by Owner/Executive Chef Lisa Nakamura of
Allium
Makes 12-16 6-inch crepes
Ingredients
1 cup whole milk
1 cup cake flour, sifted
1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
1 t salt
In a blender, combine milk, whole egg and egg
yolks. Add salt and cake
flour. Blend together
until smooth. The consistency of the batter should be like cream.
Strain into a bowl.
Let the mixture rest at room temperature for
an hour, or refrigerate overnight.
It is important to let the batter rest.
If you use it right away, the crepes may be tough and
rubbery.
Over a medium flame, heat up a six inch non
stick or crepe pan.
Lightly oil the pan.
Pour in one ounce of batter and swirl the pan around with your other
hand. This will help
distribute the batter evenly.
If the batter is too thick, you can thin it out with milk or
water. The pan needs to
be at the right temperature:
too cold and the crepe will be uneven in thickness, too hot
and the batter will cook too quickly.
When the surface of the crepe appears dry,
gently loosen the edges with a rubber spatula, and then flip the
crepe over. Let it cook
just for about five seconds, to make sure all the batter is
completely cooked. This
process takes about thirty seconds.
Remove the crepe from the pan, and start
making another one.
As your timing and skills improve, you can
make crepes in two or three pans at the same time.
When the crepes are cool, cover them tightly
and refrigerate. They
also freeze well.
To use them, zap them in the microwave for
about thirty seconds, or warm them in the oven for two or three
minutes. They need to be
warm to be pliable. If
you try to fill them while they are cold, they will crack.
Fillings can be as simple as fresh asparagus with mushroom
sauce and bacon, or more complex like a creamy lobster stew.
Crepes will elevate the menu and make any meal an elegant
occasion.
Variations:
Add 1 T sugar and a 1 t vanilla extract to
the batter for dessert crepes.
Add fresh green herbs such as chives or
parsley before blending the batter.
The batter will take on a lovely green tint.
As you remove them from the pan, allow them to cool
individually. If you
stack them while they are still warm, they will lose their bright
green color.
Parsley in the batter gives it a nice green
tint.
I trim the edges of the crepes with a pastry
cutter, to give them a neater look:
Here's one way to serve crepes; filled with
asparagus, topped with a mushroom cream and bacon bits.
And here are crepes filled with ice cream and
topped with chocolate sauce: