Have your crepe…and eat it too!
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The spring season conjures many images around the idea of cleansing, detoxing, and renewal. All of these themes are motivating and bring forth wonderful benefits like less inflammation and more mental clarity but if you don’t get the timing right those cheery Spring holidays might arrive in the midst of your 28-day cleanse or other detox and reset program.
Cheat-free brunch ideas
Planning a decadent brunch menu with all the sweet and savory fixins’ might feel a bit dangerous with a minefield of gluten, sugar, Peeps and chocolate eggs to navigate!
The struggle between sticking to your regimen of kale avocado smoothies and other clean eats or saying “Yes” to a buttery waffle covered with berries, maple syrup and whipped cream is real!
You want to be “good” but you don’t want to miss out on the brunch spread.
When I was teaching cooking classes in person one of my most popular was my Mother’s Day Brunch class. I featured a grain-free and gluten-free menu that was my answer to all those brunch time temptations. I took another look at the menu and it still sounds marvelous: Citrus Berry and Lemon Verbena Mimosa, Crab Cake Benedict with Avocado Hollandaise, Grilled Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus with Spring Onion Crema and for dessert, Sweet Almond Strawberry Crépes with a sumptuous mascarpone and ricotta filling sweetened with honey and scented with orange zest.
Crépes are on the menu!
In today’s post, I’m featuring the crépes but don’t worry, I’ll share the other menu items in time for more brunch time repasts, so stay tuned.
For now, why not try these Sweet Almond Strawberry Crépes. They’re so delicious, they tick all the grain-free, flourless boxes, and you can whip them up pretty quick. Most crépes are made with white flour and cream but these are flourless. Instead, regular flour is swapped for finely ground blanched almonds and coconut “flour”. A small amount of ground flax helps add flexibility to the crépes and of course there are a lot of eggs in this recipe so rather than a high-carb cheat, these crépes are a nutrient-dense treat!
Ingredient benefit rundown
Almond flour is simply ground almonds. It is gluten-free and grain-free so perfect for those who are doing without. This recipe calls for blanched almond flour, which is a slightly more refined form, as the almonds are blanched first to remove the skins. Then the nuts are dried and ground into a fine powder. The result is a lighter texture that’s perfect for cakes, delicate petit fours like madeleines, and crepes.
Almonds make an excellent nutrient-dense flour substitute. It is naturally low in carbs, fiber, an excellent source of healthy fats like vitamin E and rich magnesium, which is an important mineral for controlling blood sugar. If you are trying to avoid flour but want a few baked goods, almond flour is one of the most versatile flourless flours.Coconut flour is also gluten and grain-free so another protein-rich ingredient for Paleo baking. Coconut flour is made by grinding dried coconut meat after the milk has been extracted but you can also make your own by blitzing coconut flakes in a food processor. Most store-bought coconut flour is ground to a fine powder so if you’re grinding your own the texture may be more coarse.
Be wary when using coconut flour exclusively because it contains a lot of fiber and absorbs liquid like a sponge. Coconut flour requires a lot of eggs to keep the texture light and delicate rather than dense and mealy. The typical ratio is six eggs for every one cup of coconut flour.Flax seeds are a superfood seed of sorts. They are rich in omega 3 fatty acids and contain both insoluble and soluble fiber. Ground flaxseeds are added to this recipe to give the crepe a little flexibility as one of flax’s attributes is its mucilaginous quality. Like chia seeds, flax bulks up when liquid is added, making it a great plant-based egg substitute. I wouldn’t swap out the eggs in these crepes though because it would mess with the flavor. Flax is a great superfood but an all-flax crepe with almond and coconut flour will probably not work. That being said, I’m always game for a challenge so you just might see a vegan crepe one day. Stay tuned.
Eggs! They are an incredible and magical food. A wonderful package of protein, fat and culinary flexibility. Eggs can do so many things in the kitchen but you definitely want to source a good quality egg. If you can, get pastured, organic eggs for the most nutritious advantage. When chickens are pasture-raised, they eat grass, bugs, get sunshine and give all that goodness to the egg. Pastured eggs are rich in omega-3s, Vitamin D, a great source of good dietary cholesterol and contain choline, an important nutrient for your brain. If you can eat eggs (that is, you don’t have an allergy) then eat eggs.
Now that you’ve been debriefed on the nutritional benefits of these Sweet Almond Strawberry Crépes here are a few guidelines for making them.
You don’t need a crépes pan but a good quality non-stick pan is essential. These days you can find non-toxic pans that are lined in ceramic which is much safer. If you don’t have a non-stick, a well-seasoned cast iron will do the trick. You’ll just need a little more ghee or avocado oil to cook the crepes in.
Once you mix up the batter, be sure to chill it in the fridge so the mixture relaxes.
If the batter seems too thick, you can add a little milk of choice. I tested this out and may actually officially include it in the recipe to ensure a thin pourable batter. You can add up to ⅓ cup of milk and make beautifully thin crépes.
Remember to use good quality fat when cooking the crépes. I suggest ghee because it just makes them yummier. You can also use coconut oil or avocado oil. Butter is okay but it’s a little too easy to burn because of the milk solids. Ghee no longer contains the milk solids and withstands the higher heat.
For easier assembly, make a batch of crépes ahead of time. Warm them up before filling and then garnish with loads of berries. Your guests will love you!
Sweet Almond Strawberry Crépes
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs
- 1/2 cup blanched almond flour
- 2 Tablespoon coconut flour
- 1 Tablespoon flax meal, optional
- 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
- pinch of sea salt
- 1/3 cup milk or nut milk (optional)
- 1 Tablespoon ghee
- 2 pints strawberries, sliced
- 1 cup mascarpone cheese
- 1/3 cup ricotta cheese
- 2 Tablespoons of honey
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 orange zested
- Grated dark chocolate for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Add eggs, almond flour, coconut flour, flax meal, maple syrup, and pinch of sea salt to a large bowl and whisk together until well mixed.
- Cover bowl of crepe batter with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to allow mixture to thicken a bit.
- Remove batter from the refrigerator and stir. If the batter is too thick, whisk in a little milk.
- Heat ghee in an omelet or crépe pan on medium low heat and add a 1/4 cup of batter to pan. Swirl evenly and cook the crépes until edges begin to curl. Flip and cook other side. Transfer finished crepe to a platter and keep warm in the oven until ready to fill.
- Using a hand mixer, blend mascarpone and ricotta together with honey, vanilla extract, orange zest and juice.
- Fold in strawberries or fill each crépe with a layer of cheese filling and top with strawberries, fold or roll then serve. Garnish with reserved strawberries, some more filling, and grated chocolate if desired.