The Denver Post

Delicious crepes, for any night

- By Bonnie S. Benwick

When you’re cooking for two and neither of you are particular­ly picky eaters, you have the luxury of stretching the repertoire every now and then. I recommend these crepes, which are quite doable on a weeknight. The batter, made with white wholewheat flour, needs only a 15-minute rest.

The filling is no more than interestin­g mushrooms browned in a pan and topped with a sprinkling of grated Swiss and lots of fresh herbs. Here, we sliced meaty king trumpet mushrooms lengthwise into thin planks, and used some lovely chanterell­es from the farmers market. Herby Mushroom and Swiss Crepes

2 to 3 servings

Serve with sliced tomatoes.

Crepe batter recipe from “Delicieux: The Recipes of France,” by Gabriel Gate (Hardie Grant, 2017). Ingredient­s

1 cup flour

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper 1 large egg

1 cup low-fat milk 8 ounces king trumpet or chanterell­e mushrooms, or a combinatio­n of both Handful fresh herbs, plus

more for garnish

One 2-ounce block

Emmenthale­r cheese 2 tablespoon­s grapeseed or

olive oil

1 teaspoon unsalted butter, or

more as needed

Sour cream or creme fraîche,

for garnish (optional) Directions

Place the flour in a mixing bowl, then add a good pinch each of salt and pepper. Make a well at the center, then crack in the egg and pour in half the milk. Use a whisk to gradually incorporat­e the seasoned flour, slowly adding the remaining milk to form a thin, lump-free batter. Let it sit at room temperatur­e for 15 minutes. The yield is about 2 cups.

Meanwhile, wipe off or rinse/dry the mushrooms and trim as needed. Cut the large ones into thin slices. Coarsely chop the herbs and transfer to a medium bowl, reserving a small bit for garnish, then use the large-holed sides of a box grater to grate the cheese into the same bowl.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once it’s quite hot, add the oil and swirl to coat. Add the mushrooms and cook, without disturbing them, for 5 minutes. Turn over and cook for 3 minutes; at this point, the mushrooms should be sizzling and have picked up some color. Season lightly with salt and pepper, then toss in the herb-cheese mixture. As soon as the cheese begins to melt, turn off the heat.

Heat an 8-inch crepe pan or medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add ½ teaspoon of the butter. Once it has melted, ladle in about L cup of the batter and quickly swirl to coat the bottom of the pan. Cook for about 1 minute, or until the crepe looks dry on the edges. Turn it over and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, then transfer to a plate and cover loosely with aluminum foil. (The first crepe is typically the thickest/worst one you’ll make.) Repeat with the butter, as needed — you may not need to add it more than once — and batter to form 4 or 5 more crepes, stacking them on the same plate and keeping them covered as you go.

Place a crepe on each plate. Spoon some of the mushroomch­eese mixture in the middle of each one and fold over. Repeat with the remaining crepes and filling. Garnish with the remaining chopped herbs and a dollop of the sour cream or creme fraîche, if using. Serve warm.

Nutrition | Per serving (based on 3): 390 calories, 18 g protein, 39 g carbohydra­tes, 19 g fat, 5 g saturated fat, 80 mg cholestero­l, 220 mg sodium, 2 g dietary fiber, 6 g sugar

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