German Pancakes

Of all the things I could learn from Brett's mom, I think this is what he is most grateful for: German pancakes, otherwise known as crepes. Although Brett is not a big fan of breakfast food, as I have mentioned a few times, he loves his German pancakes. They take a bit of effort to make, so I usually only fix them on slower mornings when Brett is home from work. I knew that this morning would be one of those days, and since I wasn't able to make German pancakes for Brett on Father's Day I thought it would be nice to do it today. I made it even easier for myself by making the batter, emptying the dishwasher, and setting the table the night before. It made everything go so much more smoothly in the morning. The boys (all of them) love German pancakes, so I am usually standing at the stove with two pans going at the same time trying to keep up with them. Today I was actually able to sit at the table while Todd and Ryan were still eating.

We eat our crepes/German pancakes with lemon juice and powdered sugar in the middle, rolled up, and sprinkled with a little more sugar. I tried them one time with lime juice instead and now prefer the lime to the lemon. Brett calls me a traitor for not using the lemon. I also like them with raspberry jam and whipped cream. I tried applesauce once (and only once). Evidently, Marianne often had it that way as a child, but it wasn't sweet enough for me (big surprise!).

The boys still refer to this breakfast as "Squid Pancakes." That started about a year or so ago. We rolled the pancakes for the boys and cut them into thin pieces. The pieces unrolled when they were trying to eat them and became long, thin strips. Brett joked that it was like eating squid, and the name stuck. Ryan often asks for squid pancakes.

Marianne has been making these for so long that she doesn't use a recipe at all. I needed something more specific when I was learning how to perfect my crepes and found this recipe in a cooking book. It is very detailed, which I appreciated at the time. However, I will try to pare them down here (since I don't feel like typing all four pages!). I make up the batter in a blender, which is a trick Marianne showed me and one that James Beard recommends as well. I find that I can just fit a double batch in my blender. It takes a double batch to feed all four of us. We tend to stuff ourselves when we have German pancakes.

Crepes
Source: James Beard's Theory and Practice of Good Cooking

Batter for crepes:
3 eggs
1/8 salt
1 to 1 1/4 cups milk or beer (use beer only for nonsweet or savory crepes)
7/8 cup (1 cup less 2 tablespoons) all-purpose flour
4 to 5 tablespoons melted butter [divided]

For dessert crepes [which is how I make our German pancakes], add:
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cognac
Or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1. Put all the ingredients in the blender at one time and blend until smooth and well mixed. The batter should be smooth, free of lumps, and have the consistency of heavy cream. Depending upon the dryness of the weather and, therefore, the flour, you may need to add the remaining 1/4 cup liquid, but wait until the flour is thoroughly mixed in and then judge. It is better to underestimate the amount of liquid. You can always mix in more later if your batter seems too thick. Often you find that the batter thickens considerably after it has rested and needs to be thinned with a little more liquid.
2. Cover the batter and let it rest at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours, or up to 12 hours in the refrigerator if you wish to make the batter well ahead of time.
3. When you are ready to bake the crepes, uncover the batter and beat with the whisk, as the flour will have settled. If the batter is thicker than heavy cream, add a little extra liquid.
4. Put a metal crepe pan on medium-high heat, or a Teflon-lined pan on medium heat. Let the pan get good and hot, then brush it with melted butter. The butter should sizzle but not brown or burn. If it does, the pan is too hot.
5. Use just enough batter to cover the bottom of the pan in a thin layer. When the butter sizzles, dip your ladle or measure into the batter and scoop up about 3 tablespoons, or a little less than 1/4 cup. Pour the batter into the pan with one hand, and holding the handle of the pan with your opposite hand, raise the pan from the heat and tilt it so the batter quickly swirls around and runs over the bottom of the pan. Replace the pan on the heat and bake the crepe for about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes, until the surface is set and the crepe moves slightly when you shake the pan.
6. Turn the crepe. Bake the second side, which will take only about half a minutes, then turn the crepe out by quickly inverting the pan over the plate.
7. To store crepes, put waxed paper between them, remove them from the plate when cool, wrap them in aluminum foil, and freeze them.