Crepes

When I went to school in England, we had several trips to France for field trips to complement our studies. One of my courses was art history and we were lucky enough to have a field trip to Paris visit the Louvre and Musee D'Orsay and see all the beautiful paintings we were studying. One of my favourite things about walking around Paris were all the crepe stands. I remember one time in particular when my friends and I were on our way to take a boat ride on the River Seine and stopped at one of the crepe huts. I ordered a Nutella and banana crepe and it is one of my favourite combinations to this day. Crepes have become quite popular in the U.S. as well and many restaurants focusing on crepes have opened (Creperies). This nice light pancake is not only good with sweet fillings, but great on its own or with savoury fillings for lunch or dinner. I love them filled with melted cheese and sauteed mushrooms. Many pancake house chains serve them, but they tend to be made too thick (more like a traditional pancake) and often have too much cream cheese type fillings. I think they call them blintzes. You can usually ask for them plain, but you might as well leave them to what they do best - traditional pancakes - and make the real crepes at home.

It's a nice creamy batter and it is best to let it rest after you mix it for the flour to absorb as much moisture as possible. I usually make it the night before, leave it in the refrigerator overnight in a bowl wrapped in plastic and then make them for breakfast the next morning.

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You don't need one, but I have a special crepe pan that is non-stick and has low edges and works perfectly to make a 6 inch crepe. Most recipes tell you to measure out a 1/4 or 1/3 cup of batter, but I find it easiest to use a ladle and pour it in the pan and then move the pan around to spread the batter for a nice thin crepe. They cook very quickly and turn easier (much easier than our traditional cakey pancakes).

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Now for preparing them to eat.... I usually never use maple syrup with these, but you could. My mum's favourite is to sprinkle them with powdered sugar and have a some fresh squeezed lemon on them. My favourite is much more rich, but I love a light spreading of Nutella on the inside with sliced fresh banana. Bon Appetit! Next, I want to try to make a yummy dessert made of crepes.

Our Favorite Pasta

When I went to school in England, my friends and I took a side trip to stay in Juan Les Pins, France, (near Nice). This is where this pasta dish started and I've changed and adapted it since. I called it my "Juan Les Pins Pasta" recipe and that's what I jotted down on note paper, brought back with me and is still in my recipe book to this day. One our friends that traveled with us was an aspiring chef and even had his own college cooking show so he would go out and buy great fresh ingredients to cook us wonderful meals in the apartment we rented. Now, it's a favorite of ours and when I ask my husband what he would like for a special meal, this is the usual request. It's an easy pasta dish with penne pasta (or sometimes rigatoni), a tomato sauce with Italian sausage and sprinkled with fresh grated parmigiana reggiano cheese. Last time I made steamed broccoli to have on the side and we always have some buttery garlic bread to dip in the sauce. It's fantastic with a glass of red wine and we enjoyed it with Cabernet last weekend.