An Ode to the Crepe (and Recipe to Boot!)

If you haven't deduced by now, I love crepes. I mean, I'm not just saying, "I love crepes," because there happens to be a crepe in front of me. I do actually LOVE crepes.

My first encounter with the celebratious crepe was in the utmost perfect setting: on the banks of the Seine I kid you not. I was sixteen and in my foodie element on a school trip across Europe. Just as the sun had set on the Parisian sky, my group was crossing the river when someone spotted a crepe vendor. We bounded down the stone steps like little Madelines, taste buds salivating in high anticipation of the crepetastic event. On recommendation, I went for the classic banana-nutella combo. I took my first bite of the rich, hazelnut chocolate and gooey banana mix and my destiny was sealed. I fell hard that eve, even spoiled my dinner, but I have never turned my back on my crepe-love.

Since that fateful eve, I have had many crepe-filled memories: hosting a crepe-making session for the Culinary Club I co-ran with two friends in high school; finding the crepe station at Grand Central in college; stalking the Crepes in the City stall at the Temple Bar market during my semester abroad (and again post-grad working)... But one of my fondest crepe memories to note is when I first moved back to Dublin. I often babysat my cousins C & C who lived just down the road from my first apartment in Ballsbridge and my trade secret (cat's out of the bag now!) for getting these two rascals to behave was the promise of my home-made savory crepes for dinner. If they were extra good and pinkie-swore to go to bed on time, SWEET NUTELLA CREPES for dessert! And yes, K & J, I did put bananas in for health :-)

So tonight's post is sharing my most recent crepe experience: It's a basic savory crepe recipe (a la allrecipes.com ) with a filling of pancetta, pine nuts, mushroom, kale, pesto & grated cheese. This is why I love crepes so much, because you can enjoy them in so so many variations of sweet and/or savory. Your choice and variation is all dependent on how much you as crepemaster want to experiment! Try the below out or go wild and off the grid! Share your crepe experiences below too if you wish, and if you're not already enamored with crepes, be prepared to fall ;-)

Ingredients

Recipe makes 4 crepes

• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 egg
• ¼  cup milk
• ¼  cup water 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tbsp butter, melted

Filling

·         ½ package cubed pancetta

·         1/4c pine nuts

·         ½ c mushrooms, sliced

·         ½ red onion, chopped

·         1c kale

·         1 tbsp pesto

·         ½ c grated cheese (whichever preference, I used Swiss & Gruyere mix from Trader Joes)

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and water, stirring to combine. Add the salt and butter; beat until smooth. Put in the fridge to chill until ready to use
2. FILLING: in small pan, toast the pine nuts. No need to use oil, these bad boys have their own natural oils.
3. While nuts are toasting, in larger fry pan, heat up the pancetta until fat begins to melt (again, no oil needed). Add the onions and mushrooms and heat until softened/browning.
4. Add the toasted pinenuts to the larger pan and dump kale on top, covering the pan. Once kale starts to wilt, mix all together until everything is coated.  Now it’s time to make the crepes!
5. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or 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 so that the batter coats the surface evenly.
6. Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes, until the bottom is light brown. Loosen with a spatula, turn and cook the other side.
7. Ration out a ¼ of the mixture and sprinkle with ¼ of the cheese. Click on some pesto and fold the crepe over on itself. Cook for about 15 seconds longer and serve hot!
8. Fall in love 

The finished product with a dash of dairy (cottage cheese) & Malbec for thirst