Friday, February 11, 2011

Orange Crepes


Last summer, Liv and I discovered crepes with seasonal fresh, plump, red strawberries and we've been expanding our repertoire ever since.  Experimenting with banana, chocolate and peach, we've found these light, pancake-like wrappers far easier to make than we had ever imagined and they are a cinch to fill with all sorts of fillings.

Looking for any excuse to use part of our extraordinary orange crop this season, I was thrilled to find this recipe for Orange Crepes in Beatrice Ojakangas' book, Petite Sweets, the newest addition to my ever growing cookbook collection.  Ms. Ojakangeas' book features bite sized desserts along with stunning photos and mouthwatering recipes.  It's one of those books that you want to sit down with and leisurely audit, and had me turning down page after page as I perused the volume.

Liv pulled out the book one day after school and suggested that crepes would be the ideal after school snack.  (I truly think she's getting spoiled!)  With our new Sur La Table juicer on the counter just waiting to be used, we got to cutting open the oranges and quickly had a cup of fresh OJ.  She whisked up the batter and as it was "resting" we made the sweet Orange Syrup.

With the lovely orange aroma wafting through our kitchen I couldn't help but think that this sweet treat would benefit from a nice dousing of Grand Marnier.  Wanting to keep Liv's crepes kid-friendly, I set a few tablespoons aside for when she had had her fill.

And have her fill she did!  I believe she at nearly half the batch, literally licking her plate in the process.  I found the Orange Syrup to be a tad sweet for my taste (not unusual... I'm more of a tart person!), but the Grand Marnier made up for it.  Orange Crepes make a lovely afternoon treat and would be most perfect for a lovely morning brunch.


Orange Crepes
adapted from Petite Sweets: Bite-Size Desserts to Satisfy Every Sweet Tooth, Beatrice Ojakangas, pg 69 

Crepes:
1 Cup skim milk
1 Tbs butter, melted
2 large eggs
1/4 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs sugar 

Orange Syrup:
4 Tbs butter
3 Tbs sugar
2 tsp grated orange zest
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup Grand Marnier (optional)

For the crepes, in a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the milk, butter, vanilla and eggs.  Whisk in the flour, salt and sugar until smooth.  Alternatively, place the ingredients into a blender and blend.  Let sit in the refrigerator for at least one hour or overnight.

When you are ready to make the crepes, spray a crepe pan or small omelet pan with cooking spray or brush (see note) with oil over medium-high heat.  Pour about 3 Tbs into the pan, swirling around to make the crepe.  Cook until the crepe begins to look dry, about 1 minute.  Gently turn the crepe over in the pan and cook the other side, about 15 - 30 seconds.  Transfer the crepe onto a plate and continue cooking more crepes, brushing the pan with additional oil as needed.

While the batter is resting, make the Orange Syrup.  In a small saucepan melt the butter and add the sugar, orange zest and juice.  Heat to simmering.  If using the Grand Marnier, add it now.


Fold each crepe in half and place it into the sauce.  Using tongs, a fork or a spatula, fold the crepes in half again to make a triangle shape.  Work quickly so that all of the sauce is not absorbed by the first crepe.  Place 2 - 3 crepes on a serving dish and drizzle with additional sauce.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.


 Note:  I used the cut end of a stick of butter and rubbed it onto the hot pan as my oil!

38 comments:

  1. Liv is spoiled! I want someone to spoil me like that. And how I wish I had an orange tree...

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  2. Just delicious! Love the photos, thank you for sharing :)

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  3. Those crepes look sooo inviting - I wish I could have some right now!

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  4. Kim, the crepes look delightful and the orange syrup sounds amazing. I bet it would be wonderful drizzled over vanilla ice cream as well. What a lovely treat :o)

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  5. Wow, those look unbelievably amazing! I love the idea of adding the Grand Marnier. Nice grown up addition!

