the parchment in front of the roll. Spread another thin, even layer of filling over the entire surface. Place the roll on top of the green crepe, making sure to match the edges. Roll until you reach the end of the green crepe. Continue with the yellow crepe, 1½ orange crepes (by cutting the second orange crepe in half) and finish with the 2 red crepes. Using a paper towel, wipe any excess filling from the parchment paper. Roll the crepe roll tightly with the parchment paper and twist the ends. Fold the ends down and place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.
To serve, cut about ½ inch off each end. Cut the roll into slices, and then slice in half through the center to create your rainbows. Arrange them standing up. If you are creating any boards, be sure to include a rainbow!
*Note: Buying individual colors of food coloring gel will give you the most control, but you can also use red, yellow, and blue, and combine accordingly. Start with one drop at a time until you achieve the color you are looking for. This recipe is gluten-free if using gluten-free 1-to-1 flour.