Glazed Apple Dessert Crepes with Pan-Seared Bananas and Marshmallow Cream Frosting

To download a cookbook-style copy of the recipe for Glazed Apple Dessert Crepes with Pan-Seared Bananas and Marshmallow Cream Frosting, click HERE.

One good crepe deserves another.

Last week’s recipe for Chardonnay Chicken Crepes was just one example of the countless savory dishes that can be made using a basic crepe. This week, we’ll sample the sweet side of this versatile culinary workhorse by filling it with glazed apples, and topping them with pan-seared bananas and an easy-to-make marshmallow cream frosting. How does that sound for dessert!

Some Cook’s Notes before we begin:

• The crepe used in this recipe is just a slightly modified version of the all-purpose crepe we made last week. The only difference: since we’re using this for a sweet dessert instead of a savory dish, we add a little vanilla.

• If you prefer, regular whipped cream or other whipped topping can be used. I just prefer marshmallow cream frosting because of its great texture, delicious sweet taste (especially with a bit of shredded coconut added!), and its very low fat content. Good, low fat whipped toppings are hard to find; this is one of my favorites.

• Preparing both the apples and the bananas involves a bit of oil for the pan. I recommend something neutral-flavored with a high smoke point. (I used grapeseed oil.)

• Soaking the walnuts is optional, but it removes most of the bitter aftertaste that walnuts often have.

This recipe makes about 6 servings, with some extra crepes left over. (Making extra crepes is done on purpose. They’ll keep for several days in a food storage bag in the refrigerator; just warm them a bit, spread some butter, jam or whatever else you like, gently fold them into quarters, and you’ll have something seriously delicious whenever you feel like it. And, once you have them, you will feel like it. Trust me.)

Here are the ingredients you’ll need.

For the crepes: 1 cup AP flour; ¼ tsp salt; 2 Tbsp melted butter substitute; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 2 egg-substitute eggs; 1-1/2 cups skim milk; and butter substitute or oil for cooking crepes.

For the marshmallow cream frosting: 1 cup marshmallow cream; ¼ cup firm textured butter substitute, softened to room temperature; ¾ cup confectioner’s sugar; ½ tsp vanilla extract; ¼ cup coconut flakes. (Optional: ½ - 1 Tbsp skim milk, if desired for a looser texture.)

For the glazed apple filling: 1 cup fine-chopped walnuts; 4 granny smith apples; oil for pan; ¼ tsp kosher salt; ½ cup ginger ale; 1 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice; 6 Tbsp brown sugar; pinch powdered ginger; pinch ground cinnamon; and pinch ground nutmeg.

Other Ingredients: 3 bananas; oil for pan-searing

To prepare the walnuts:

Place the walnuts for the filling in a bowl with enough water to cover. Let soak for one hour and then drain well.

To make the crepe batter:

Combine flour and salt in a bowl, and form a well. Pour the egg-substitute eggs, vanilla, and ½ cup of the skim milk into the well. Add the melted butter substitute and mix into the other liquids in the well.

Once the liquid ingredients in the well are combined, gradually mix in the dry ingredients. The result should be a thick batter.

Gradually add the remaining skim milk until the batter has the consistency of heavy cream.

Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.

While the batter is resting and the walnuts are soaking, make the marshmallow cream topping as follows:

Using a mixer, blend the marshmallow cream and butter substitute until smooth.

Add the vanilla and mix till combined.

Add the confectioner’s sugar and the coconut flakes, and beat until mixed. (Optional: add milk if desired for a looser texture and mix to combine.) Cover and refrigerate till ready to use.

While the batter is resting and the marshmallow cream is cooling, make the filling as follows.

Combine the ginger ale, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

Peel and slice the apples into ¼“ slices. Place in a bowl and toss with the lemon juice.

Heat a little oil in a skillet, and add the apple slices. (Work in batches so that all the apple slices lay flat on the bottom of the pan.)

Cook the apple slices uncovered, about 3 minutes per side, till both sides are browned. Season with salt part way through the browning.

Set each batch aside while you brown the next batch.

When all the apple slices have been browned, combine all the slices in the skillet and pour the ginger ale mixture over the top.

Add the brown sugar and mix till a syrup forms.

Cover the skillet and cook the apples for a few minutes over medium heat.

Cook till the apples are softened (but not mushy) and glazed.

After draining the walnuts well, stir them into the apple mixture and set aside till needed.

 When you’re ready to cook the crepes:

Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat; melt about 1 tsp of butter substitute. Remove the pan from the heat, add about ¼ cup of batter, swirl around to cover the surface of the pan, and put it back on the heat.

When the crepe is lightly browned on the bottom and firm enough to be flipped (usually about one to 1-1/2 minutes, but keep an eye on it), turn or flip the crepe and cook on the opposite side till it has the desired brownness.

Stack the crepes on a plate, covered with a clean towel to keep from drying out.

Repeat the above steps for each crepe, rebuttering the pan for each.

To make the bananas for the topping:

Peel and slice the bananas into ¼“ discs.

Heat a little oil in the pan. Add the bananas and cook until browned on the bottom, about five minutes.

