Crepe Use #2: Gateau with Walnut and Pear, Topped with Pear-Infused Whipped Cashew Cream

I recently purchased a crêpe pan - a 9-1/4-inch, French-made, solid steel crêpe pan- and a lot of culinary hopes rested on its performance. I was emotionally invested in my success as I attempted this recipe recently at the home of a friend, who no doubt doesn't appreciate what I did to her kitchen (but has been very gracious and pretended not to care). As you may remember from my last crêpe blog, and before that from the latke blog, I tend to get angry at food when it doesn't perform well, and if it is in a solid state, I tend to stab it with any handy utensil. Usually my audience for this is limited to my dog, who sits back and waits for me to drop something she can eat, but one of the hazards of cooking in someone else's home is that they have to witness your tantrums, too. And so does their dog. Sorry, Lindsay and Magic.

Any time you're working with a new pan, there's a getting-to-know-you period. My crêpe pan and I, we had a smoky, sticky, burn-y first outing, but with a little bit of practice and lots of temperature adjustments, we finally started to turned out some beautiful crêpes, and overall, the gâteau came together very nicely, don't you think?

My new pan isn't non-stick, and doesn't need quite the level of heat that my old pan did, so I ended up working with very light oil and medium heat (I know, right?!). In classic crêpe making, you tend to heat the pan up very hot, until it's smoking, then picking it up, adding batter, quickly swirling the batter around the pan, and returning it immediately to the heat to cook for about 30 seconds until flipping. I had much better luck at medium, letting the pan fully reheat in between, then holding the pan at about a 45 degree angle and adding the batter from the top, then swirling carefully, then keeping the pan off the eye for about 10 seconds to let the heat disperse into the crêpe and cook the bottom more evenly. Once that has happened, I returned it to the heat, flipped it after about 30 more seconds, and cooked the other side for about that long. Et voilà!

Before you begin this recipe, note that there is some prep time; the crêpe batter needs to be made and the cashews soaked the night before, the cashew cream needs to chill for a couple of hours to firm up, and the pear-water will need to simmer for a while, too. But with a little planning, this shouldn't be any trouble.

Sweet Crêpes

Note: Depending on how many "practice crêpes" you'll need to make, and how large you want your gâteau to be (and how large your pan is), you may want to double this recipe. I did, just to be safe, and ended up needing them all after my initial new-crêpe-pan failures.

1 c. cold water
1 c. coconut milk
1 1/2 c. flour
Egg replacer equivalent to 4 eggs, prepared according to package instructions
1 1/2 Tbsp. sugar
5 Tbsp. melted Earth Balance or other vegan margarine
a pinch of salt

Pour liquid ingredients into a blender. Blend at low speed, adding dry ingredients slowly in small amounts while the blender is running (through the hole in the lid), then drizzling Earth Balance in as well. When all ingredients have been added, blend for about a minute, then store in the fridge overnight, or at least 2 hours, to let the gluten develop and let the air bubble out. When ready to use, follow directions above. Don't try to use too much batter at once; most pans should take between 1/8 and 1/4 cup.

Walnut and Pear Filling

1 1/2 c. chopped walnuts
Agave nectar
2 large pears

Finely chop the walnuts, and combine with agave until thoroughly coated. Add a little more agave and a little bit of water, adjusting each until a syrup forms with the nuts. You'll need to be able to spread the mixture, so that's the consistency you're going for. Either dice or very finely slice the pears, depending on your preference and their texture. Cover the pears if you're not going to use them immediately. Reserve the pear cores and any remnants for the cashew cream


Pear-Infused Whipped Cashew Cream

1 c. cashews, rinsed and soaked overnight
Pear remnants, simmered slowly in 4 c. water until reduced by about half
1/4 c. agave nectar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2/3 c. refined coconut oil, melted

Place cashews in a blender, then pour pear-water over them until they are just covered. If that isn't enough liquid to cover the cashews, add a little more water until the cashews are barely submerged. Blend, beginning on a low speed and working your way up to the higher speeds. Cashew cream should become perfectly smooth; there should be no perceptible graininess. Once it is the right consistency, reduce the speed and drizzle in agave and vanilla. Once the cream is thoroughly blended, up the speed a bit and slowly drizzle in the coconut oil, continuing to blend until it is thoroughly emulsified. Transfer to a container and chill for at least 2 hours.

