French crêpes are basically wafer-thin pancakes, often filled with either sweet berries, savory cheese and ham, or fresh vegetables and herbs. Making my own crêpes was a little intimidating to me at first, but after a little trial and error, I discovered how simple they actually were to make, especially using a blender.
The beauty of crepes is they are so flexible, allowing sweet or savory batters and a myriad of ways to fold them from elegant to casual. This particular recipe is a simple stack of flat crêpes layered (and then topped) with a luscious berry and marscapone filling, essentially making a beautiful cake!
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What are Crêpes?
The word crêpe is French and roughly translates to “flat cakes”. In the past, French crêpes were made with buckwheat flour and they rarely had fillings. They were typically just used as bread.
While crêpes are similar to pancakes, the texture is much more tender and they will not get soggy like a thicker pancake. While “fluffy” is a desirable trait of a pancake, it is not something you want in a crêpe.
Today, crepes are made with all kinds of fillings, from sweet fruit to savory ham and cheese to seafood and herbs. Dessert crêpes made with berries are the most common way to eat them in the U.S., but savory crêpes are quite popular for breakfast or brunch also.
I have a luscious food memory of some salmon and herb filled crêpes I had while vacationing in San Francisco one year, and tend to ask for it now each Mother’s Day.
Techniques and Tools
The Crêpe Pan:
You don’t need a dedicated crêpe pan to make perfect crêpes. You do, however, need a pan that includes:
- a flat bottom,
- low sides that allow easy flipping,
- maybe a long handle that you can hold while tilting and spreading the batter,
- non-stick or stainless steel both work (but often needs butter between each crêpe.
The diameter of the base of the pan is mostly what will determine the size of your crêpes. I use a 9 1/2-inch cast-iron comal (see below), or my dedicated 10-inch crêpe pan, with 1/4 cup of batter to make 8-inch crêpes.
The comal is a round cast iron griddle used in Mexican cooking, and is my tool of choice. I especially like cast iron because it retains the heat over a long period of time. There is a lot of lifting, swirling and pouring in new batter where stainless steel or enamel pans can lose their consistent heat.
The cast iron, or nonstick pan, will give you an evenly browned surface. If you want a lacy look use a stainless steel pan, but be sure to spread some butter on the pan before making each crêpe so that they do not stick.
*Note: I spread butter on the cast-iron pans between making each crêpe, even if it doesn’t need it for sticking purposes, as the “browned butter” gives them a beautiful golden-brown color.
For Mixing the Batter
For mixing the batter, you can use a blender, a food processor, or a whisk. You want the batter to be smooth and “pourable”, which is easiest with a blender.
A whisk takes some arm strength and it is difficult to get the batter really smooth with no lumps. A food processor works, but it is easy to over-mix, causing a foamy batter.
Tools for Spreading the Batter
I initially tried spreading my crêpe batter by lifting the pan and tilting it in different directions, like you would with an omelet. It worked “okay”, but the circle was quite uneven. I then tried one of these little spreading tools like you see in a Crêperie, and it was soooo much easier and much more consistent.
These spreaders are pretty inexpensive and worthwhile, even if you don’t make crêpes very often. I also bought a dedicated crêpe pan that came with a spreader, which worked well.
In the end, my comal with a small wooden spreader worked the best for me.
Tips for Perfect Crêpes
There are a few tips here that are really important. They include:
- Let the batter sit for 1 hour (at least) before cooking. This allows the foam to dissipate and the batter to become smooth. If resting the batter longer than 1 hour or overnight, cover and refrigerate.
- look for the batter to be about as thick as heavy cream. If it is thicker than this, thin with a little water. If it is thinner than heavy cream, thicken with a little more flour.
- Do not use skim milk. You can use 2% or whole milk, but in my experience, skim milk will not result in a perfect crêpe.
- Add any liqueurs you want to use prior to letting the batter rest so you can better gauge whether it is too thin or too thick
- Decide ahead of time how big you want the crêpe to be, and whether you want it to be wafer-thin or a little thicker. I would recommend 2-3 Tablespoons for a 6-inch crêpe and 1/4 cup for 8-10-inch crêpes
- Spread a bit of butter on the pan between making each crêpe. This provides the golden-brown color and ensures that it doesn’t stick.
- For the layered stack fillings, use about 1/4 cup of cream or berry cream between each crêpe.
** Tip: Some cooks will use club soda (or carbonated water) to replace some of the milk. This is said to make the perfect lacy texture.
Folding Crepes
There are 7 common ways to fold a crepe, from the easy roll to a triangle to a layered crepe cake (the recipe below).
Folding crepes is an art that is best taught by looking at photos. Emma Duckworth has an excellent post illustrating the various methods of folding crepes.
Basic Crêpe Ingredients
The basic ingredients for crêpes include:
- Eggs
- milk
- flour
- salt
- butter
- sometimes water or sparkling water
If you are making dessert crêpes a little sugar, vanilla and/or flavored liqueurs are often added.
*Note: Chocolate crêpes make wonderful desserts. You just decrease the flour and add in unsweetened cocoa, and replace the granulated sugar with sifted powdered sugar.
