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June is Pride Month and if you look around — at least here in New York City — there are pride flags flying high this month.

According to the , this pride symbol was first created by Gilbert Baker and a group of activists and artists participating in the San Francisco 1978 Pride Parade. The initial flag had eight colors: red, pink, orange, yellow, green, turquoise, blue and purple; though it has been adjusted over time and new iterations have been created to reflect different pockets within the community.

The rainbow flag has come to symbolize the LGBTQ+ community’s diversity and unity.

For ICE Pastry & Baking Arts Chef-Instructor Trung Vu, pride has many meanings.

“Pride is at the heart of all flags because you wear, display or fly them to show that you are proud of your country, your organization or even a part of your identity as with the rainbow flag.," Chef Trung says. "The pride flag means a lot to me because I remember the sense of unity in our community at my first gay pride and every one since. I think it promotes visibility, which can start dialogues and open the lines of communication. With time, I hope that can lead to a better understanding and maybe even acceptance that we are all the same.”
 

Chef Trung wanted to create a dessert that honors the spirit of Pride Month while also showcasing techniques students explore throughout the Pastry & Baking Arts program at ICE. He made a show-stopping rainbow crêpe cake, with layers of vibrant crêpes and diplomat cream filling.

When making this cake, Chef Trung started with the diplomat cream, which is a combination of pastry cream and whipped cream. Students in his Pastry & Baking Arts class become very familiar with this foundational custard because they practice making it several times in the curriculum, using it in fruit tarts, choux pastry and Napoleons, among many other dishes. Chef Trung finds that mixing the pastry cream with whipped cream gives it a better mouthfeel.

A few professional tips about pastry cream: 

• Once the eggs are tempered and the custard comes up to a boil, Chef Trung recommends whisking the boiling mixture constantly for about a minute. He says this will cook off the starchy flavor of the cornstarch and ensure the eggs don’t curdle.
   
• When placing the cream in the fridge to chill, press plastic wrap directly onto the surface so it doesn’t form a skin.
   
• You can make the pastry cream one to three days in advance and fold in the whipped cream when you’re assembling the cake. Chef Trung's ideal ratio is one part whipped cream to four parts pastry cream.

As for the crêpes, Chef Trung recommends making the batter a day in advance so the flour can fully hydrate — which will yield a looser, thinner batter that spreads more easily around the pan. Because food coloring deepens as it rests, Chef Trung cautions against adding the food color until after the batter has rested, so you know what the final colors will look like.

Don’t worry if the first few crêpes are flops. Chef Trung suggests using the first batch as a test to get a sense of how much batter to use and how long they take to cook. Flip the crêpes when the center looks set, and make sure to let them cool before building the cake.

When you’re ready to assemble, Chef Trung recommends using an ice cream scoop to portion the cream so there’s a consistent amount between the layers. Use an offset spatula to spread it thinly and evenly all the way out to the edges so the cake doesn’t become domed in shape.

If you want to put your own spin on the recipe, infuse the pastry cream with extracts or fruit zest. You could also adjust the colors or stack the layers differently to create flags that represent some of the different identities within the LGBTQ+ community.

Have fun making this cake at home and celebrating Pride!