Turn the bananas over and brown the other side. Remove from the heat and set aside till ready to serve.

To serve:

Place a crepe on the plate.

Use a slotted spoon to put filling along the center-line of the crepe.

Fold the crepe over.

Top with some of the marshmallow cream frosting.

Add some of the seared bananas.

Serve warm or room temperature.

To download a cookbook-style copy of the recipe for Glazed Apple Dessert Crepes with Pan-Seared Bananas and Marshmallow Cream Frosting, click HERE.

Be warned: between the light, tasty crepes; the glazed apples; the pan-seared bananas; and the marshmallow cream topping, these dessert crepes can be very habit-forming!

And please visit again next week for another delicious, kitchen-tested recipe! Till then, stay well, keep it about the food, and always remember to kiss the cook. ;-)

Mini-Layer Cake Cupcakes with Coconut Marshmallow Cream Frosting and Strawberry Filling

To download the recipes used to make Mini-Layer Cake Cupcakes with Coconut Marshmallow Cream Frosting and Strawberry Filling, click on the following links:

• For the Strawberry Filling recipe, click HERE.

• For the Marshmallow Cream recipe, click HERE.

• For the Coconut Frosting recipe, click HERE.

• For the Cupcake recipe, click HERE.

• For the Mini-Layer Cake Assembly recipe, click HERE.

A warm Kissing the Cook greeting to new follower Grinelda. Welcome!

Sometimes, a recipe idea evolves over time, becoming more and more refined as it develops. And sometimes, you’re sitting around one day thinking, “I haven’t had cupcakes for a while. Think I’ll work on making some.”

This recipe came from the second one.

The concept is simple: making cupcakes that are actually miniature layer cakes. And although it looks like a long recipe, that’s just because I’m describing here how to do everything from scratch: the preserves for the filling; the frosting; the marshmallow cream used to make the frosting; and the cake itself. Recognizing that not everyone is as obsessive as I sometimes am about things like that, however, I’ve broken the recipe below down into parts to make it easier for you to use ready-made items. If you prefer, any or all of those items can be purchased instead of made from scratch, and the making of this recipe will be made faster and simpler. It’s completely up to you.

On a related note, some readers may be a bit fearful about forming and frosting a miniature layer cake. No need to worry. I don’t have much experience with cake myself, and it still worked just fine. If you are an experienced cake maker who can frost a cake more beautifully than the basic way I’ve shown here, think of that as an extra bonus.

An extra benefit of this recipe is that it actively illustrates a couple of very useful techniques for reducing the fat in baked items while keeping a good texture and taste. Butter substitute and egg substitutes can be used, but they must be used correctly.

• For butter substitute, this means using a firm textured brand. (I used Smart Balance, but there are other good ones as well.) A firm-textured substitute will stand up to being left out to get to room temperature, an absolutely critical step in making the cake and the frosting. The softer textured ones can start to break down at room temperature.  And, as always with butter substitutes, adjust the quantity to ¾ of the amount of full-fat butter you’d use. (For example, 4 Tbsp of full fat butter would be replaced by 3 Tbsp of butter substitute.) This is because butter substitute has a  higher moisture content.

• To replace eggs, packaged egg substitute works well in many ways. My main issue is that it doesn’t fluff the same way fresh eggs do when cooked. You can offset this by replacing one of the egg substitute eggs with two fresh egg whites beaten into beautiful fluffiness. Just be sure to use fresh egg whites; the packaged ones I’ve tried using don’t fluff when beaten.

I hope you will give this recipe a try. In spite of the fact that, as usual on this site, the fat in the recipe has been greatly reduced, the results are delicious.

This recipe makes 10 mini-layer cake cupcakes.

In preparation for some things we’ll having coming up, set the following out for an hour or two to get to room temperature. (Don’t skip or short-cut this step; it may seem like a small item, but it’s the difference between the frosting and cake recipes working and not working.)

• Frosting: ½ cup of firm-textured butter substitute

• Cake: 2 egg substitute eggs, 2 fresh eggs, 1/2 cup of firm-textured butter substitute, and 2 Tbsp skim milk.

With those ingredients set out on the counter to reach room temperature, we’ll start by making the strawberry jam filling. (Although I like to think this jam is better than the kind in a jar, skip this part if you prefer to buy some instead.) This makes about pint of jam, which is much more than you’ll need for the cakes. It’s just easier to make more, and also gives you a delicious jam to have on your toast!

Place a small, glass plate in the freezer.

In a medium saucepan, combine 1-1/2 cups of granulated sugar, and the juice and zest of 1 lemon. Stir till combined, then cook over a low heat until the sugar is dissolved.

Add 1 pound of chopped, hulled strawberries, a pinch of salt, and ¼ tsp of dried rosemary, and continue to cook over low heat.

The strawberries will gradually break down as the mixture cooks and thickens. Cook with very little stirring.

When a small amount of the liquid gels on the frozen plate, the jam is ready.

Place in a jar and refrigerate until needed.