Ingredients for the blackberry crêpe cake filling includes:
Storing and Reheating
Layer the crêpes with wax paper or parchment paper in between each crêpe. You can then place them inside a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag and efrigerate up to five days, or freeze up to two months.
If frozen, thaw in the refrigerator. Remove stack from the bag, and reheat in a hot skillet for a few seconds or cover them with foil and heat for 10 minutes in a 300 degree F oven. They can also be reheated in a microwave at HIGH for 15 seconds.
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Blackberry Crêpe Cake
Equipment
- comal or crepe pan of some sort
Ingredients
For the Crêpes (makes 15-18)
- 7 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 ¾ Cups whole milk
- 4 eggs
- ½ Teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ½ Cups flour all-purpose flour
- 2 Teaspoons sugar
- 1 Teaspoon vanilla
For the Blackberry Filling
- 8 Ounces mascarpone cheese
- 1 Pint heavy cream
- ½ Cup powdered sugar unsifted
- 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 Cups blackberries
- ¼ Cup heavy cream
Instructions
For the Crêpes
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook 2-4 minutes, or until the butter is melted and just starting to turn golden brown. Keep an eye on it, stirring occasionally.Remove from heat, set aside and let it cool to room temperature.7 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- Add the milk, eggs and salt into a blender and pulse for a few seconds to blend everything together.Add the flour, sugar and vanilla to the blender and blend until the mixture is smooth (about 20-25 seconds).1 3/4 Cups whole milk, 4 eggs, 1/2 Teaspoon kosher salt, 1 1/2 Cups flour, 2 Teaspoons sugar, 1 Teaspoon vanilla
- Remove the blender lid and pour in the room temperature browned butter. Cover and blend until everything is combined (about 10 seconds).Let the blender mixture rest for at least 1/2 hour or up to 8-10 hours. If resting it longer than 1/2 hour, put the blender in the refrigerator to rest)
- When ready to make the crêpes, remove the blender from the fridge and pour batter into a large measuring cup, or bowl. Stir the batter. It should be about a thick as heavy cream. If it is too thick whisk in some more milk, making sure there are no lumps.Heat the crêpe pan over medium to medium-high heat, until a drop of water sprinkled on the pan sizzles.
- Spread a little butter on the pan using a paper towel or a pastry brush and then pour 1/4 cup of the batter into the center of the pan (I use a long-handled ladle for ease).If you have a spreader, immediately but gently spread the batter into an 8-inch circle, going clockwise on the first half and counter-clockwise on the second half.If you don't have a spreader, lift the pan after pouring in the batter and tilt and turn it in all directions to achieve an 8-inch (or so) circle.
- Cook the crêpe 1-2 minutes, lifting the edge with a butter knife after a minute to see if it is golden brown. The edges will be easy to lift up and they are starting to curl a bit.Slide the butter knife under the center of the crêpe and flip it to the other side. This is fairly easy to do without it tearing…just keep it close to the pan.Cook on the other side about 30 seconds to 1 minute and then slide it off the pan onto a plate.
- Repeat the process for each crêpe, adding butter to the pan after each crêpe has cooked.Stack them on the plate to cool. You can refrigerate them, covered in plastic wrap at this point. If you want to freeze them, place a piece of parchment paper or wax paper between each crêpe and wrap in plastic wrap and freeze for 2-3 months.
For the Blackberry Mascarpone Filling
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine mascarpone, 1/4 cup heavy cream, 1/4 cup powdered sugar, and lemon zest. Gently whisk by hand until everything is incorporated. Add the rest of the heavy cream and beat mixture (with whisk attachment) on medium-high, gradually adding remaining 1/4 cup powdered sugar, until stiff peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes.Mash 3/4 cups blackberries in a medium bowl (I used potato masher). Add about half of the mascarpone whipped cream to mashed berries, and fold gently to combine.Set aside or refrigerate the 3 separate bowls of plain mascarpone cream, the blackberry mascarpone mixture and the whole blackberries.8 Ounces mascarpone cheese, 1 Pint heavy cream, 1/2 Cup powdered sugar, 1 Tablespoon lemon zest, 2 Cups blackberries, 1/4 Cup heavy cream
Assembly
- Remove crêpes and filling mixture from refrigerator. Place one crêpe on a flat plate, at least 9-inches in diameter. Using a small spatula, gently spread a thin layer (about 1/4 cup) of the plain mascarpone whipped cream over crêpe, leaving a 1/4-inch border. Top with 1 crêpe, and gently spread with a layer (about 1/4 cup) of the blackberry mascarpone whipped cream.Repeat process with remaining 15-18 crêpes, alternating with layers of plain mascarpone whipped cream and blackberry mascarpone whipped cream, until you have used the final crêpe (Do not spread anything on top layer). Chill remaining plain mascarpone whipped cream until ready to use. Cover cake with plastic wrap; chill at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours.When ready to serve, remove cake from refrigerator, and spoon remaining plain mascarpone whipped cream over top of cake, leaving some room around the edges. Arrange remaining blackberries on top. Slice cake using a serrated knife, making sure to slice all the way to the middle so the crêpe doesn't stick at the point.Serve and enjoy! It is very rich and you only need small slices to please.
Dorothy Stainbrook says: 
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