Discover Paper

French Vanilla Crepe Cake ft. Cappuccino Mousse + Edible Confetti

This remix is all about the paper. And birthdays. To celebrate Discover Paper's 2nd year of existence on the World Wide Web, blog owner Donaville reached out to see if I would like to collaborate on a remix. Discover Paper spotlights digital and hand-crafted paper products, as well as artists creating beautiful works of art including paper jewelry, upcycled books, and unique alphabets. Donaville also spends a good deal of time compiling an impressive holiday gift guide every year and has been kind enough to feature some of my diptych calendars in the past.

Anyways, it just so happens that Cake Remix is about to celebrate a birthday of its own - numero uno baby! My first Thai Curry remix was posted on April 30, 2012 and here we are - 23 remixes later and I haven't run out of ideas yet. So with paper as the inspiration and without further ado, I am so happy to present the Discover Paper remix:

I decided right away that this would be a crepe cake, also dubbed mille (French for 'thousand') crepe cake. Consisting of alternating layers of crepes and frosting/filling, this cake actually resembles a stack of flaky papers and when sliced, the interior looks like the pages of a book. The cake is relatively easy to make - though, time-consuming to pour and flip all of the crepes. A bit more work than just popping a cake in the oven for 45 minutes but this one looks impressive and hand-crafted, if you will. You can use those valuable seconds in between crepes to be productive - I did push-ups, put away dishes, and then caught up on my celebrity gossip.

Sticking with the theme of good books and curling up with a cup of coffee, I chose a cappuccino mousse to sandwich in between each crepe layer. I used brewed coffee and heavy cream in the recipe, but you could substitute a tablespoon or two of cappuccino or other flavored drink mixes for the coffee instead.

And what would a paper remix be without the paper? I had fun experimenting with edible rice paper for some decorative accents, and scroll down for mini crepe-cupcake versions as well. Happy Birthday Discover Paper - here's for many more to come!

Rice Paper - Two Ways
Edible rice paper or wafer paper is used as a wrapper in Asian dishes, such as spring rolls, and more recently in confectionery sweets such as the one you are currently reading about. Rice paper is not necessarily tasty (think dry and starchy like a Communion wafer), but it is edible so you can use it in a food dish and not have to worry about removing before eating.

The paper is fragile and usually comes wrapped in cellophane to prevent breakage. The paper will also shrivel and crinkle when it gets wet, so be sure to keep it as dry as possible while working.

Pumpkin Spice Latte

Pumpkin Spice Cake ft. Cinnamon Whipped Cream + Coffee Syrup

Alright, fall has officially arrived, though Starbucks (wisely) started rolling out their fall drinks immediately after Labor Day. (but we're still waiting on the Pumpkin Smash smoothie from Jamba Juice - trust me, you won't be sorry). This is the first of several autumn cakes and even the first of several pumpkin cakes. So whether you choose to puree the innards of the real thing or simply go with the can of pumpkin filling (as I did), 'tis the season of the pumpkin.

Pumpkin itself can be a bit on the bland side so it's the spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, cloves) that add the flavor to the coffee drink, and this cake. The easy and convenient thing is start with a spice cake mix, though you can also start with another mix and add in all the other spices. You'll also need to brew a super-strong pot of coffee (or espresso) to be used in the cake and the syrup topping, so get that going right about now.

This was the first time I've made whipped cream, and I highly recommend timing this part of the process to the glorious one-hot wonder: Whip It, by Devo. Seriously, put on some headphones and blast it directly into your eardrums while you're beating away - mix the cream on low speed for the first minute but once you hit this part, switch over to high speed until the song finishes. Voila! You have whipped it, whipped it good (Energy Cone optional).

And what would a latte be without the fanciful latte art on that foamy canvas you just prepared? You can make a coffee syrup by reducing coffee in a saucepan on the stovetop, mixing it with corn syrup, and then transferring that into a squeeze bottle of sorts (preferably with a small tip or opening) to decorate the top of the cake. I went with a simple spiral, but you can tackle anything from dragons to Potters to bears (oh my!)

pumpkin spice cake
1 box spice cake mix
3 eggs
1/2 can (8 oz) pumpkin pie filling or pureed pumpkin
1 c. strongly brewed coffee
1/4 c. vegetable oil or butter
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, grease pan with butter or a non-stick spray like PAM, and brew a pot of strong coffee to make at least 2 cups worth.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs, oil, pumpkin,and coffee until smooth. Slowly add in cake mix, beating well after each addition. Pour batter into greased 8” round pans and bake according to times on the back of the box.

cinnamon whipped cream
2 c. heavy cream
2 tbsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. powdered sugar
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Pour heavy cream, powdered sugar, and cinnamon into small medium mixing bowl. With beaters or an electric mixer, beat mixture for 1 minute on low and then 1 minute on high. Whip for another 10-30 seconds until desired texture is reached.

coffee syrup
1/2 c. strongly brewed coffee
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. corn syrup
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On the stovetop, mix coffee and sugar in a small saucepan, and stir for 5 minutes until the sugar dissolves and a syrup forms. Let mixture cool for a few seconds without hardening. Pour into candy bottle or squeezable bottle with a small tip, add in corn syrup and shake well until syrups mix. Drizzle decoratively onto cake.