This is an insanely delicious cake! Despite the fact that it consists of ordinary (though not quite ordinary;)) pancakes, it can easily compete with any familiar traditional cake on the festive table. The texture is very juicy, tender, the taste is creamy with a bright, but absolutely unobtrusive orange flavor. Orange can be safely replaced with any other citrus.

Pancakes:

– 500 g milk

– 4 eggs (200 g)

– 200 g flour

– 20 g sugar

– 60 g orange liqueur (I have Cointreau)

– a pinch of salt

– 1 vanilla bean, cut in half lengthwise

– 20 g melted butter, set aside

Whisk together milk, eggs, flour, sugar, orange liqueur and salt. Take the vanilla seeds out of the pod, add to the batter and mix. Add melted butter and stir again. Cover the container with cling film, put in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.

Stir the dough until smooth (oil may appear on the surface after cooling), fry pancakes over medium heat on both sides in a hot frying pan. Let cool.

Orange Cream Diplomat:

– 130 g of yolks

– 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

– 110 g sugar

– 80 g flour

– 550 ml milk

– zest of 2 oranges

– 30 g butter at room temperature (cubed)

– 4 g gelatin

– 20 g of water

– 200 g heavy cream 35%

In a deep heat-resistant bowl, beat the yolks with vanilla essence and sugar with a mixer until light and creamy. Add flour on low speed. Mix the milk by hand with a whisk.

Put the container in a water bath, and, constantly stirring with a whisk, bring the mass to a thickening (about 80 degrees, but not higher, because the yolks can curl).

Remove from heat, add zest, stir. You can pass the cream through a sieve, I did not do this. Add the butter to the still hot cream, stir until it dissolves.

Cover the container with cling film so that it is in contact with the surface of the cream. Place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Soak gelatin in cold water.

Put a third of the cream in a heat-resistant container, add the swollen gelatin, heat in a water bath or in the microwave, stirring, until the gelatin dissolves. Do not boil! Pass through a sieve.

Add cream with gelatin to the remaining cream, beat with a mixer.

Whip the cream to soft peaks. Add 1/3 to the cream, gently each time stirring with a spatula.

Cover the container with cling film so that it is in contact with the surface of the cream. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or until thickened.

Stir with a whisk until smooth before use.

Assembly:

– 1 orange

– 2 tbsp.

Line a wide plate with cling film. Place the cream in a pastry bag with a round nozzle.

Put the first pancake, put a layer of cream on top. Because the edges of the pancakes are usually thinner than the middle, the layer of cream around the edges should be made a little thicker so that the cake is even, and not domed. Cover with the next pancake, then a layer of cream.

Repeat with the remaining pancakes and cream. The last one should be pancake.

Carefully wrap the cake with cling film and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.

Before serving, remove the cling film, transfer the cake to a serving dish, put the orange segments on top, you can additionally sprinkle with honey, garnish with mint leaves.