This pancake cake looks stunning and is very easy to make, if a little time-consuming. We will be filling this one with whipped cream to give a maximum effect colour wise with the coloured pancake layers contrasting against the white. This pancake cake is delicately flavoured and on the plainer spectrum so you may wish to add a different flavoured filling of your choosing instead. 

Serves 10-12

Ingredients 

For the Pancakes: 

• 5 large eggs 
• 750ml milk 
• 250g plain flour & pinch of salt 
• Gel Food colourings – as pictured: pink, orange, yellow, green & blue* 
• Sunflower oil 

To fill: 

• 600ml double or whipping cream – whipped 
• Icing sugar & vanilla extract to taste 

Equipment: 

• Large bowl 
• Jug 
• Utensils: Whisk, Ladle, Palette Knife, Slice (to flip the pancakes) 
• Sieve – optional 
• 5 separate bowls/mugs for dividing the mixture into 
• Non-stick frying pan 
• Kitchen roll 
• Serving plate 

Method 

To make the pancakes: 

• Place the eggs and milk into a jug and whisk together until blended. 
• Place the flour and salt in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Slowly pour the egg and milk mixture into the well and begin to stir with your whist. Beat the mixture until it becomes a smooth batter. (If there are lumps in your mixture, strain through a sieve.) 
• Divide the pancake batter evenly between 5 bowls or mugs. Colour the batter in each bowl pink, orange, yellow, green and blue* using the gel colouring. 
• Heat a non-stick frying pan on your hob with a small amount of sunflower oil to grease. Use a piece of kitchen roll to wipe away any excess oil. (Retain this as you may want to regrease the frying pan every now and then.) 
• You will need to divide each coloured mixture to make 4 equal-sized pancakes of each colour. This will mean that you will be making 20 pancakes in total. 
• Using your ladle, pour the mixture to make 1 pancake into your frying pan and ensure that the mixture spreads across the entirety of the frying pan. Cook the pancake on low heat – we don’t want it to colour too much and flip the pancake to cook both sides. 
• Once cooked, place the pancake onto a piece of kitchen roll and repeat until all 20 pancakes have been cooked. Place a piece of kitchen roll between each pancake so they don’t stick together and leave to cool completely. 

To make the filling: 

• Whip the cream until just whipped – do not over beat as it will start to curdle and not spread evenly. 
• If you want to add vanilla and icing sugar, do this just as the cream starts to become thicker during the whipping process and add to suit your palate – I recommend 1 tsp of vanilla extract and 30g icing sugar but you may wish to add more icing sugar. 

To assemble: 

• Place the pancake you want at the bottom of your stack (blue as pictured) onto your serving plate and apply a thick layer of whipped cream with a palette knife. 
• Remove the kitchen roll and apply the second blue pancake and continue building up with thin layers of cream between each layer, continuing next to the green, yellow, orange and then pink pancakes. 
• If there is any cream left over, reserve it for serving. 
• Keep refrigerated and serve within 24 hours of construction. 

Tips: 

• Food colouring tip – you could add purple but be careful as purple food colouring has a tendency to turn grey) – Wilton, Sugarflare & Americolour are the best brands to use and can be purchased from cake shops or online (Wilton can be purchased in Hobbycraft). Dr.Oetker is okay and can be purchased in most supermarkets, however, the colours can be less vibrant. 
• Pancakes can be made several hours before assembly and can even be frozen prior to filling. 
• Remember the pancakes will taste quite plain using whipped cream alone may also taste quite plain. Adding the icing sugar is recommended for taste and you could always change up the vanilla extract for another flavouring such as rose water or orange blossom water. 
• If you want to use a different flavoured filling entirely, be mindful of the effect once cut into. A white filling is the most effective with regards to maintaining the impact of the coloured pancake layers. Darker colours may also drag as the knife cuts.
• When cutting the pancake cake, I’d advise heating a sharp knife in warm water and wiping the excess water off with a kitchen roll between each slice. This will keep the colours and overall effect of the cake looking clean and tidy.