French crepes

Crepe With All The Trimmings

We have been celebrating Shrove Tuesday for 500 years yet considering that pancakes are such an important part of our food mythology isn’t it strange that we don’t eat out in pancake houses? The French have creperies in every part of town, but we don’t have any pancakeries.

In France it is quite common to have a whole meal based around crepes; with savoury crepes (made with buckwheat flour) and a huge selection of fillings for the main meal and sweet crepes (made with white flour);drizzled with lemon and sugar, chocolate spread or jam for dessert.

Last weekend my French cousin Caroline and her boyfriend Alize came to stay with me in London.  I made them a Sunday Roast with all the trimmings (neither had tried before and were unaware of our tradition!), and in exchange myself and my flat-mates were treated to a feast of savory and sweet crepes, French wines and a fantastic selection of cheese from Grenoble - the foot of the French Alps. 

Mmm French Cheese

Savoury crepes

70g buckwheat flour
10g White flour
1 egg
1/2 liter Milk
Water
Sunflower oil

Put the flour in a large bowl, make a hole in the middle, break in the egg and gently mix together.
Stir in the milk and a little water a bit at a time until you get a good texture. If it’s too heavy the crepes will be too thick and if it’s too watery you won’t be able to make them into crepes. Add a dash of sunflower oil at the end.

Pour a little sunflower oil into a bowl and dab a piece of kitchen paper in it.
Place a crepe pan or frying pan on a medium heat until it is very hot. Rub the pan with the oil soaked kitchen paper and pour over a small ladle of batter.
Quickly, swirl the pan, so that the batter evenly distributes in a thin layer.

Cook over a low heat until the crepe starts to brown (about two minutes). Turn over the crepe (tossing the pan is the best way as it’s quite a fun element to the cooking process but this can be pretty tricky to get right first time so be prepared to waste a few!) and start adding your fillings. Fold the crepe in half at the end before serving with a garnish of salad.

There are many options of what you can serve your crepe with. We had the following options:

Mushrooms in a garlic cream sauce

Buttery leeks

Caramalised red onions

Blue cheese

Cheddar cheese

Ham

Crème fraiche

Eggs

I was intrigued by the egg option and asked my French cousin Caroline to demonstrate, as I hadn’t tried this before. She broke the egg into the middle of the crepe and placed cheese around the outside to stop the egg from running off. She then added all the other options I wanted in my crepe (I had a bit of everything on the first one!). After a few minutes she placed a lid over the top to cook the egg through and finally folded the crepe in two before serving with a side of salad. 

Sweet Crepes

100g White Flour

1 egg

1/2 liter Milk
Water

Sunflower oil

Put the flour in a large bowl, make a hole in the middle, break in the eggs and gently mix together.
Stir in the milk and a little water a bit at a time until you get a good texture. If it’s too heavy the crepes will be too thick and if it’s too watery you won’t be able to make them into crepes.

Pour a little sunflower oil into a bowl and dab a piece of kitchen paper in it.
Place a crepe pan or frying pan on a medium heat until it is very hot. Rub the pan with the oil soaked kitchen paper and pour over a small ladle of batter.
Quickly, swirl the pan, so that the batter evenly distributes in a thin layer.

Cook over a low heat until the crepe starts to brown (about two minutes). Turn over the crepe (tossing the pan is the best way as it’s quite a fun element to the cooking process but this can be pretty tricky to get right first time so be prepared to waste a few!) and start adding your fillings. Fold the crepe in half at the end before serving.

We had the following filling options:

Nutella

Sugar

Lemon

Selection of jams

Caroline what impressed with my favourite filling: Nutella, lemon and a sprinkle of sugar (to add a crunch). She had never tried lemon with Nutella before but loved it and has decided to take this delicacy (?) back with her to France.

Bon Appetit!

 

Around the world in recipes

Val d'Isere

The recession has hit me badly and I can't afford to travel, instead I have decided to cook myself around the world in recipes. As it is the ski season, I will start my journey in the French Alps. 

Raclette cheese

I will begin my French feast with a raclette. Raclette cheese originated in the French speaking alpine areas of the Valais in Switzerland. According to local legends, the trend of melting this semi-firm, cow's milk cheese began when the local farmers set up camp for the night and the cheese accidentally melted next to the fire. One farmer, not wanting to waste any, quickly scraped it off the rock and discovered it tasted even more delicious. The trend quickly spread and is now very popular among the Valais ski resorts. 
The traditional dish is served with boiled potatoes, gherkins, pickled onions and a selection of dried meats.
I don't have a fancy raclette melting device so I just melted the cheese under the grill and served with roasted vegetables.

Serves: 2
Big chunk of Raclette cheese, chopped
Handful, baby potatoes
1 carrot, peeled and chopped into chunks
1/2 courgette, sliced length ways
1 red pepper, chopped into chunks
4 garlic cloves, peeled
6 mini gherkins
Olive oil
Honey
Sea salt and black pepper

V: 1 parsnip, quartered length ways.

M: Selection of dried meats: salami, proscuitto, Viande des Grisons

Heat the oven to 180º. Put the carrot, pepper, courgette and garlic into a baking tray with a drizzle of olive oil and seasoning. 
Separately place the parsnip in an ovenproof dish. 

V: Drizzle with olive oil, honey and seasoning. 

Place both dishes in the oven for approx 20 minutes.
Boil the potatoes until soft but firm (approx 15 minutes). 

Divide the chunks of raclette cheese between two oven proof dishes and grill until melted (approx 5 minutes). Serve straight away as the cheese quickly hardens.

M: Serve with dried meat selection.