 
Once you've made all your crêpes, find a serving plate and place a nice, big crêpein the middle. Pile on a couple more, spreading a little agave nectar (thinned with a little water, if necessary) in between to help them bind to each other. Decide how you want to distribute your filling, depending on how many crêpes you have, and plan ahead. 2 layers each of pear and walnut work well. When you reach the level where you want your first layer, spread  half of your walnut mixture, stopping about an inch and a half from the edge. Place the next crêpe on top, gently pressing down to solidify the gâteau and to seal around the edges of your layer of filling. Add a couple more crêpes, then repeat with a layer of pears. Repeat until you're out of filling, then add all your remaining crêpes, brushing with agave in between and gently pressing occasionally. when you're done, you can let it sit for a bit or cut immediately, serving with a drizzle or a dollop (it depends; mine was unexpectedly more of a drizzle this time, mostly because I didn't want to wait to chill it) of the cashew cream. Enjoy!

Thanks to Lindsay Lanois for the gâteau inspiration, collaboration, coffee, mimosas, and for the use of her kitchen!

Crepe Use #1: Mushroom, Potato and Cabbage Blintzes

"Crepes are a bitch." This universally acknowledged fact was thus stated by a friend recently as we tried with mixed success to turn out perfect, golden crepes in her kitchen. Crepes are a bitch, but if you can master them, they will bend over backwards for you. Their flexibility is amazing; you can use them to line cupcake tins and make little custards or tarts, you can serve them with fresh fruit compote and a dusting of maple sugar for breakfast, and you can make wonderful savory, creamy fillings for dinner crepes. You can even layer them with a sweet, nutty filling, press them, and cut them into a cake reminiscent of baklava. I think, however, that blintzes are among the best ways to use the mighty crepe.

The Yiddish word blintz describes a thin pancake (a blini) stuffed with filling and pan-fried into a little packet; the food itself, however, seems to predate Yiddish by quite a while, having its origins in pre-Christian Eastern Europe. Blintzes were championed by American Jewish immigrants, and have since become a part of our national heritage. Traditional blini are often made with a yeasted batter, though the ones below are not. Buckwheat blini are a Russian tradition that I am looking forward to trying out.  My blintzes are served topped with a mushroom gravy, though you could do a million other things - a sour cashew cream would be de-licious. Allison Bradley collaborated on this recipe and provided my opening quote, and Rachel Sharp provided moral support, acted as taster, and did the dishes. Thanks, guys!

Mushroom, Potato, and Cabbage Blintzes

Mushroom Gravy


This can be prepared pretty easily as you make the other parts; the key is keeping the temperature low to moderate so that you don't end up burning it while you work on other things. Once you've got the basics together, give it a stir once in a while and it should be fine. I'm more...impressionistic...when it comes to gravy than with other recipes. I always taste it as I go, adjust seasonings, add more flour or broth or whatever, and I suggest you be prepared to do the same. I think it's really more about method.

1-2 cups cremini or your favorite mushrooms, sliced or chopped, as you prefer
3 cloves fresh garlic
Flour, about 1/4 c.

Veggie broth, at least several cups
Salt, about 1/2 tsp.
Black pepper, about 1/4 tsp.
Sage, about 1/2 tsp. dried
Rosemary, about 1/2 tsp. dried
Thyme, about 1/2 tsp. dried
Any other herbs you like
Earth Balance or your favorite vegan margarine
Coconut, rice, or soy milk, or a little cashew cream (optional - the recipe will still work beautifully without it)

Saute garlic in some Earth Balance, and after it begins to sizzle, sprinkle a little flour over it (sifting would be an ideal method), not more than about 1/2 tsp. at a time. Stir and repeat the process until it begins to create a paste. Add a little veggie broth, along with the dried herbs and a little bit of salt and pepper. Mix them in, then begin to alternate between adding a little flour and a little more broth, stirring and letting your gravy cook a little in between. When you have about 1/2 cup of your herbed paste, mix in a more significant amount of veggie broth and add your mushrooms, bringing the mixture to a simmer. Taste and adjust seasoning, then add flour or broth as needed to adjust for texture. If you like, you can start to use coconut or rice milk (or soy, but I can always taste that almost-vanilla-y flavor and I don't want that in my gravy) instead of more veggie broth.

Blintz Filling

3-4 medium potatoes, cut into 1-2 inch chunks
4 c. cremini or your favorite mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1/2 large head cabbage, sliced into thin strips about 2 inches long (or however you like it)
1 small to medium yellow or white onion (really anything except a red onion), diced
1/2 cup veggie broth (keep a little extra around to use as needed)
Kosher salt
1/2 tsp. grated fresh nutmeg (super-easy to do, just buy the whole nutmeg instead and use a little grater - this is the one I have)
4-5 cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped
Earth Balance
Olive, canola, or other cooking oil

Cut potatoes into chunks and bring a pot of salted water to boil. Boil the potatoes until soft but not crumbling, and set aside. It would probably be smart at this point to test your veggie broth to see how salty it is, so that you can adjust the amount of salt you use as you season the veggies.

