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Crêpes

Feb 20, 2012 by     1 Comment     Posted under: A to Z of recipes, Quick and easy recipes

Crepes

Thin French pancakes – surprisingly easy to make, and they can be served with sweet or savoury fillings.

Serves 6 Preparation time 5 mins Cooking time 10 mins Cost per portion £0.11

Method
1. Put the egg, flour, salt and half the milk into a blender and whisk until the mixture is smooth, then add the rest of the milk and whisk again.
2. Heat half a teaspoon of the butter in a frying pan until it is just at the smoking point – i.e. the pan is very hot, then take the pan off the heat and pour about one ladle full of batter into the pan, quickly tip the pan from side to side until the batter evenly coats the base of the pan and return the pan to the heat. Continue cooking on a high heat until the crêpe starts to turn a golden brown, then flip it over to cook it until it is golden brown on the other side as well. (Usually takes about half a minute on each side if using high heat).
3. Slide the hot crepe onto a warm plate and serve with a topping of your choice – lemon juice and sugar, plain sugar, maple syrup, honey, jam, whipped cream, banana and vanilla ice cream, nutella, etc…

Ingredients (makes 6 thin crêpes or 4 thicker pancakes)
1 egg
100g plain flour (or 50g plain and 50g wholemeal flour)
250 mls milk
Pinch of salt
1 small ladle
3 teaspoons clarified butter or unsalted butter for cooking

Additional information
If you don’t have a blender, then put the flour and salt into a large bowl; make a well in the centre of the flour and put the egg and a little bit of the milk into the well. Using a wooden spoon mix the egg and milk and slowly draw in the flour from the sides. Add the remaining milk very gradually, stirring well all the time. If there are any lumps in the batter after all the milk has been added just pass the batter through a sieve before using.

I have been making crepes since I was a teenager so these really are an all time favourite! The difference between a crepe and a pancake is just that crepes are much thinner – the batter should only just coat the pan for a crepe, but is double the thickness or more if you prefer very fat pancakes. The main secret to successful crepes/pancakes is to have a very good frying pan – there is nothing worse than having to scrape off scrambled crepe; if you don’t have a non stick frying pan, you can ‘prepare’ your pan by putting a thin layer of rock salt and a little bit of oil into it, then heat the pan over a medium heat for about 30 minutes and finally wipe away the salt and oil – don’t wash the pan, then your pan is ready to make crepes!

If you are making crepes for 4 people or less, it’s best to make them and serve immediately; they do taste best fresh from the pan. (You can have 2 frying pans on the go at the same time). If you are making them for more than 4 people, you may be better off stacking them onto a hot plate and keeping them covered in a warm place until ready to serve.

In recent years I have been substituting half the flour with chapatti flour to make them a bit more ‘healthy’ for my children. (Chapatti flour is wholemeal flour). My children haven’t noticed the difference, so this is how I always make them now.

If you like the idea of savoury crepes, add some grated cheese onto the crepe after having flipped them so the cheese can melt while the second side of the crepe is cooking. You can also add ham, smoked salmon, fresh herbs or whatever else takes your fancy. Cheeses which I like are cheddar or gruyere, and I find very finely chopped parsley works well too.

One of my favourite recipes is ‘crepe suzette’ – the recipe for this will follow shortly!

Nutrition Information

Nutrition per 100g per portion RDA women RDA men RDA child
Energy 156 kcal 111 kcal 6% 4% 6%
Protein 6.1 g 4.3 g 10% 8% 18%
Fat 5.7 g 4.1 g 6% 4% 6%
Polyunsaturates* 0.2 g 0.1 g
Mono Unsaturates* 0.9 g 0.6 g
Saturated Fat 3.0 g 2.1 g 11% 7% 11%
Total Sugars* 3.0 g 2.1 g 2% 2% 3%
Carbohydrate* 20 g 14 g 6% 5% 6%

* Percentage Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet for an average adult.
Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

Allergens: Milk, Wheat,Wheat Gluten, Egg

Cost per recipe:£0.66
Cost per portion:£0.11

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