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  6. you know, I still haven't quite found my way around crepe. They always turn out ok but not great. I will have to try this recipe and your method. And yes, I will definitely put Grand Marnier in mine :)

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  7. Your crepes look to-die-for. I would certainly be very happy if these were my afternoon snack (or any other meal for that matter:))

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  8. They look so delicious! I SOOOO want some now :)

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  9. Hahaha @ Liv getting spoiled. Mine are, too, Kelly. Mine are, too. The crepes looks sensational! It's the first thing I read this morning and now I am ravenous!

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  10. That syrup should taste really great and not just with crepes i think :) I love how they look :)

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  11. Thanks for spoiling us too with the Grand Marnier! Liv is so lucky to have a mum who prepares all these delicious treats after school.

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  12. I am always looking for new orange recipes saving this one for sure!

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  13. I love to make crepes. I have never thought of adding a flavoring to the crepe themselves. Brilliant! And these look absolutely beautiful!

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  14. I am so impressed with how pretty these crepes are! My one and only attempt at making crepes was a kitchen catastrophe:) I swore off making crepes after that incident, but these are tempting me rethink my decision:) Beautiful photos too!

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  15. Gorgeous crepes...just the perfect amount of browning. And I bet the orange syrup was delicious!!!

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  16. I am so impressed with your orange crop. What a great use for these fabulous fruits. I love the Grand Marnier syrup. Is this too decadent for tomorrow's brunch - I don't think so!

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  17. Oooooo I love that syrup!! Holy yumminess!
    I make crepes almost every weekend... love love love them!

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  18. Love how you used oranges in here! I'm jealous I want a juicer. I think you would reading my mind on what I should have for breakfast!
    Hope you all have A Very Happy Valentines Day!
    -Gina-

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  19. Kim,

    Your oranges and crepes look so good. I still have a bag of oranges, waiting for this recipe.
    I'm making them tomorrow.
    Happy Valentines Day!

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  20. Oh, thanks for giving me another idea how to use my citrus fruits. Your photos are lovely, kudos to your daughter for choosing crepes! What's she picking next?
    LL

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  21. These look GREAT...I love crepes, but never make them at home! Not sure why as I make pancakes and waffles quite often! I should put these on my to-do blog list!!

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  22. I am also a huge fan of Beatrice Ojakangas. The Great Scandinavian Baking Book is one of my all-time favorites.
    These crepes look absolutely amazing. I have actually never made crepes. I keep joking that I am working my way to them from thickest to thinnest as I started with Dutch Babies and most recently made Swedish Pancakes, the only thing thinner is crepes. Now that I have found these I might just have to go for it!

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  23. Eh spoiled...perhaps. But she's a good girl so it's all good. Besides, your cooking makes her dislike food that other people make and it keeps her close to home. :) I'm jealous of your crop! These crepes sound so fresh and perfect.

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  24. Gorgeous crepes--like a little bit of sunshine.
    ;-)

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  25. Your crepes look delicious and oranges are very cheap in Greece and we love them in any form and taste. I make them into fruit preserve and the syrup tastes heavenly.

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  26. I love Crepes and you did amazing job! Never tried in orange! Awesome idea!

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  27. How positively delicious! You just inspired me to put my brand new crepe pan to use!

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  28. gorgeous! u know ive made them every way,but never with oranges! yum

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  29. Grand Marnier with oranges is always a delicious pairing, this is a nice variation on the traditional crêpes suzettes with no flames involved!

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  30. perfect snack!! thank you for sharing. such delicate flavours!

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  31. I think I would have licked the plate too. ;) Delicious flavor and the grand marnier is a wonderful touch.

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  32. Mmmmm. Orange Crepes. One of my favorite things ever. Great job!

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  33. Oh my, you make sure that Liv knows what an absolutely perfect mother she has to make her crepes for a "snack"! Wow, I got raisins after school haha. These look delicious!

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  34. Gorgeous! Can't wait to try it myself. :)

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