Sweet Crêpes with Cream Cheese Filling

I made blueberry compote the other day, and I thought: what better to go with this compote than crêpes with a deliciously creamy filling? Crêpes are great because they can be made sweet or savory, and you can top them with almost anything your heart desires. The batter is very simple to make, and you can even prepare it up to 48 hours in advance. It can also be used to make savory crêpes, if you don’t include the brown sugar and vanilla extract in the batter.

Crêpes can be a little intimidating because they can be hard to get exactly right. Your crêpes don’t have to be perfect in order for them to still taste good. You’re probably going to throw the first few in the trash. But with a little bit of practice, the process gets easier. It’s all about trial and error.

Ingredients:

For crêpes :

• 3/4 cup of milk
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1 cup of flour
• 3 tbsp of melted butter
• 2 large eggs
• 2 1/2 tbsp of brown sugar
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract
• 1-2 tbsp of butter, to coat the pan
• 1/4 cup of confectioners sugar, for dusting
• Note: this will make approximately 15-20 crêpes (varying depending on size), but if you’re like me, you might want to anticipate this number being on the low-end because some crêpes won’t be successful.

For filling:

• 8oz of cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup of confectioners sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp of lemon juice
• 1 tsp of lemon zest
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract
• 1 cup of heavy whipping cream

Other recommended toppings:

• Blueberry compote
• Sliced strawberries
• Hazelnut spread
• Sliced bananas
• Your favorite jam or jelly

Directions:

1. In a blender, combine eggs, milk, water, melted butter, brown sugar, and vanilla extract. Pulse the batter for roughly 7-10 seconds, until everything is combined. Be sure not to over mix the batter as doing so will cause the gluten to overdevelop, resulting in a tougher crêpe.
2. Once complete, put the batter in the refrigerator for 1 hour. This will make your crêpes less likely to tear and prevent holes, as some of the bubbles in the batter will have gone away. This step is optional, but something I have always done.
3. While the crêpe batter rests, prepare the filling. In a medium-sized bowl, add the heavy whipping cream. Using a whisk, or an electric mixer, beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Set aside.
4. In a separate medium-sized bowl, add the softened cream cheese. Using an electric mixture, blend the cream cheese until it becomes smooth. Add the lemon juice, and lemon zest, and blend. Sift the confectioners sugar in one half cup at a time to prevent any clumps, blending after the first half, and again after the addition of the second half. Continue to blend until it is smooth and creamy. Add the prepared whipped cream to the bowl. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture until it is fully combined.
5. To cook the crêpes, heat a small non-stick pan and then coat the pan with a small amount of butter. Pour approximately 2 tbsp of batter (the more you use, the bigger the crêpes will be) into the pan, spreading the batter out thin by using the back of a ladle or rotating the pan. Cook until the batter is set, and then gently flip over using a spatula. Cook both sides until they are lightly browned and the edges are crisp. Quick tip: in my experience, spreading the batter out is easiest when the pan is heated over a lower temperature. The higher the temperature, the quicker the batter will set, making it difficult to spread it out thin.
6. Stack the crêpes on a flat surface to cool. Repeat step 5 until you have your desired amount of crêpes, or until all the batter is used.
7. To serve, fill each crêpe with the cream cheese filling. Stuff and top with fresh fruit (like sliced strawberries or bananas), or blueberry compote. Another great addition to the cream cheese filling is hazelnut spread, or your favorite jam or jelly.
8. Lightly dust the crêpes with confectioners sugar & enjoy!

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