Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Wheat Free Crepe And Strawberry Breakfast Delight


Strawberries are in season here the Northern California. And I'm not talking about those anemic or orangey pink blobs that pass for an excuse of strawberry in stores. I'm talkin' bout blood red, luminescent, perfectly balanced sweet/tart vine ripened, picked the same day strawberries. I had never tasted a real one until I moved to California. Oh. My. God.

Now, some may herald the strawberry season with ideas of shortcake. Or on a piece of shortbread with custard underneath for a tart. But not me. For me it's all about the Strawberry Crepes.

...which I had for breakfast this morning, and for which I've been salivating about now for a couple of weeks, waiting for the strawberry vendors at the Farmer's Market to appear. I missed the week before, but not this last Saturday. I knew they'd be there. I wasn't disappointed.

I went to each strawberry stall and taste-tested them. I've discovered that it's actually the smaller varieties that tend to be sweeter. I looked around and only saw big ones. While a bit attituded at first, I kept on keeping on. I finally chose the first booth I had gone to. One has to try them all (just in case), but ultimately theirs had that perfect balance of sweet tanginess that I was searching for. Got my three baskets and away I went.

I'm not much of a savory crepe person. I'm actually not much of a dessert crepe person, either. Although these could work for dessert, I'm kinda odd in that if crepes are the after dinner option, I'll just take the guts. An exception might be Chocolate Mousse With Banana Crepes. But for the most part, I'd rather have the innards without the roll.

I also try to avoid wheat as much as possible as I've found that the cost/benefit ratio of eating it usually isn't worth it. While I intend on getting that fixed some day, I have a reaction to the wheat. Not totally over the edge into gluten intolerance, but I do get bloated for about three days. In addition, over time I've also lost the taste for most wheat concoctions. But that's for another post.

But Strawberries (soon Peach) Crepes for breakfast beckon...so what to do? The call me like sirens. L'il boogers.

So this morning, for the first time since last summer I got to make my crepes. Oh, yum.

Wheat Free Crepe And Strawberry Breakfast Delight Recipe
(complete with the appropriate mindset, included)

I reverently got out the eggs, the cream (milk works, too), the stevia the cinnamon, the Trader Joe's Greek Yogurt, the almonds and syrup.

I said a prayer as I chunked almonds, tossed them into a dry pan, put them over medium heat to toast, then let them cool while doing the rest.

I meditated on the eggs as I cracked them open, thanking them for giving their little lives for my nourishment. Figure one egg per crepe. Put how many ever eggs into a bowl, add lots of milk/cream. Then a dash of salt. Put in tons of stevia and cinnamon.* I use about a half tsp. of both the stevia and cinnamon per egg. This sounds like(and is) lots (especially for the cinnamon), but it's not overpowering when cooked and all the elements are combined. Both will glump. This is OK, just combine it all as much as you can. Get out your crepe pan and cook it like you would any crepe. You'll find that they actually fluff up like actual crepes...no eggy/omlettey consistency or overpowering taste.

I felt myself salivating as I topped the crepes with sliced strawberries, the toasted nuts, the yogurt and a small amount of syrup.

I then sat down, cut a piece, closed my eyes, took my first bite and reveled in the symphony my tastebuds were experiecing. Tart, sweet, creamy, fluffy, fresh, springy goodness. What a way to start the day smiling. Enjoy!

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*More on the stevia and cinnamon:

I use Trader Darwin's (Joe's) stevia, not the pure stuff but the stuff that has added milk powder. Raw stevia is tricksy as it's so strong. Using a filler makes it more like measuring for sugar and it has less of the tinny taste. If you use the straight stuff, adjust.

The cinnamon does more than just give the whole a wonderful flavor. I am in the early (maybe not so early any more :) ) stages of insulin resistance syndrome. Cinnamon helps this tremendously. So adding tons of it helps control the insulin response/load of the strawberries and syrup. Also...making the crepes with only eggs helps in this, too. I don't think any of the taste is sacrificed, but, again, I don't like wheat much so that's pretty much a no brainer.

And, actually, as I was looking for stock photos, I realized that in the spirit of full discloser, I should share that I don't actually fold my crepes. I just leave 'em open. I'm lazy, I can have more guts to crepe ratio and they taste just as good.

pic from here.

5 comments:

Frequent Traveler said...

Small strawberries - home grown/farmer's market are definitely the best !

The large ones tend to be mealy and dry, even if they look very dramatic.

Crepes are good.

Glad you found that out about the cinnamon, Gillette !

Anonymous said...

This sounds scrumptious!
Yeah small is better...well for some things. Definitely in strawberries.

I don't care much for cinnamon...mostly overdone to my taste buds.Bbut I will give it a try here.

Love all kinds of crepes.
And blintz too.

Moi said...

Me, too, Annie...more excuse to eat it, my little pretty (not sure where that came from, but made me laugh).

And yes to all else you said. Yes.





Ha...small better for some things...hehehehe...

And yeah...hey...if it's not your thing, it's simply not. Just happens to be one of mine. And I always do intense on the herb/spice thingie. I credit it to my Leonian/Italian nature.

Yeah...forgot they are called that when not rolled up ;)...giggles...never said I was an expert, just a snob ;)

I AM ANOTHER said...

I'm confused as to why a crepe made out of only egg and milk/cream would end up tasting like a crepe and not eggy...it's only egg! Does the cinnamon and stevia have something to do with that? Plus I don't know how to cook a crepe, nor have a crepe pan. Can I use a regular pan. Do you butter the pan first?...little more info on cooking this "crepe" would help me. I want to make some!

Moi said...

Hi, I Am Another...

I'm not sure why it doesn't either, except for, as you say, the stevia and cinnamon mask it. Let me be clear here...to ME it doesn't taste very eggy. In fact, to me it tastes less eggy than regular crepes I've had. The consistency is nothing like regular eggs, either (well...again to me. I truly wonder how much we all "taste" the same things when we eat).

Yes, you can use a small pan...six inches or less. It has to be a pretty seasoned pan so it doesn't stick. Yes, I butter the pan beforehand.

You heat the pan, melt the butter. Make sure the pan is pretty hot, like you would a pancake before you being. Pour a small amount of the batter in the pan...make it thin, crepes are. Then you notice the edges "drying" and looking cooked, the middle still able to stay intact, then flip it over to cook the other side. You have to watch that you don't get it too brown on that initial cook, but you also don't want to undercook it as then when you flip it, it will fall apart because there's no "substance" to the crepe. Just think thin pancake.

Enjoy!