Crêpes
Thin Breton sweet pancakes with butter, sugar and lemon
Sweet crêpes made from wheat flour, milk and eggs are Brittany's gift to the rest of France, and on 2 February, Chandeleur, French families make piles of them at home, flipping the first with a coin in hand for luck. They are thin and tender with golden, lacy spots, and the classic filling is simplest: a smear of salted butter and a sprinkle of sugar, or sugar and lemon. Children love them with chocolate spread, jam or sliced banana. Chef's tip: make the batter thinner than you expect, like single cream; thick batter is the common mistake and gives heavy pancakes, not crêpes.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 4 ½ oz plain flour
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 ¼ cups milk
- ⅞ oz buttermelted, plus extra for the pan
- 1 oz salted buttersoftened, to serve
- 3 tbsp caster sugarto serve
- 1 lemon (optional)cut into wedges
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Whisk 4 ½ oz plain flour, 1 tbsp caster sugar and 1 pinch salt in a bowl. Make a well, add 2 eggs and a little of 1 ¼ cups milk and whisk to a smooth paste.
Step 2: Gradually whisk in the rest of the milk, then ⅞ oz butter. The batter should be smooth and pour like single cream. Rest it for 10 minutes if you can.
Step 3: Heat a non-stick frying pan (about 22 cm) over a medium-high heat and wipe with a little butter on kitchen paper.
Step 4: Pour in about 3 tbsp of batter and tilt the pan straight away to cover the base thinly. Cook for 1 minute, until the edges look lacy and lift easily.
1 minStep 5: Flip with a spatula and cook for 30 seconds, until spotted golden underneath. Stack on a warm plate and repeat; you should get 10–12.
Step 6: Spread each crêpe with 1 oz salted butter, sprinkle with 3 tbsp caster sugar, squeeze over 1 lemon if you like, and fold into quarters.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 310 kcal
- Protein
- 9 g
- Carbs
- 38 g
- Fat
- 14 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does crêpes take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of caster sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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