Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Sourdough Crepes


This fall I attempted to start my own "Wild Yeast" Sourdough starter. My first attempt I thought failed, but if I had given it more time I bet it would have been fine. My second attempt seemed to be working, so I went with it. Because my husband is not a fan of sourdough (I thought if I made my own starter I could keep it from getting sour by feeding it at regular 12 hour intervals) and I am horrible at making bread, we have found this lovely way to use our sourdough starter. We have replaced our "Swedish Pancakes" with this and use the same or similar toppings. But these crepes can be used in so many wonderful ways.

Yesterday for Shrove Tuesday I made up a batch using watered down yogurt since I was out of milk; thankfully it worked just fine. We made some savory crepes with bacon and avocado, ham and swiss béchamel sauce, and sweet crepes with homemade jam and almond butter. We still had some chocolate fig spread in the fridge that we also tried, but I bet this fig spread would work well on crepes too.

If you are wondering why sourdough, here is a post that tells you the wonderful benefits of sourdough. Basically breads/grain products that have been made using sourdough are easier for your body to digest and you gain more nutrients from the grains themselves.

FYI - when I find sugar or a sweetener in a pancake recipe I typically eliminate it (since we do add maple syrup to our pancakes), however, I have found that without the honey in this recipe the crepes are too sour for my family to enjoy. The sweetener enables us to enjoy the benefits of this sourdough meal. If you prefer the taste of sourdough by itself, feel free to eliminate it.

This post is part of Real Food Wednesdays over at Kelly the Kitchen Kop's site. Check out all the other wonderful recipes and articles, or add your own!


Sourdough Crepes

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup Sourdough Starter (at room temperature)
  • 1 cup Warm Milk/Water/watered down yogurt (about 100 degrees = luke warm)
  • 1 1/4 cup Flour (I use whole grain)
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
  • 1 Tablespoon Honey (or preferred sweetener)
  • 2 Eggs (at room temperature)
  • 3 Tablespoons Butter or Coconut Oil (plus more for oiling skillet)
  • 1 More milk as needed to thin batter

Directions

  1. Combine first three ingredients in a glass bowl and mix well. Cover with a towel and let stand at room temperature for 8+ hours.
  2. Sprinkle salt, baking soda and honey over sourdough mixture, stir to combine. Add eggs and butter, stir thoroughly. Let stand while heating cast iron skillet.
  3. If you happen to have a cast iron crepe pan, this will be easier, if not, try not to get the batter all the way to the edges for easier flipping.
  4. Be sure your batter is very thin, about the consistency of heavy cream. If it is too thick, add more milk to reach desired consistency. Hold your oiled skillet in one hand at an angle and gently pour a stream of batter onto the pan, rotating as you pour so that a thin layer covers most of the skillet.
  5. When surface is dry and bubbly (about a minute), flip and wait about another minute for other side to brown.
  6. Remove crepe to plate and continue to stack crepes until all the batter is finished. If you have leftover crepes, they freeze well between wax paper or parchment paper.
  7. Add desired toppings (sweet or savory) and enjoy! We like sweetened blended cottage cheese or sour cream or almond butter with fruit jams for our sweet crepes. And sausage and cheese, avocado and bacon with a sour cream sauce, or ham and swiss béchamel sauce for savory.
Prep Time: 30 min Cook Time: 30 min Ready in: 1 h
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Sourdough Crepes courtesy of Jamie Del Balso.

Don't have a cast iron crepe pan, try this one out. It looks just like the one I have and I LOVE mine!
 

2 comments:

  1. Are the sourdough crepes healthier than the swedish pancakes?

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    Replies
    1. YES! Sourdough in general is a healthier way to eat all grains. Here is a link to information on why it is healthier. http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2010/03/05/food-for-thought-health-benefits-of-sourdough/

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