Basic Crepe Recipe

Last night, we went here for a double date dinner with our friends, who had toted their 1970's-era crepe pan and bowl set with them so that we could borrow it. (Of course, we had to have Beauty Shop blackberry crepes and butter-and-sugar crepes for dessert. We kind of had crepes on the brain.) 

We remember the old plug-in crepe-maker versions from back in the day, but this lo-fi type is even better. You just put the batter in a shallow dish that helpfully has a recipe printed on it, coat the back of a crepe skillet with batter, and with  the stovetop on medium heat, wait about 30 seconds for your crepe to form. We remembered that George Falls of Paulette's had said to make the batter and then run it in a blender; this activates the gluten in the flour and helps the crepes stay together. It worked like a charm.

We're going to have to get our own crepe pan and dipping dish set soon. (And maybe go a little crepe-crazy and throw in a crepe spreader, too.)

Basic Crepe Recipe

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted, melted butter (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
pinch of sea salt
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups whole milk  (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
zest of 1 organic lemon

Options for fillings: 
chocolate hazelnut butter (2 tablespoons, melted)
butter and sugar (1 tablespoon softened butter and 1 tablespoon cane sugar)
strawberry jam (recipe follows)
+ powdered sugar (to garnish)

Place the flour, sugar, salt, eggs, milk, and zest in a blender. Blend for 2-3 minutes. Pour crepe batter into a shallow crepe dish. Heat the crepe skillet over medium heat. Dip the back of crepe skillet in batter and cook on medium heat for 30 seconds or until edges of crepe brown. Pull the edge of the crepe up with a butter knife, and then peel the crepe off of the iron with your fingers. stack cooked crepes on a plate until ready to eat. Repeat, repeat, repeat until you have a stack of crepes waiting on a plate. 

To assemble, spoon your selected filling on one quarter of the open crepe. Fold in half and then quarters. Sprinkle with powdered sugar to serve. 
(Makes about 20 crepes.)



Strawberry Jam


2 cups sliced strawberries
1/3 cup cane sugar
juice from half a lemon
long piece of lemon peel

Combine all ingredients and mash them with a potato masher. Cook in a saucepan on medium-low heat for about an hour or until mixture reaches a jam-like consistency. Stir it often. Set aside to cool. Remove peel before storing in fridge for about a week.