Demonstrated at our Club Meeting on April 3, 2022
by Chef Don Dunbar
Makes: 8 pieces. Serves: 4-8 people.
Preparation time: 30 minutes.
For the Batter:
For the Filling and Sauce:
1. You'll need a 12 inch flat, round, non-stick griddle or, better yet, a seasoned crêpe pan.
2. To make "Brown Butter" for the batter, melt 1 oz. of Butter in a saucepan and heat on medium, stirring until golden brown (about 4 minutes); avoid burning it and then transfer the liquid but not the solids and let cool. For the batter, mix the Flour, Salt, Eggs, Sugar and "Brown Butter" together, then slowly add the Milk. Stir well until smooth. Pour a small amount of batter in the pan, tilting the pan in a circular motion to thin out the batter and fry the Crêpe on each side (about 2 minutes) until lightly golden on each side. Set them aside.
3. Preheat a broiler. For the sauce, mix the Butter, Sugar, Orange Juice and Orange Zest in a small food processor to make an "Orange Butter". On a cookie sheet, fill each Crêpe with some Orange Butter, fold the filled Crêpe as you go and sprinkle a little Granulated Sugar on each. Broil all the Crêpes on a cookie sheet for 2 minutes to caramelize the Sprinkle Sugar. Warm the Orange Marmalade in a small pot and add the Liqueur. Place a Crêpe on a serving dish, pour the Marmalade liquid on the Crêpe and flambé it. As long as the Liqueur is warm, it will flambé. Sprinkle with Powdered Sugar to serve.
"Crêpes Suzette" - In French, pronounced Krepps, not Craypes. They are very thin pancakes originated in Brittany, France in the 13th century. Like the above, they can be a "Sweet" dessert or without sugar added to the batter, they can be a "Savory" main course. There are differing stories as to where the name "Suzette" came from around the 1900s. Although Grand Marnier is the traditional liqueur, Triple Sec, or Orange Curaçao might be used instead. The main flavor is Orange but variations include Tangerine and even Lemon. Le Jour des Crêpes (The Day of the Crêpes) is celebrated on February 2nd each year.
