Crepes

I'd never been brave enough for crepes before. It's not because I don't feel I'm qualified to conquer any recipe (I mean, I have spend upwards of 8 hours building the perfect bread pudding), but rather I knew someone who had it down to such an art that I didn't think I could cook up crepes that compared.

A moment arose where I needed to put my skills to the test though, when I had my best friend and her son over for brunch. Though I enjoy myself a pancake every now and again, I'd made those last time and find crepes to be much less fluff. There's something magical about a sweet rolled up thin pancake, and it was my day make it happen.



Sweet or savory, crepes can handle many different fillings. They're even the focus of food trucks, with everything from Nutella to curry going inside them. I'm of the sweet sort, with whipped cream being my topping of choice.

I pulled a simple recipe to work from, and it went very different than expected. Through all the times I'd seen crepes made, I'd always seen it made like a cake, dry ingredients mixed into wet ingredients. This one called for whisking the eggs and flour together first, then adding in the milk and water, followed by salt and melted butter. I added some vanilla because vanilla goes in everything sweet, period.

I followed the directions, however next time I'll sift the flour first, as the clumpiness required that I strain the batter.

I melted a little bit of butter in a frying pan, then added some of the batter. I spread it out by tilting the pan around, resulting in a thin layer. I cooked it for about 2 minutes, then flipped it and cooked the other side.

The result was a lightly browned, thin pancake. I made some homemade whipped cream for the filling, then added some blueberries.

After rolling it up, the crepe was consumption-ready.

Perfect! With the exception of the filtering out of some flour lumps, this was a perfect, simple recipe. Next time I'll try whisking or sifting the dry ingredients first so the mix isn't as lumpy, but overall, I'm thrilled to have conquered a recipe that had intimidated me for some time. Bravo.

Crepes Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and water, stirring to combine. Add the salt, vanilla, and butter, then beat until smooth. Melt a tablespoon of butter into a frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each crepe. Tilt the pan with a circular motion to get the batter coats the surface evenly.
Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes, until the bottom is lightly browned, then flip.

adapted from basic crepes