Sweet Orange Crepes

What a delight to get eggs today! Eggs are so delicious, nutritious, and versatile. It seems fitting to highlight one of nature's most perfect foods in today's recipe.

Crepes are one of the easiest pancakes to make. They can be used in sweet dishes, like this recipe, or savory ones. Eat them plain, rolled, and dusted with powdered sugar; or fill them with ham and cheese or sauteed spinach and mushrooms, and fold them in half or in quarters. Dress them up with a little hollandaise or cream sauce.

Crepes make a lovely dish for breakfast, lunch, or supper. And they can turn a simple dessert, such as strawberries and whipped cream, into something elegant and special.

This recipe calls for mixing all the ingredients in a blender. Let the batter rest in the fridge for a minimum of 40 minutes. Then cook them up.

You can cook the crepes right before you use them, or in advance if you prefer. Store them in a stack, wrapped in plastic, in the fridge for a day or two. Be careful when separating stored crepes, as they are delicate and prone to tearing.

Basic Crepe Recipe:

1 C milk, preferably whole
3/4 C flour
2 eggs
2 T melted butter
1/4 t salt
additional melted butter or oil for frying

1. Place all of the ingredients (except the additional butter or oil for frying) in a blender. Cover and blend for 30-60 seconds, until well combined.

2. Refrigerate for at least 40 minutes. Batter can be kept in the fridge for up to 24 hours.

3. Heat a well-seasoned 9-inch or 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Brush a little melted butter or oil on the heating skillet. When the pan is hot, pour 1/4 C crepe batter into the center. Working quickly, lift the pan over the heat and rotate the pan until the batter has spread evenly over the bottom.

4. Return the pan to the heat and cook the crepe until it is lightly brown on the bottom. The edges should pull away from the sides of the pan. Using a spatula, flip the crepe over and cook lightly on the other side before turning out onto a plate.

5. Repeat with the remaining batter, stacking the cooked crepes on top of one another until you've used up all the batter (or until you've made as many crepes as you need).

As the pan continues to heat up, the handle may get very hot if it's made of metal. Be sure to use an oven mitt when holding and rotating the pan.

This recipe will make approximately 10, 10-inch crepes. Make your crepes smaller if you wish. Use a little less batter per crepe if you use a smaller pan.

For Sweet Orange Crepes:

I used 1 rounded Tablespoon of my homemade Satsuma Mandarin Marmalade (see recipe for January 6, 2012) per crepe. If you don't have any Satsuma Mandarin Marmalade, you can use your favorite orange marmalade or any other tasty jam.

Spread the marmalade or jam on the inside of the crepe. Roll up or fold in quarters. Garnish with orange zest and powdered sugar.

Five Farms provided this week's bounty:

From Underwood Family Farms: Broccoli, cauliflower, fennel, orange carrots, kale, bok choy, Easter radishes, escarole, iceberg lettuce, and parsley;

From Weiser Family Farms: Red Thumb potatoes and watermelon radishes;

From Sage Mountain Farm: Golden beet greens, Shiraz beets, mustard greens, and spinach;


From Jaime Farms: Hot-house Tomatoes, Persian cucumbers, yellow bell peppers; thyme, rosemary, green onions, red and brown onions, and happy eggs;

From Rancho Santa Cecilia: Satsuma mandarins.

Enjoy!

Shelley

Kati's Frittata

Missing Shelley's Friday recipes?

Shelley is traveling around South East Asia (lucky lady) so the wonderful Kati Stazer sent us this recipe.

Kati, an LAUSD schoolteacher, was one of my first customers at the Silverlake farmers' market. She loves sweet pea flowers. Thank you so much Kati for all your support and encouragement over the years. You are an amazing lady.

Here is Kati's recipe:

Hi Tara,

Here's a recipe for a thick Italian omelet using chard or kale, full of vegetables, herbs and cheese. Unlike many other egg dishes, frittatas can be made ahead and reheated or served cold or at room temperature. This dish reheats in the microwave and can keep in the refrigerator, in a tightly sealed container, for up to one week. By cutting back on the amount of cheese used, you have a lower-fat version.

2 Tbs. olive oil
1 Tbs. butter or butter substitute
1 medium-sized onion, peeled
1 tsp. salt
2 or more large stalks of ruby chard or kale
2 medium-sized potatoes, scrubbed, unpeeled and thinly sliced
1-2 tsp. dried rosemary crumbled
1/2 tsp. dried sage
2 tsp. fresh minced garlic
8 large eggs
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup finely diced Gruyere cheese

1. Remove and mince chard or kale leaves and cut stems in 1/2 inch long pieces. Place leaves and stems in separate containers and set aside.

2. Heat 1 tsp. olive oil in a 10 inch skillet over medium heat. Add butter, and when melted, toss in onions. Cook, stirring frequently over medium heat until they just begin to brown, at least 5 minutes. Then reduce the heat to low, add 1/2 tsp. salt and cover skillet. Cook about 15 minutes more, or until onions are soft.

3. Stir in potatoes and herbs. Cover and cook about 10 minutes, stirring intermittently, or until potato slices are tender.

4. Add chard or kale stems and saute about 2 minutes more. Stir in chard or kale leaves and garlic and cook another minute, or until leaves are wilted but still bright green. Remove pan from heat.

5. Break eggs into large bowl, add remaining 1/2 tsp. salt, and beat well with a whisk. Add vegetables, black pepper to taste and cheese. Stir until evenly distributed. Clean and dry skillet and return to burner over medium heat. Preheat broiler.

6. When skillet is hot again, add remaining olive oil, wait about 30 seconds, and swirl to cover pan. Pour in vegetable-egg mixture and cook undisturbed over medium heat, 3 to 4 minutes, or until bottom of eggs have firmed.

7. Transfer skillet to broiler, and broil about 3 minutes, or until frittata is firm in center. Remove from broiler, and run knife around edges to loosen frittata. Slide or invert onto large, round plate, and serve hot, warm or at room temperature cut into wedges.

Here is the bounty list from 2/10:

From Sage Mountain Farm: loose leaf greens such as Red Russian Kale, spinach, mustard greens.

From Rancho Santa Cecilia: Bacon avocados, Satsuma Mandarins

Japanese Turnips, Golden Beets, Napa Cabbage, Navel oranges, Round Carrots, Purple Kale, Red Leaf Lettuce, Escarole, Butternut squash, Brussels Sprouts, Arugula and Mizuna from Underwood Family Farms.

And from Weiser Family Farms: Watermelon radishes, parsnips, Red Thumb potatoes, Purple Sprouting Broccoli, DeCicco Broccoli.

Enjoy!