How to make French Crepes

Below are two recipes, one for classic crepes and one for healthier crepes. 

Visit our website again tomorrow for American Pancakes and British Drop Scones! 

 

Material 

  • A whisk (manual or robot) 
  • A pancake pan, or non-stick round pan (the thinner the better) 
  • Mixing bowl 
  • A pastry brush or similar ustensile / You can also use a potato cut in two with a fork 
  • Spatula / Palette knife (To help you flip the crepes) 
  • Foil and a plate 

Ingredients

  • 2-4 Eggs
  • 250G Plain Flour
  • 60cl of milk 
  • A pinch of salt
  • 1 tbsp of oil or about 30g of melted butter
  • 40g of sugar (Optional and not necessary - Do avoid if you are doing savoury crepes too) 
  • Choose from: 1 tbsp of Rum/Beer/Grand Marnier, Orange Blosson, Vanilla bean paste 
  • Have a large chunk of butter ready for cooking, alternatively use oil 

 

Wait... why do you say 2 or 4 eggs? 
Well, the French are passionnate people... passionate and proud! Every family have their own recipe and will argue that it is the best one. Of course they are all wrong because, clearly, my family recipe is better! I only use two eggs in my recipes, it is enough and the crepes are perfect. Some people use up to four! 

I don't add sugar either because we always start with savoury crepes filled with ham and cheddar.

What flavour should I choose? 
I am alwayI think she just enjoyed drinking the beer afterward! My grandmother added rum to hers, and I absolutely loved it. It's always my go-to choice, unless my husband is in a mood for beer!

Note: It is safe for children as the alchohol evaporates when cooking the crepes. 

When I studied in Bretagne, I discovered Orange Blosson crepes, and I have to say it is one of the best thing in the world! Vanilla bean paste is always a safe choice, you can't go wrong with vanilla. 

So as you can see... it doesn't really matter. Use what you have! 

Instructions

  1. First, choose your pan. Ideally you will have a very thin pancake pan, but if you don't use your non-stick pans. I usually cook with one pancake pan and two non-stick pans on the hob. Count about 45mn of cooking with one pan, and about 25mn with three. The thicker the pan, the longer it will take to cook. 
  2. Get your ingredients out of the fridge. Cut a piece of foil that cover twice the surface of your plate. Fold it in half and cover the plate with it, the other half will cover the crepes to keep them warm. 

By kitchen robot: 

  1. If using a robot, put everything together and mix until smoothe.
  2. Adjust the density of your mixture. If it is too thick, keep adding milk until the mixture is light and runny. 
  3. Allow to rest for 30min before cooking. 

 

By hand: 

  1. If doing by hands, follow the next steps. 
  2. Put the flour in your mixing bowl, if you are using sugar, add the sugar too. Add the salt. Use your hand to make what the French call 'Making a well'; using your hands you press down the middle of the flour to make room for the eggs.
  3. Add your eggs in the middle and very gently whisp your eggs without mixing with too much flour at first.
  4. Add the splash of oil or melted butter if using (it is optional but recommended). 
  5. Start adding the milk very gently. What you want to do, to avoid clumps, is to whisp in the middle and try to not touch the flour when whisping. The flour will naturally start to mix with the eggs and milk, it will be very gradual and is the best way to avoid clumps. Mix until it's all smooth, you can always use a sieve if you have clumps. 
  6. Add your choosen flavour: Rum, Beer, Vanilla, Orange blossom, etc... 
  7. At this point, you might need to adjust your mixture. If it's too thick, your crepes won't be 'elastic' and light, they will break when you fold them. With experience, you will start knowing the perfect texture for your crepes, it should feel light and runny, not heavy and dense. If this is your first time, the best way to find out is to make your first crepe and taste the mixture. 
  8. Allow the mixture to rest for 30min before cooking, if you can. 

Cooking the crepes: 

  1. Put your pans on the hob and let the butter melt nicely, you can also use oil. Give enough time for the pans to warm up, a cold pan will result in a thick crepe. Use medium heat and be careful that the pan doesn't heat too much or your crepe will burn. It's better to start with less heat than too much heat. 
  2. Test your pans and mixture if you are unsure. Add a little bit of mixture on the middle of your pan and try to make a circle with it.
    1. If the pan is at the right temperature, the crepe will immediately adhere to the pan and will cook gently.
    2. If it's not hot enough, you will have to do a few rounds with your hands until the crepes adhere to the pan, that's a good indication that the pan isn't hot enough - that's okay, don't change your heat yet because your crepe will burn if you do. Let it cook for longer and adjust the heat if needed for the next crepe.
    3. If your mixture is too thick, you will find it hard to make a circle as the mixture won't be runny enough, it will move very slowly on the pan and you will end up with a very thick pancake that might break when your flip it. Add some more milk to your mixture and mix well. 
  3. Now you're ready, remember to keep adjusting your heat; if it takes too long to cook, add a bit of heat. If the crepes are cooking fast but they are hard instead of light and flexible, your pans are too hot.
  4. Add more butter between every crepes and use your pastry brush to distribute it evenly.
  5. Leave your crepe inside the foil to keep them warm. Cook all your crepes at once. If doing savoury crepes, cook them at the very end using the same pan. Put your ingredients in one half of the crepe and fold in two, use the other half of the pan to cook your second savoury crepe. For ham and cheese crepes, count about 2min on each sides. For sweet crepes, you can also use the pans to melt the chocolate or sugar directly on the crepe, or just serve them on the table and let everyone do their own thing! 

How to flip a crepe? 

As per the tradition, every family member need to flip a crepe using a coin! Use your spatula to determine if the crepe is ready. If the spatula goes nicely under the crepe without breaking it, start shaking the pan gently to see if the crepe moves by itself. If it does, it's ready to be flipped! Place the coin under your thumb and flip the crepe. You have to beliebe you can do it, be fearless! wink If you flipped your first crepe successfully, with the coin under your thumb, it is say that you will be fortunate with money this year! 

How to serve crepes? 

For savoury crepes, you can use the traditional cured ham with cheese (emmental, cheddar...). Children LOVE it, even the picky ones! You can also use ham and make a bechamel filling if you have more time. Savoury crepes work with absolutely everything, let your creativity guide you! 

For sweet crepes, here are some traditional ones: 

  • Lemon juice and sugar
  • Nutella (with strawberries, marshmallows, whisped cream, banana...) 
  • Chocolate sauce, banana and Ice Cream 
  • Caramel sauce
  • Bluberries with Maple Syrup sauce (Put in a pan and cook for 5mn) 
  • Caramel and salted butter 
  • Orange juice and caster sugar 
  • Apple sauce 

 

Healthier crepes :

  • Mix about 125g of grounded almonds with 125g of porridge oats and replace the flour by this in the above recipe 
  • Add a banana to the mixture (adjuts milk accordingly) 
  • You can change cow milk by almonds milk 
  • Add superseed mix to supercharge your crepes 
  • Use natural yogurt with frozen blueberries melted in pure Maple Syrup for a healthier sauce 
  • Serve with berries and a fruit salad 
  • Sprinkle with poppy seeds or Chia seeds 

Those crepes will be thicker than the others ones, as you can see on the pictures. They are more delicate so do not flip them! They are perfect for breakfast and will keep your stomach satisfied for hours. One per person is usally enough.