Simple and Tasty Crepes Recipe

Crepes, wait, are those the really thin pancakes? OMG, I love those!

We all know the American pancakes, and maybe you’ve even tried the Dutch ones. But having crepes (or “craypes”, as Ricky Bobby calls them) in your repertoire means you can up your game. You have breakfast, lunch (or dinner), and now also dessert completely covered. This is a simple recipe for tasty crepes or “really thin pancakes”.

Tools

If you have been to the more high-end restaurants, vacation resorts or street vendors, you sometimes see special crepe equipment. You see wide pan with low rims, and sometimes wooden sticks to spread the mixture super thin. Honestly, you don’t need that. All you need is a ladle and a good, pretty large non-stick pan. A high-rim version works just fine, but if you prefer easy access to the pan – hence the low rim – this pan is a true treat for a neat price. By the way: the pans I use are All-Clad’s HA1 series PFOA-free frying pans.

Versatile

For crepes, the key is texture. They’re not heavily flavored themselves, with maybe a bit of vanilla for the sweet version. They should be thin and light, slightly crispy, and filled. You’ll probably know them filled with Nutella or berries and cream, or with cheese, mushroom and spinach. But there are countless other ingredients you can try to make it an excellent showstopper at breakfast, lunch or dinner. And either folded or rolled up, they’re easy to take with you on a trip – just mind the fillings and any refrigeration you may need. You can make the batter ahead of time: place it, well-covered, in the fridge a day or two (not more), or place the baked crepes in the fridge. Just pull them out when you need them. You can eat them cold or quickly heat them. Don’t over-bake or dry them out!

How to make them

This is not the hardest recipe in the world, but there are a few things you need to keep in mind to get good crepes. Firstly, you need a very slack or wet batter. There is a lot of liquid that goes in here, and that’s for a reason. A wet dough ensures it spreads well in the pan, and it spreads thin. The more you make them, the more you will get a sense of the amount of liquid, and whether you need more.

Secondly, you need to work quick. Because they are so thin, they bake in a matter of seconds. Keep you eye on the pan: the moment the edges brown, you’re ready to flip it.

The recipe calls for a mix of water and milk, and that’s deliberate. All milk would be too heavy, and all water would lack the rich flavor.

Lastly, you add the batter in the corner of the pan, and not the center. The corner will make it a lot easier to quickly spread the batter over the pan – and better.

There you have it: with this fairly simple recipe you’ll be able to create an impressive stack of thin and tasty crepes, guaranteed to wow your family, friends and guests.

Simple and Tasty Crepe Recipe

Recipe by The Orange BakerCourse: Recipes, Savory and sweet pies, pan-bakedCuisine: FrenchDifficulty: Easy

Servings

12

servings

Prep time

15

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Calories

72

kcal

Total time

35

minutes

Thin and tasty crepes are a luxurious addition to any breakfast or dessert.

Ingredients

• 100 grams of all-purpose flour (you may need slightly less if you use King Arthur Flour)

• 2 grams caster sugar

• Pinch of fine salt

• 180 ml water

• 120 ml milk

• 30 grams melted but cool butter

• Little bit of unmelted butter to grease the pan

• 2 large eggs

• Optional: 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

• Prepare the Batter
• In a medium sized bowl, add all dry ingredients and whisk together.
• Add the eggs and combine until they are incorporated.
• Add the milk, water and melted butter and combine until smooth. The texture should be that of heavy cream.
• Cooking
• Heat an 6-8″ pan on medium-high heat. Rub a little butter in the pan.
• Add about two tablespoons of batter to the edge of the pan: not the center. Immediately take the pan of the fire, and tilt and swirl the pan to spread the batter across the entire surface evenly. If you have small holes, you can dab small amounts of batter to cover them. The crepe should be thin: adjust the amount you spoon in to have the thinnest result. Place the pan back on the heat.
• Cook the crepe until the edges start to curl up and brown: this will take anywhere from 45 seconds to a minute. Carefully lift an edge of the crepe and flip over. Bake the other side until baked, for about 10-20 seconds.
• Place the cooked crepe on a plate and repeat until the batter is all used.
• Throughout the baking process, keep an eye on the batter. If you think it is getting thicker, feel free to add a little more milk.
• Make sure you grease the pan with a little bit of butter. If you use a good non-stick you don’t need it, but it will prevent sticking, add to the flavor, and the beautiful brown spots.
• Serving
• You can serve the crepes as-is, rolled up or folded in quarters. If you fold in quarters, and you use a thick type of fillings (like strawberries or banana), only add them to one quarter. Fold the crepe in half, and in half again.
• The side you baked first will have brown spots: when you fold the crepe, this should be the outside. The other side is smoother. This doesn’t make a lot of difference for the taste, but the presentation will be better.