Crêpes irlandaises

I’ve been asked for the crêpe recipe developed by my former roommate, an Irishman with a substantial appetite. I realize that crêpes are not a difficult thing to make, but I still find his technique useful enough to be worth sharing. And so, gentle readers, that means you get to read it too.

Ingredients:

4 black bananas (keep in the freezer until needed) 4 eggs 6 cups flour (ideally half wholewheat and half buckwheat, but almost anything will do) butter or grapeseed oil

Preparation:

Thaw bananas, place in blender with eggs and mix thoroughly. Pour flour into a large mixing bowl, and using an electric beater or whisk stir while adding water until as thin as the banana-egg mixture (this takes a lot of water). Combine the two in the bowl and again mix thoroughly. Heat a frying pan (cast iron, if possible) until so hot that a drop of water almost instantly vaporises (but not so hot that it bounces). Add a small quantity of oil, spread evenly, pour enough batter to thinly cover the pan, and flip as soon as no parts of the crêpe appear wet. Cook the second side for five to ten seconds, then take off heat.

When you’ve finished cooking your crêpes, arrange apple slices on the hot pan with just a little cinnamon, brown sugar, and water, cover, and let cook for perhaps five minutes for a quick apple sauce.

Serve with yogurt, maple syrup, fruit, cocoa, ganache, jam, cheese, whipped cream, or whatever else you’ve got handy. Enjoy!

I suggest making the batter in large quantities and storing it in the freezer until needed. It keeps well, but after sitting for a few hours the gluten in the flour will develop, so you’ll need to add more water before use.