Avocado

Almost-Vegetarian Crêpe

April 12, 2012
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  • Makes 4 crêpes
Author Notes

I have no idea where the inspiration for this one came from, to be honest. I know the ingredients seem a little disparate, but I promise they marry together quite happily. —Cristina Sciarra

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • Crêpes Salées (these measurements come from David Lebovitz’s recipe for Buckwheat Crêpes, and yields about 20 crêpes)
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 3 tablespoons melted, plus more for cooking
  • ½ cup buckwheat flour
  • ¾ cup white flour
  • 3 eggs
  • Crêpe Filling
  • 2 sweet potatoes
  • 1.5 tablespoons duck fat
  • sea salt, freshly ground black pepper
  • a bunch of asparagus
  • a measure of olive oil
  • 4 tablespoons of goat cheese
  • ¼ cup of Marcona almonds, lightly crushed
  • 1 tablespoon blood orange juice
  • 3 tablespoons avocado oil
  • 1 head of frisee, washed and dried
  • balsamic cream
Directions
  1. Crêpes Salées (these measurements come from David Lebovitz’s recipe for Buckwheat Crêpes, and yields about 20 crêpes)
  2. In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients together. If you are letting it rest overnight, cover the bowl and move it to the refrigerator. (Bring it to room temperature before you start cooking.) If it will only sit for 2 hours or so, cover it and keep it at room temperature.
  3. When you are ready to make the crêpes, locate your widest, flattest non-stick pan. Using a paper towel, rub a thin sheen of butter all over the pan, and then set it over medium heat. (You can repeat this for every new crêpe, but it usually isn’t necessary.)
  4. When the pan is hot, use a ladle to quickly drop a measure of the batter into the pan. Turn the pan in a wide circle, as quickly as you can, so that the batter distributes evenly and rapidly. You want as thin a pancake as possible. Don’t worry if the first one is a disaster; it’s part of the process. Save the disasters for yourself. You will get better with each crêpe.
  5. As the crêpes cook, pile them on a plate; you want to cook all of your crêpes before you start filling them.
  1. Crêpe Filling
  2. Prepare the vegetables: Preheat an oven to 400F. In a saucepan, melt the duck fat. Meanwhile, peel and dice both sweet potatoes. When the duck fat is melted, give the sweet potato cubes a bath, and add some salt and pepper for good measure.
  3. Wash and dry the asparagus, and then rub each spear down with olive oil, salt and pepper.
  4. Throw everything on a parchment paper-covered baking sheet, making sure not to crowd the vegetables. I used thick asparagus and cut my sweet potatoes small, so both vegetables cooked at the same rate, about 30 minutes. However, if your asparagus are thin, keep an eye on them, they may need to come out of the oven earlier than the sweet potato.
  5. Prepare the salad: In a small bowl, combine the blood orange juice with the avocado oil, and a little salt and pepper. Toss in the frisee and mix until it’s covered in the dressing. Easy peasy.
  6. Prepare the crêpe: Heat each buckwheat crêpe in a non-stick skillet. Add the vegetables, and then sprinkle on the goat cheese and the almonds. Top with the salad, and a drizzle of the balsamic cream.

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Cristina is a writer, cook, and day job real estate developer. She studied literature, holds an MFA in Fiction Writing, and completed the Basic Cuisine course at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. She lives in Jersey City with her husband--a Frenchman she met in Spain--and their sweet black cat, Minou. Follow her writings, recipes, publications and photography at theroamingkitchen.com.

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