Friday, June 25, 2010

Crepes Suzette



I was feeling adventurous today, so I decided to make Crepes Suzette. You may be thinking, "Come on, that's not very adventurous at all." I know this. But for me, someone who has never ever made a crepe before (I mean, I can barely get pancakes right), they're slightly intimidating. Even the name sounds fancy. It took a while to get the plain crepes right; I tried using my hands (though I don’t have hot hands, so that didn’t last long), but then settled on the hold-your-breath-and-hope-you-don’t-break-it spatula method. Surprisingly it worked, and overall I only ruined two crepes[:
After that everything went smoothly. The sauce was really easy to make. I didn't add the alcohol like a traditional Crepe Suzette 1.) because I don't have any Grand Marnier and 2.) because I was a little scared to flambe. Maybe I'll try it some other time. When other people are around, so that I don't end up killing myself.

OH also, a little fun fact: Like most good things, this dish was actually a huge accident. In 1895, fourteen year-old assistant waiter Henri Charpentier was preparing a dessert for the Prince of Wales -the future King Edward VII of England- and his "girlfriend", and mistakenly caught the liquor on fire. Panicked, he tasted it and to his surprise it was really good. So he served it to the prince and called it "Crepes Princesse". The Prince loved it, but made the waiter change the name to Crepes Suzette, after his girlfriend.
[:

Anyway, on with the recipe.

Serves: 6-8
Crepes:
3 tablespoons Ener-G Egg Replacer
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup soymilk
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pinch of salt
Vegan margarine for the pan (I used Smart Balance Light, like always)

Sauce:
1/4 cup vegan margarine
3 tablespoons sugar
juice and zest from 1 orange
orange slices for garnish
powdered sugar for dusting

In a food processor, whip the egg replacer and water together until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the soymilk, oil, and vanilla and blend until thoroughly combined. Add the flour, sugar, nutmeg, and salt and mix for about 1 minute. Pour the batter into a medium-sized bowl.
Melt a small amount(enough to coat the bottom but not so much that it pools) of margarine in a nonstick saute pan over medium heat. Pour about 1/4 cup of batter into the pan. As you pour the batter, lift the pan from the heat and twirl it around so that the batter spreads evenly and coats the entire bottom of the pan (If you have too little batter, just pour in some extra to fill the gaps). Return the pan to the heat and let it cook. Once the edges start to look crispy, loosen them with a spatula and turn it over. Cook the other side until golden, and slide it onto a plate. Fold it over and cover with wax paper, then continue the above steps until you run out of batter.
FOR THE SAUCE:
Melt the margarine in a large saute pan. When it starts to foam, add the sugar and stir until it's dissolved. Add the orange juice and zest, and bring the mixture to a simmer. Turn the heat to low.
Add 1 crepe to the pan, making sure to coat it completely with the yummy, syrupy sauce. Carefully fold it in half, then in half again. Repeat this with your remaining crepes all around the pan, working quickly enough so that the first crepe doesn't absorb all of the sauce.
Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar and orange slices. [:

*Wait to dust with powdered sugar until ready to be eaten, or else it will dissolve and you'll have to keep adding it. And that could be gross.*

**Don't stress if your first crepes don't turn out. Just sprinkle with powdered sugar, eat them, and carry on.**

1 comments:

Unknown said...

This recipe did not work at all for me :(

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