Crepes

Crepes first came into my life as "French pancakes."  My parents had friends who were French and we'd sometimes stop by their house on Sundays after church for French pancakes.

Uncle Pierre (no relation, we just called him that) would have a stack of crepes made when we arrived, which he'd reheat  one-by-one in a pan. When you were served a crepe, you'd sprinkle it with granulated sugar, roll it up like a cigar, and eat it with your fingers. They were a perfect granulated sugar delivery system. I loved these things.

I've never heard of crepes being eaten this way since and I can't imagine the adults in the group were eating them the same way but I have no recollection of how theirs were served.  In time I carried on the tradition and when my son was young I made French pancakes for him which he ate the same way. He also loved them. What's not to love about all that sugar.

Last night my son was home, and depressed about breaking up with his girlfriend.  I thought crepes would be just the thing to cheer him up. I went with something slightly more sophisticated then the granulated sugar and cigar roll -- brushing on melted butter and sprinkling with cinnamon sugar -- and while I don't know that it really got Benjamin's mind off things, he seemed to enjoy them.

The recipe I've always used is one from The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum. It's different from most crepe recipes in that it uses corn starch instead of flour which means it can be used as soon as it's made rather than needing to rest like most crepe batters. It's a batter I've always had great success with as I have with all the recipes from this book.

Crepes

3 large eggs

1 cup milk

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 tablespoon Grand Marnier

3/4 cup cornstarch

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

clarified butter for cooking the crepes

1. Place the ingredients, in the order given in a blender and blend at high speed for 10 seconds.

2. Heat the crepe pan on medium-high heat until hot enough to sizzle a drop of water. Brush the pan lightly with clarified butter and pour a scant 2 tablespoons batter into the center. Immediately tilt the pan to the left and then down and around to the right so that the batter moves in a counterclockwise direction, covering the entire pan.

3. Cook until the top starts to dull and the edges begin to brown, about 15 to 20 seconds. Use a small metal spatula to lift the edge, check to see if the crepe is browned underneath, then flip the crepe and cook for about another 10 seconds.

I cooked all the crepes, then went back and reheated each crepe and painted one side with melted butter and sprinkled it with cinnamon sugar, then folded it into quarters.

I used to make these in a non-stick 8 inch omelet pan which I no longer have. I thought one of my iron skillets, all of which have a silky finish to which things rarely stick, would work just fine and it did. Kind of. It was too large and heavy to swirl the batter around in easily and it holds the heat too much so that the batter would start cooking before you could really swirl it well. I wouldn't really recommend the cast iron skillet but it will do in a pinch.

Comments

[angela]

Listen, lady, crepes are how I gained 20 lbs in France in the first month. Try them with nutella/nutella and banana! Yum!!!!

[sher]

I love crepes! (Well, who doesn't?) They're great to keep in the freezer and pull out for very impressive last minute meals. You picture is incredible.

Note to self: make crepes

[discount family oracle online]

I would order them more but I never know if it is "krepps" or "krapes". Any assistance appreciated.

[Cazza]

sugar, lemon juice and whipped cream =/- icecream.

Does anyone know if corn starch is the same as cornflour?

mmmmmmmmmmm pancakes/crepes/krapps whatever they are good winter comfort food. Thanks for the reminder, Julie. Saturday night's dessert has just been sorted.

[Vanessa]

I discovered crepes for myself when I was a teen and went to Paris. There were crepe stands everywhere and they served them with chocolate or strawberry sauce poure in the center of the crepe, then folded into quarters. There were so good, we'd eat them twice a day. Thanks for the recipe. I'm going to make them for my niece and nephew, they'll love 'em!

[Luisa]

First of all, I love your picture of the crepe. It looks like just the most comforting, nourishing thing to be eating. And second of all, I loved that you made them for your son as a bit of love medicine. That just makes my heart all warm and fuzzy! :)

[bonnie]

The way to a man's heart IS through his stomach, after all.

