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Crêpe Recipes and History
What is a
crêpe?
A crêpe is a
very thin pancake; so if you can make pancakes, you can make
crêpes. The main difference (aside from thickness) is that one
normally adds ingredients to the top of a pancake (e.g. butter,
sugar, or maple syrup) but with crêpes one places the
ingredients to be added in the centre of the crêpe and then
either roll up the crêpe or fold it into a packet.
Crêpe Recipes
There are two
types of crêpe recipes: those for the crêpe itself (the pancake)
and those for the filling that goes in or on the crêpe.
In terms of the
crêpe pancake itself, there are 3 approaches:
-
One can buy
ready made crêpes, or
-
One can buy
the mix and make the crêpes. The ready-made mix can either
be based on white flour (in France this would go by the name
"Préparation pour crêpes"), or it can be based on
buckwheat (in France this would go by the name Préparation
pour crêpes as Sarrasin"). Personally I prefer the former as
more refined, but for those who like a more rustic taste the
latter is also popular.
-
One can make
the crêpes from scratch. A recipe for this is
Crêpe Recipe.
In terms of the
crêpe
filling/sauce, the most well known and popular recipe is:
Favourite
variations of this are:
Types of
crêpes
In terms of
crêpe recipes, there are two sets of ingredients:
-
Ingredients
used in making the crêpe (pancake) itself. For example, one
can use refined flour or whole wheat flour. However, there
are only a few variations, so after you've learned two or
three recipes you've mastered this aspect of crêpe making.
-
Ingredients
placed on top of the crêpe, before rolling or folding it up.
In other words, crêpe fillings. Here there are dozens of
different possibilities. They fall into two general
categories: sweet ingredients (which are used to make
dessert crêpes) and non-sweet ingredients (which are used to
make snacks or meals).
Common fillings
for dessert crêpes include: sugar and lemon juice, jam, melted
chocolate, ice cream, nutella (a chocolate and nut pastes),
various soft fruits. In the case of fruit fillings, cinnamon is
sometimes added as well. It is also very common to have a
filling of sugar plus a liquor (e.g. sugar and Grand Marnier).
If the crêpe is
to be served as the main meal rather than a dessert, the
fillings are more substantial. For example: cheese (usually
grated), ham, eggs, mushrooms, asparagus, or meats. In this
case, the main meal would typically consist of two or three
crêpes.
Crêpes are also
often served as a snack or as fast food. For example, just as
one might find a hotdog or hamburger stand on the streets of USA
cities, one will often see a small crêpe stand on the sidewalk
of Paris or other French cities. There one can order a variety
of dessert or non-dessert crêpes, which are prepared on the
spot. Similarly, at the larger fairs or markets, one might find
crêpes for sale.
How to
Make Crêpes
Making a crêpe
consists of three steps:
-
Make the Batter.
One makes a batter, which is similar to that of a North
American pancake batter. The difference is that pancakes are
fairly thick (about a centimeter) but crêpes are quite thin,
so the batter for a crêpe is not as heavy as for a pancake
because it must be thinly spread.
-
Cook.
One then fries the batter to cook it, in much the same way
as one cooks pancakes. This can be done in a frying pan (a
heavy pan, such as an iron skillet is preferable). However,
it is much easier if one uses a
Crêpe Maker, as it
can be difficult to make the crêpes sufficiently thin if
using an ordinary frying pan.
-
Add
Ingredients. Once the crêpe is cooked, remove and put it
on a plate. Then add the ingredients to the centre of the
crêpe and either roll the crêpe up or fold it over. It is
now ready to serve.
With a frying
pan or Crêpe Maker, one can only make one standard-sized crêpe
at a time. So if you need more than a few crêpes, you may want
to make then in advance (an hour before or even the day before)
and then simply reheat them before serving.
Crêpe Maker
If you find
making crêpes in a frying pan difficult (I do), then you may
want to consider a
Crêpe Maker.
Having tried both methods, I'm a firm believer in the latter.
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