Cooking: Crepe Cake

Here and there I begin a non-sensical project at 11 pm.  I know I'm not alone in that particular insanity.  (Can't speak for other insanities...)  Years ago in North Carolina, it was my friend Edna's "fruit" (also known as cake mix) pie.  Now, for Will's 6th grade class mind you, I am making a Chocolate Hazelnut Crepe Cake.  What happened?!?

Well, the recipe is so advanced, I had to take breaks from cooking and go bang on the piano every 10 minutes.  My brain can't wrap around browning butter AND creaming custard AND skinning hazelnuts AND pouring a perfect crepe AND melting chocolate with a double boiler.

The recipe is from Deb Perelman, in "The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook."  (Thank you, Jenny!)  Her book is beautiful.  Her photos are etherial.  A stark contrast to my honest kitchen, adorned with chicken scraps, homework, art supplies, broken eye glasses, food-stained bills, dead plants and more.  Really, I shouldn't have Perelman's photos it sitting around at all.  It's like a diamond in the rough.  Will spotted it and was probably so taken by the novelty of clutterless kitchen scenes that, unbeknownst to me, he submitted this recipe to the school fundraiser cookbook and committed to a taste test the following day.  Where is this boy's sense?  I pushed back, but only bought myself a couple of days.

But now, even as I'm tired, and not exactly the picture of a joyous cook, gratitude still rises to the surface.  I'm grateful for having this boy.  Grateful to mix some love into his hazelnut pudding. And grateful he likes Chocolate Hazelnut Crepe Cakes.  I guess.  Though Edna's cake mix pie would be much simpler, and probably a bigger hit.