[lindy]

I did't know about the cornstarch option-I'm very keen to try it. I agree, the picture is really charming and appetizing.

Crepes have always seemed magical to me since, as a 12 year old, I watched my parents friends make crepe suzettes in a copper chafing dish at the dining room table. Flamed and all. Fantastic.

H and M were my parents arty, bohemian friens, who introduced us to all manner of exotic and lovely things to eat and drink. In their 80's, they are still cooking up a storm.

[angela]

I walked by a thousand "krepp" stands today and I kept thinking about your post. I love them, but they are evil to my waistline.

[Miz S]

Mmmmmm. I remember those crepes. And I remember that our busy sister Sarah went through a big crepe-making stage when she was in junior high or maybe high school. We ate them at the Farm a lot.

[Rebecca]

What a nice thing to do for a heart-broken son!

I'll definitely have to try this recipe; I wonder if my immersible blender will work, it would probably leak out of the food processor. They sound really tender made from cornstarch.

[the bee]

Poor Benjamin, how did the little boy in day care grow up so fast ?
Here is my recipe for a broken heart . Drive to Giffords ice cream and request a quart of rocky road or butter pecan. Remove lid and eat contents. Repeat as needed.
These crepes look delicious !!!
I am sure they worked as well .

[lobstersquad]

That´s just how I used to eat them! with a little bit of lemon juice, too. My grandfather was crazy for them, but insisted they were filloas, not crepes. You´ve set me off now. I need to make a batch pronto.

[Will]

Looks great, Julie.

I am hoping to try out some of these. As of July 8th, I will have my very own kitchen. Well -- a rented one anyway.

Donna and I are moving into an apartment on Calvert Street in Mt. Vernon. It's a couple blocks from our gym -- and very close to The Gallery (where Donna works).

Anyway -- looking forward to trying some of this stuff I've been reading about here. Donna wants to be a chef too -- haha -- I bought her all the cook books I could find -- written by Food Network stars, of course. :-P

Will

[Julie]

Angela, it's just plain evil to make suggestions like that because you know I'll be powerless to resist. Nutella and bananas? Yum.

Sher, great idea about freezing them. I never think of that kind of stuff.

DFO, it would be "krepps" and there should be some back of the throat action for the kr sound which I can't manage.

Cazza, based on my internet travels it looks like corn flour is what you call cornstarch in Australia.

Vanessa, I would love to be somewhere with crepe stands although I'd probably eat there twice a day also which ultimately wouldn't be a good thing.

Thanks, Luisa. Sometimes cooking something good is all a mother can do.

Bonnie, so then it makes sense to try and mend a broken heart with crepes?

Lindy, crepes Suzette in a copper chafing dish is the epitome of glamour. I can totally see the magic.

Angela, it's a good thing I'm not there because I probably would NOT walk by the krepp stand, and yes, it would be evil for my waistline.

Miz S, I don't remember that at all. Was I there? Or is this yet another sign that I'm headed for Alzheimer's?

Rebecca, I don't have a blender, or an immersion blender (someday, someday! so I actually used my food processor which did leak a little but not much.

Bets, ice cream is well known for its therapeutic qualities.

lobstersquad, I bet the lemon juice would be a nice touch.

Congratulations, Will!

[mindy toomay]

OMG! My mother made crepes when we were kids! How could I forget!? She called them pancake roll-ups and spread butter and sugar on them and, well, rolled them up, sometimes adding jam on top, or a dusting of cinnamon. Somehow I hadn't thought of this for years. Thanks, cuz I really like retrieving early cooking/eating memories and mom's no longer on the planet to remind me...

Great blog and wonderful pics!
http://mindycooks.blogspot.com

[Julie]

Mindy, that sounds like a nice food memory.

[belstaff chaquetas]

Good stuff as per usual, thanks. I do hope this kind of thing gets more exposure.