Pancake Day... An Authentic French Crepe Recipe
Anytime I ask my son what he wants for dinner, he will invariably say "crepes". Following up on the Galette des Rois blog I posted last week, I thought it would be fun to share another iconic French recipe that my son and I love to make at home. In France, there is even a special day during which pretty much everyone eats "crepes" called "la Chandeleur" .
Every year, on February 2nd... We eat crepes!
I like to bake or cook with my son, as I find it's a fun way to teach him numbers while also spending some quality time together. He's in charge of weighing the ingredients and pouring them into the bowl before we mix everything together. Also, he can prepare his own crepe, just like when we are making pizza and he gets to choose his toppings. We usually make a savoury crepe followed by a sweet one. The best of both worlds!
To make 12 crepes you will need:
- 500 grams (around 2 cups) of whole milk
- 4 eggs
- 60 grams (1/2 cup) of water
- 20 grams (1/4 cup) of butter or oil
- 3 grams (3/4 tsp) of salt
- 200 grams (1 cup) of flour
*For the savoury crepes, I like to do 100 grams of white flour and 100 grams of buckwheat flour.
For the sweet ones add to the mix:
- 60 grams (1/2 cup) of sugar
- 20 grams (1/4 cup) of dark rum
*The alcohol will evaporate when the batter rests and when you cook the crepes.
Some butter to grease the pan and prevent the crepes from sticking.
BAKING EQUIPMENT
- A mixer
- A 12 inch skillet
- A spatula
INSTRUCTIONS
1. In a blender, combine eggs, milk, water, *rum and sugar for the sweet variety, melted butter, salt and flour. Start with the liquid ingredients and finish with the flour.
2. Mix for about 30 seconds until bubbles form on top of the batter. Let the batter sit for a minimum of 30 minutes at room temperature.
3. Heat a 12 inch skillet over high. When the skillet is hot, turn down the stove to medium heat. Melt a bit of butter in the skillet, quickly add some batter and swirl to coat the skillet evenly. Cook until the edge of the crepe turns golden brown and then flip it.
► Flip your crepes the French way by tossing them in the air, letting them turn over while airborne and catching them back in the skillet. This method can be a lot of fun to try... Just make sure you don't throw your crepe too hard or it might stuck to the ceiling! In all seriousness, this actually happened to a friend of mine.
4. Either fill the crepe right away and serve it to your little one before making more, or put it on a plate and make as many crepes as you can until your batter is all gone and then start filling them.
If you make them all at once, just stack them on a plate on top of each other.
When we invite people over for this delicious dish, we'll put a stack of crepes and all the fillings on the table, and everyone can make their own crepe the way they like best!
My son's favourite savoury crepe is filled with egg, ham and cheese, but you can make your crepes with whatever you like.
For the sweet variety, a classic crepe will come garnished with butter, sugar and maybe a little bit of lemon... But there's no reason you can't add any number of yummy fillings to your crepe like chocolate, fruits or apple sauce... and of course don't forget to top it all off with some whipped cream!
Bon appétit!