Ahhh … crepes. A great treat whether you fill them with a sweet or savory filling or fold them and drizzle with chocolate.
While you can buy a crepe mix that needs additional liquid ingredients, I prefer making my own. But, yes, sometimes lumps of flour just happen with crepe batters. In fact, many recipes call for straining the batter to catch any of those lumps.
But you can prevent those pesky lumps. Like with cake batters, lumps can form if you don’t sift the flour. If a recipe doesn’t call for sifting the flour, just give a few whisks (use a wire whisk) in the bowl. Flour settles when it’s stored so whisking aerates it. You can do this with the crepe mix, too.
If the crepe batter is under mixed, you could see some lumps. So be sure to mix thoroughly.
Basic Crepes
Makes: 10 (8-inch crêpes) / Preparation time: 5 minutes (plus overnight resting time) / Total time: 45 minutes
Tested by Susan Selasky for the Free Press Test Kitchen.
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
1/3 cup water
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
2 to 3 tablespoons melted butter or oil for greasing the pan
In a blender or bowl, place the eggs, milk, water, flour and salt. Mix a few times and drizzle in 2 tablespoons melted and cooled butter. Process the mixture for 15 seconds or until smooth. Stir down the sides and process another 15 seconds. Or mix in a food processor or whisk (sift the flour and salt first) by hand. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour or preferably overnight, but no more than 24 hours.
To cook crepes, place a 6- or 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Brush with a little butter. Take the pan off the heat and pour in 2 to 3 tablespoons of the batter for small crepes or ¼ cup of the batter for large crepes – tilting the pan so the batter coats the entire bottom of the pan. Cook the crepe 1 minute or until almost dry on the top and lightly browned on the edges. Loosen the edge with a spatula and flip the crepe over. Cook on the other side for about 20 seconds or until lightly browned. Remove the crepe to a platter. Repeat with the remaining batter, giving it a stir after making several crepes and using the butter to grease the pan as needed.