Melt some Earth Balance or your favorite vegan margarine in a pan and lightly saute the garlic, then add the mushrooms. Sprinkle the mushrooms lightly with kosher salt and then give them a dusting of nutmeg, probably about 1/2 teaspoon. Saute until soft, keeping in mind that they'll be cooked further when added to the onion and cabbage mix. Set mushrooms aside.

In a large, heavy pan, saute onions in a small amount of oil, about one tablespoon, for 1-2 minutes, until they begin to soften. Add shredded cabbage, and cook until cabbage is soft, though you don't want things to start falling apart, so don't overdo it.  Mix in mushrooms, then gently fold in potatoes. Taste and adjust seasoning - you want enough just salt for it to be savory, but let the nutmeg be the star. Also, when salting, think about how salty your veggie broth is; some broths have plenty of salt for this recipe and you may not need to add any at all.

Turn your oven on to warm, because from here on in you're going to have lots of things to keep warm in there.

Once your blintz filling is mixed thoroughly, drizzle about 1/2 cup of veggie broth over it and mix a little more so that the moisture is evenly distributed. Let simmer for about 5 minutes, or until the extra liquid has cooked down. Once the filling is done, transfer to an oven-safe dish or bowl and keep in a warm oven while you make the crepes.

Crepes

This is the third crepe recipe I've tried in the last week...the other two were from vegan cookbooks, and I got so frustrated that, after throwing out almost an entire batch of crepe batter (chickpea flour was a failure), I turned to the only person I knew I could trust on the topic - Julia Child. I've adapted this from her Mastering the Art of French Cooking with Simone Beck and Luisette Berthole. 

1 cup cold water
1 cup coconut milk (I'm going to try soy and rice milks too, but I anticipate that the coconut provides more richness without adding an obtrusive flavor)
Egg substitute equivalent to 4 eggs - I used the powdered Ener-G egg replacer, prepared according to the instructions on the box
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 c. flour
4 tbsp melted Earth Balance

Put the water, coconut milk, prepared egg replacer, and salt in the blender jar. Start blending on low, then slowly add the flour, then the melted butter. Blend for about a minute on high, then refrigerate covered for at least 2 hours but as long as overnight.

The first tricky part is finding the right pan. A small skillet or omelet pan often works well, though I haven't had much luck with the plain stainless pans or cast iron. I have a little 7-inch Revere Ware copper-clad stainless pan that works very well, but after all this, I'm going right out to buy a real crepe pan. Make your best guess, and if it doesn't work and your crepes stick, just abandon it and try another.

The next tricky part is the technique. Spray your pan with a little canola oil, then heat it to medium-high. When it begins to smoke, pour in a little less than 1/4 cup of batter and quickly swirl it around to fully cover the base of the pan. Don't take more than a couple of seconds to do this. Put the pan back on the stove and leave it there for about a minute. When the top of the crepe is dry and the edges are beginning to curl and brown, slip a rubber spatula under the edge to loosen the crepe a bit. If the center seems to be sticking, it is probably not done enough, so give it a bit longer. When the crepe slides around easily, flip it over in the way that seems best to you (though, personally, I never feel more like a chef than when I'm flipping things with the pan). Give the crepe another 30ish seconds on this side, then transfer to an oven-safe dish that you can keep warm in the oven while you work on the other crepes.  You may need to make crepes a little thicker than you would normally so that they stand up to the blintzing process


Blintz Construction - a.k.a. "Blintzing"


When all the crepes are done, take one out of the oven and lay it on a clean, dry working surface. Leave the others in the warm oven until you need them.

Melt a little bit of Earth Balance in a pan - you can use your crepe pan if you want, but you may want to use a larger one so you can fry about 4 blintzes at a time. Put a large blob of filling in the middle of the crepe (on the ugly side, so that the better-looking side shows in the final product), then fold it into a little packet with the seam running down the middle of the blintz and no holes for the filling to creep out. Prepare as many little blintzes as your pan will hold with enough room to scoot them around and to turn them (probably 4-5). Note that if you have a crepe that is a funny shape, you can make a workable blintz by leaving the top open, like the center blintz in the picture above. As long as there is enough crepe above the blintz filling so that it doesn't come tumbling out, you can turn our a pretty, golden, fluted blintz.

Once the pan is hot (fully heated to about medium), place your blintz seam-down into the pan, then repeat with the other blintzes. While they begin to cook, you can prepare the next batch. After about 20-30 seconds, scoot them so they don't stick, but take care to scoot them by their little butt ends rather than the smooth sides so that they don't unwrap. After about a minute, it should be safe to check them and see how they're browning without having them fall apart on you. When all your blintzes have golden-brown bottoms, turn them over and brown their tops a bit, too. When they are finished, put them on a cookie sheet and keep them in your warm oven while you finish the others.

When they're all finished, plate the blintzes and serve drizzled with  mushroom gravy.

Enjoy!