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If you enjoy my Middle Eastern desserts like Baklava and Knafeh, you’re going to love this Phyllo Crinkle Cake. It’s actually a Greek and Turkish recipe! I like to think of it as a cross between Baklava and french toast casserole. I’m absolutely obsessed with the dessert’s creamy, cardamom custard and crunchy top.
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This crinkle cake went viral on TikTok when Ramena Avakian (her account is no longer active!) posted it a few years ago. She basically built a business selling crinkle cake and finally shared her secret recipe after years of her customers asking for it.
My version has plenty of butter for crispy, delicious layers, a custard flavored with vanilla and cardamom, a rose water simple syrup the dough soaks up, and plenty of pistachios on top. The key to the best crinkle cake is folding and placing the phyllo dough into the baking dish in an accordion shape, which creates plenty of nooks and crannies for the custard to get into.
Recipe At a Glance
Cuisine Inspiration: American and Mediterranean
Primary Cooking Method: Oven
Dietary Info: Vegetarian
Key Flavor: Creamy, crunchy, sweet, and nutty
Skill Level: Intermediate
Why This Is So Good
- Uses a smart store-bought shortcut: Phyllo dough makes it easy to create the crinkle cake’s signature layers. All you have to do is let the phyllo thaw, and it’s ready to use.
- Looks impressive: This dessert looks like something you’d get at a restaurant. You can thank the layers for that.
- Serves a crowd: This recipe makes a lot (about 16 servings!), which makes it great for any holiday gathering or potluck.
Ingredients to Make a Crinkle Cake
- Phyllo: Allow the phyllo to come to room temperature in its package before starting the recipe!
- Melted butter: I like to use unsalted butter to control the final amount of salt in the crinkle cake! (Here’s how I recommend melting butter.)
- Whole milk: This has the best flavor, but you can use any type of milk you like.
- Eggs: These will thicken the custard.
- Sugar: You’ll use this in the custard and the sugar syrup!
- Ground cardamom: This has a floral, slightly sweet fragrance! Its flavor is super distinct.
- Vanilla extra: If you’re a vanilla fan, you can use double the amount the recipe calls for.
- Rose water: This is available in many spice isles (and online!). It tastes and smells like roses.
- Pistachios: Make sure to crush the pistachios so they’re easy to evenly sprinkle and eat. I like to place them into a zipper-lock bag and whack them with a rolling pin.
Popular Additions
- Try lemon zest and lemon juice in the simple syrup. You can try these in addition to the rose water or instead of it!
- Use condensed milk instead of homemade custard. Instead of the milk, egg, sugar, vanilla, and cardamom mixture, use condensed milk.
- Switch out the spice. I love cardamom, but if you don’t like or have it, switch it out for cinnamon.
- Use a different nut. Try walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, or pecans instead of the pistachios!
How to Make Crinkle Cake
While this crinkle cake might look a bit complicated, it really is just a few simple components! And, again, using phyllo dough saves a lot of time.
Make the Rose Water Simple Syrup
Make the Crinkle Cake
Tips for Making the Best Phyllo Crinkle Cake
- Don’t open the phyllo dough until it comes to room temperature. This makes it much easier to unwrap without breaking the delicate layers of phyllo.
- Cover the unused phyllo while working. Use a damp towel or paper towel to keep the phyllo from drying out. (Trust me, this can happen in minutes!)
- Don’t skip the initial bake without the butter. This helps crisp up the dough so that it doesn’t get soggy when you add the toppings.
- Work quickly but carefully. Phyllo dough can break easily—especially when it starts to dry out. Covering the unused dough will help, but you also want to make sure that the ones in the baking dish don’t dry out too quickly, either!
Frequently Asked Questions
This cake is definitely best enjoyed as soon as possible. That way, it’ll still be warm and the layers crispy! However, you can keep it in an airtight container for a few days and try reheating it in an oven or toaster oven to get the phyllo crispy again.
I wouldn’t recommend it. Because of the sugar syrup, custard, and phyllo dough, the crinkle cake’s texture would be off if frozen, thawed, and reheated.
For this recipe, I don’t think so! Phyllo really is perfect for creating the layers needed for crinkle cake. For example, something like puff pastry would expand too much, ruining the cake’s accordion folds.
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Crinkle Cake
Ingredients
- 1 pound box of phyllo 9″x14″ sheets, room temperature
- 1 cup (2 sticks) melted butter
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups granulated sugar divided
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup water
- 1 teaspoon rose water
- ¼ cup pistachios crushed, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with some of the melted butter.
- Take two sheets of phyllo dough at a time, crinkle them like an accordion, and place them into the baking dish. Repeat this process until the dish is filled. Keep the unused phyllo covered with a damp towel to prevent it from drying out.
- Bake the crinkled phyllo dough for 10 minutes. This helps to keep the dough from getting soggy when you add the toppings later.
- Remove the dish from the oven and pour the melted butter evenly over the crinkled dough. Return to the oven and bake for another 12 minutes, until the dough turns golden and crispy.
- While the dough bakes, make the custard by whisking together the milk, eggs, 1 cup of sugar, cardamom and vanilla. Make sure the mixture is fully combined.
- Once the phyllo has finished its second bake, remove the dish from the oven and pour the custard mixture over the top. Return the dish to the oven one more time and bake for about 40 minutes, or until the custard is set and the top is golden brown.
- While the cake bakes, prepare the syrup. In a small saucepan, combine the remaining 1 cup of sugar with ¾ cup of water. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the syrup thickens. Stir in the rose water, and let the syrup cool completely.
- When the cake is done baking, take it out of the oven and immediately pour the cooled syrup over the top, allowing it to soak into the cake.
- Before serving, garnish with crushed pistachios.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Would it work if pumpkin puree & pumpkin pie spice is added when making custard for a fall flavor?
Oooh, that sounds so good!! I haven’t tried it but I think it could work! I hope you’ll experiment and let me know how it turns out!!
Do you have to add the rose water? What would be a replacement for rose water?
You can try lemon zest and lemon juice in the simple syrup instead of rose water.
Can’t stop making this crinkle cake. My family is obsessed with it. Couldn’t believe how simple it was to prepare and how light and delicious it is!
Aww, that’s awesome to hear! So glad your family loves it and you find it easy to make!! Thanks, Naydean!