These pancake’s French counterpart are so delicate and delicious. Classic French Crêpes are elegant and thin, because they don’t have any leavening agents, which also means they’re not as fluffy. But they’re folded and rolled with a plethora of fillings, so they can be just as indulgent.
I love making these for breakfast because the batter is so simple and benefits from resting in the fridge overnight, so all you have to do is cook them in the morning. Because they’re paper thin, they cook very quickly. When the pan is hot, add a little bit of butter then add the batter. For a standard medium-sized skillet like the one I used for this recipe, I found that 1/4 cup of batter is the perfect amount for each crepe (see video below).
Swirl the pan, working quickly to spread the batter evenly around the bottom, cook until browned, then gently flip it over and cook the other side. This whole process is very quick, but quite a repetitive task.
This recipe is adapted from Melissa Weller’s A Good Bake (great, gorgeous book, by the way). The original calls for Grand Marnier, but I used orange juice. For my filling I did heavy cream whipped to soft peaks and a layer of Trader Joe’s lemon curd. Their lemon curd is so good and it’s so much easier than making your own. A great alternative for those days when you want to impress but don’t feel like going through the trouble of making a whole lemon curd from scratch. I kept it very simple with a dust of powered sugar and fresh berries. The tangy lemon curd and the light heavy cream keep these so delightfully balanced, not overly sweet and not heavy.
Classic French Crêpes
about 12
crepes10
minutes30
minutesIngredients
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
1 1/2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp salted butter, melted
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup orange juice
1 1/2 cups whipped heavy cream, for filling
lemon curd, for filling
fresh raspberries, for serving
powdered sugar, for garnish
Directions
Place 1/4 cup of the milk, the flour, eggs, sugar, butter, vanilla, and salt in a blender (or the bowl of a food processor).
Blend until the batter is smooth. Transfer to a large bowl and whisk in the remaining milk and orange juice.
Strain the batter through a fine strainer into a medium container. Cover and refrigerate overnight or at least several hours.
Cook the crepes: preheat a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Remove the crepe batter from the refrigerator and stir to recombine the ingredients.
Use a pastry brush to lightly coat the pan with melted butter. Ladle 1/4 cup of batter into the center. Swirl and gently shake the pan so the batter covers the surface evenly. Cook for about 1 minute, until browned and the crepe can be easily separated from the pan at the edge using an offset spatula.
Using the offset spatula, lift the edges of the crepe, then slide it underneath the crepe to loosen it from the pan. Lift the crepe up and then flip it over. Cook the crepe on the second side for 30 seconds, until golden brown. Using the offset spatula, lift the crepe onto a plate. Repeat, cooking the remaining crepe batter in the same way, using the melted butter to coat the pan before making each crepe.
Assemble the crepes. Serve with any kind of filling you like. For cream and lemon crepes, place a crepe on a plate or flat surface. Spread about 1 tbsp of lemon curd and top with heavy cream. Fold into quarters. Repeat with all the crepes. Dust powered sugar on top and serve with berries.
@heythereannap French crepes with trader joes lemon curd. To quote Ross, ✨they’re lighter than air✨
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nice article…. gave your blog a like !
Have A Great Day Ahead – Melissa
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