Now we’ll make the marshmallow cream that we’ll use later to make the frosting. (You’ll need a candy or frying thermometer for this. Skip this part if you prefer to buy a jar of marshmallow cream.) This makes a little more than 2 cups of marshmallow cream, which is the amount we’ll need for the frosting.

In a mixer bowl, beat 2 fresh egg whites, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of cream of tartar until fluffy. Add 2 Tbsp of granulated sugar to the egg white mixture and continue beating until peaks that are a little firmer than soft peaks form.

In a small saucepan, mix 1-1/2 Tbsp water, ½ cup light corn syrup, and 6 Tbsp granulated sugar together. Using a candy or frying thermometer, cook over medium heat until it boils and comes to 246 degrees (what candy makers call “firm ball”).

With the mixer on low, drizzle the syrup into the beaten egg white mixture.

When all the syrup has been added, increase the speed to high and beat until fluffy, about 5 to 6 minutes.

Cover and refrigerate the marshmallow cream mixture to cool.

After the marshmallow cream mixture has cooled, use it to make your frosting. (Skip this step if you’re using a prepared, packaged frosting.)

Using a mixer, blend 2 cups of marshmallow cream and ½ cup of room temperature butter substitute until smooth.

Add 1 tsp vanilla, 1-1/2 cups of confectioner’s sugar and ½ cup of untoasted coconut flakes and beat till mixed. (Optional: If desired for a looser texture, also add 1 – 2 Tbsp of skim milk.)

Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Now we’ll make our cake. (If you’re using a packaged cake mix, make the simple syrup and then skip down to where we pour the batter onto the baking sheet. Just make sure you have enough batter for 12 regular cupcakes.)

Prepare a simple syrup by combining ½ cup of water and ½ cup of sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine 2 fresh egg whites, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of cream of tartar in a bowl and beat until fluffy.

Combine ¾ cup sugar and ½ cup room temperature butter substitute in a mixer and beat together till creamy. (Be careful not to over-mix.) Add 2 egg-substitute eggs; 1 cup all-purpose flour; 3/4 tsp baking soda; 1-1/2 tsp baking powder; 1-1/4 tsp vanilla extract; and 1 Tbsp skim milk, and mix until a smooth batter forms.

Fold in the beaten egg whites.

(If you’re using a packaged cake mix, here’s where you’ll resume the recipe.) Pour the batter into a 9” x 14” x ½” baking sheet that has been coated with butter substitute and floured. Use a spatula to spread the batter.

Shake to make the batter even within the baking sheet.

Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes, turning the pan around halfway through for more even baking.

Let cool for ten minutes on the baking sheet, then turn over onto a cooling rack. (Cooling the cake upside down will also help flatten it.)

When the cake has completely cooled, use a 2-1/2” round cookie cutter cut the cake into circles. (You should be able to get 20 circles if you plan it right.) Each circle is going to be one of the layers of the cake.

To assemble and frost our mini-layer cake cupcakes, repeat the following steps for each mini-layer cake.

Toast about a cup of shredded coconut.

Place a 6” square of wax paper or parchment on the work surface. Put a dab of frosting in the middle. This will hold the cake in place while you work with it. It will also allow you to rotate the cake as necessary to make applying the frosting easier.

Place one of the cake circles on the dab of frosting. Place additional strips of wax paper or parchment under all the bottom edges of the cake to keep the wax paper square clean while you frost the cake.

Brush some of the simple syrup on the top surface of the cake.

Place some of the frosting in a piping bag, or a sealable plastic bag with a corner cut off. Place a ring of frosting around the edge of the cake. (This will help keep the filling from oozing out, and will provide additional support when the top layer is applied.)

Place some of the filling on top of the cake, inside the edge created by the frosting. (About ½ tsp will probably be enough.)

Place another cake circle on top to form the upper layer.

Lightly brush the top of the upper cake circle with simple syrup.

Place a dollop of frosting in the center of the cake. (Don’t worry about the sides just yet. This step is only for the top.)

Using a spatula or butter knife, spread the frosting out from the center till the top is covered. Bring the frosting slightly beyond the edge of the top layer.

To do the sides, frost about ¼ of the cake at a time. Similar to how you did the top, apply a dollop of frosting and spread it over the area.

Using the wax paper square to turn the cake, work your way around the sides until the entire surface is frosted.

Apply toasted coconut or other garnish to the iced cake.

After removing the wax paper strips, set aside on a tray to refrigerate and firm up the frosting.

To download the recipes used to make Mini-Layer Cake Cupcakes with Coconut Marshmallow Cream Frosting and Strawberry Filling, click on the following links:

• For the Strawberry Filling recipe, click HERE.

• For the Marshmallow Cream recipe, click HERE.

• For the Coconut Frosting recipe, click HERE.

• For the Cupcake recipe, click HERE.

• For the Mini-Layer Cake Assembly recipe, click HERE.

You’re now ready to wow your family or guests with these tasty (and just a bit whimsical) dessert cakes!

Please visit again next week for another (and, I promise, shorter!) delicious, home kitchen-tested recipe. Till then, stay well, keep it about the food, and always remember to kiss the cook. ;-)