So this is how Les and I eat breakfast everyday. We break out the big wine glasses and garnish our breakfasts. Ha! Just kidding, but today I did get inspired. On Friday I had a cooking class at the farm and the talented Laura Robinson was our guest chef. She taught about cooking with ratios and how if you use simple ratios you can achieve different types of food. One of the items on the menu was a simple crepe, and we had so much crepe batter left over that I was able to bring it home and experiment with the fillings myself.
This recipe reminds me of the crepes I had when I lived in France, and also the crepes I made when I managed the Speckled Bird.
Recipe for the Crepe:
The Ratio: 1 part liquid: 1 part egg: 1/2 part flour
We had one girl in the class who was lactose intolerant so we used water for our liquid. Laura made a great handout for the class which some of the info is below.
Ingredients:
- 8oz Water (Liquid)
- 8 oz Egg (1 large egg is 2oz)
- 4 oz Flour
- pinch of Salt
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla (the vanilla extract we use was homemade by putting about 3 vanilla bean pods that you cut lengthwise into vodka and let stand in a mason jar for at least 3 months.)
STEPS
Weigh flour and add to blender along with other ingredients
Blend for 7-9 seconds, or until just combined
Let batter rest in fridge for an hour to ensure tender crepes
Heat 6-7” skillet over medium heat and grease slightly with butter
Add 1/8 cup of batter to pan, tilting to evenly coat the bottom
Let set untouched for about a minute, flip and cook 30 seconds longer
NOTES
1 egg = 2 ounces
1 fluid cup = 8 ounces
Refrigerate cooked, cooled crepes for a week or freeze for a month
If I didn't use the leftover crepe batter I wouldn't have included the sugar or vanilla in the crepe batter since it was a savory crepe
VARIATIONS
Use different liquid base – soy/almond/coconut milk, water, stock, juice
Add a couple of tablespoons of finely chopped herbs
Add ground spices (cayenne, cinnamon, etc)
WHAT TO DO WITH CREPES
Fill with leftovers
Layer with filling and slice like a cake
Use as a base in muffin tins and fill with custard
Use with any number of sweet applications
o Lemon curd
o Jam
o Sauteed apples
o Nutella
For our filling we used something totally different. for my next class on Friday "Cooking with Wine," I'm making a spinach artichoke dip. I was experimenting with it yesterday and had left overs. So I thought yum. Lets add the artichoke dip into the crepes with some of our left over fresh spinach. Yum.
Spinach Artichoke Filling (Fondue-Style)
For this recipe, we used homemade mayo (recipe below), but you can use store-bought mayo just as easily.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 8 1/2 oz. can artichoke hearts
- 1 cup home-made mayonnaise (see next recipe)
- 1/2 cup Meier’s White Table Wine (it's a local winery in Cincinnati)
- 1 cup grated gruyere cheese
- 1 cup fresh finely chopped spinach
- 1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon oregano
- 1 medium boule of bread (I made some homemade bread using the ratio of 5 parts flour: 3 parts water (plus salt and yeast). I also doctored it up with olive oil, subbed some local buckwheat and rye for standard bread flour.)
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Drain artichokes and chop finely. Mix gruyere cheese, bread crumbs, salt, pepper and oregano in a bowl. Set aside.
Gradually add wine to mayonnaise, blending well.
Fold Parmesan cheese mixture, spinach, and artichokes into the wine mayonnaise.
Place in an ungreased 1 quart baking dish and bake, uncovered for 25-30 minutes until hot and
bubbly.
Cut top of boule like a pumpkin. Leaving 1 1/2 inch thick crust, pull out the soft sourdough from the center of the boule, and pour mixture into bowl that is left.
Serve immediately with bread from the inside of the boule, crackers, or vegetables.
Home-made Mayonnaise
The Ratio: 20 parts oil: 1 part liquid (plus yolk)
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 egg*
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar (or any kind of acid; lemon, wine, lime, etc. - I used this because it's from a local farm in Indiana.)
- 1 tsp water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup light olive oil (can use any kind of oil; canola, vegetable, sunflower, etc.)
- 1 tbsp whey (optional) **
Makes 1 cup
In the bowl of a food processor or bowl, combine egg yolk, vinegar, water, and salt. Whisk until ingredients are combined.
Continuing to blend, stream olive oil drop by drop until it starts to look creamy. It is important that the oil is added very slowly. Once emulsion starts to happen add the oil in a very small
continuous stream.
Once 1/2 cup of oil has been added, oil may be added at a slightly increased speed. Keep
whisking until all oil is added and the mayonnaise sticks to the whisk. Store mayonnaise in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Mayonnaise will thicken more during the chilling process.
NOTES
** Lacto-Fermented Option - After making basic mayonnaise, stir in whey. Store in an airtight
container for 7 hours at room temperature before transferring to refrigeration. Fermentation will extend the mayonnaise shelf life from several days to a month or more. (I haven't tried this yet, but I want to. I'll have to make some farmer cheese to get the whey. That's for another day)
* You can also use just the yolk, if you do this, freeze your egg white until you can use it like in a meringue. I found using the egg white makes the mayo a lighter color and it seemed more creamy to me.
Because of the gruyere cheese and wine the artichoke dip has a rich winy fondue-taste. I got the ratios from the book
Ratios by Micheal Ruhlman. Thanks Brian for getting this book for me! It's great and I highly recommend getting it if you like to cook/bake!
