All Easy Recipes. Cook all that you can cook. Filled French Pancakes
(Crepes Fourrees Gratinees)
 
What You Need:            (To make 16 stuffed crepes)
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CREPES
  • 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • ¼ cup water
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled with 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

    DUXELLES
  • ¾ pound fresh mushrooms, finely chopped (about 3 cups)
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 4 tablespoons finely chopped shallots or scallions
  • 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 teaspoon finely cut fresh chives
  • Salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper

    VELOUTE SAUCE
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 6 tablespoons butter
  • ¾ cup heavy cream
  • ½ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2½ cups hot chicken stock,fresh or canned
  • ¼ teaspoon white pepper
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice

    THE FILLING AND TOPPING
  • 1 cup sauteed and diced chicken livers (about ½ pound), or 1 cup cooked and diced shrimp (about 1 pound raw shrimp in the shell), or ¼ cup finely chopped defrosted frozen artichoke hearts sauteed in
  • 2 tablespoons butter with
  • ¼ cup diced smoked or boiled ham
  • 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh parsley or tarragon
  • Lemon juice
  • Salt
  • White pepper
  • 1 cup grated, imported Swiss cheese or Swiss and Parmesan combined
  • 4 tablespoons butter, in tiny pieces
  • ¼ to ½ cup heavy cream

  • How To Cook:
    1. THE CREPES: To make the batter in a blender combine flour, eggs, milk, water, salt and 3 tablespoons melted butter in the blender jar and blend them at high speed for a few seconds. Turn the machine off, scrape down the sides of the jar and blend again for 40 seconds.

    2. To make the batter by hand, stir the flour and eggs together in a mixing bowl and gradually stir in the milk, water and salt. Beat with a whisk or rotary or electric beater until the flour lumps disappear, then force through a fine sieve into another bowl and stir in 3 tablespoons of melted butter.

    3. The batter should be the consistency of heavy cream; dilute it if necessary by beating in cold water a teaspoon at a time. In either case, refrigerate the batter in the blender jar or bowl for an hour or two before using it.

    4. Now heat a 6-inch crepepan or skillet over high heat until a drop of water flicked into it evaporates instantly. With a pastry brush, lightly grease the bottom and sides of the pan with a little of the melted butter and oil combination.

    5. With a small ladle pour about 2 tablespoons of batter into the pan and tip the pan so that the batter quickly covers the bottom; the batter should cling ro the pan and begin to firm up almost immediately. At once tilt the pan over the bowl and pour off any excess batter; the finished crepe should be paper thin.

    6. Cook the crepe for a minute or so until a rim of brown shows around the edge. Turn it over with a spatula and cook the othersidefor a minute longer. Slide the crepe onto a plate. Brush butter and oil on the skillet again and proceed with the rest of the cripes. The cripes should be no more than 1 1/6 inch thick.

    7. Dilute the batter by beating in drops of waterif necessary. Crepes may be made hours or even days ahead of time and kept, tightly covered, in the refrigerator or freezer. If you do this, let them return to room temperature before attempting to separate them.

    8. DUXELLES: A handful at a time, place the chopped mushrooms in the corner of a rowel and squeeze to extract as much juice as possible. In a heavy 8- to 10-inch skillet, melt 4 tablespoons of butter over moderate heat. Before the foam subsides, stir in the shallots and cook them, stirring constantly, for 1 or 2 minutes or until they are soft but not brown.

    9. Stir in the squeezed, chopped mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, for 10 to 15 minutes or until the moisture they give off has evaporated and they are on the point of browning. Transfer them to a bowl and stir in the parsley and chives. Season with salt and pepper. This makes about 1 cup.

    10. VELOUTE SAUCE: In a heavy 2- to 3-quart saucepan, melt the 6 tablespoons of butter, then stir in ½ cup of flour and cook, stirring constantly, over low heat for about a minute. Remove from heat, let cool a moment, and vigorously beat in the hot chicken stock.

    11. When the roux and liquid are blended, return to moderately high heat, stirring thoroughly until the sauce comes to a boil. Boil, stirring, for 1 minute, then remove from heat. With a clean whisk, blend the egg yolks and ¾ cup of cream together in a bowl.

    12. Whisk in the hot sauce, 2 tablespoons at a time, until ½ cup has been added. Still off the heat, reverse the process and slowly pour the egg yolk cream mixture back into the remaining hot sauce, whisking until it is smooth and creamy. Bring to a boil over moderate heat, still stirring, and boil slowly for 10 seconds. Remove from the heat at once and season with salt, pepper and lemon juice. This makes about 3½ cups of very thick sauce.

    13. THE FILLING AND TOPPING: Preheat the oven to 375 . In a large mixing bowl, combine the chicken livers, shrimp or sauteed ham and artichoke hearts with 1 teaspoon parsley. (Saute the artichoke hearts in 2 tablespoons of butter for 1 or 2 minutes, then add the ham and cook them for another minute or so.)

    14. Stir in the duxelles and ½ cup of veloute sauce. The mixture should be just thick enough to hold its shape in a spoon; add up to ½ cup more of veloute sauce if necessary.

    15. Taste and season with lemon juice, salt and pepper. Spoon a scant 2 tablespoons of filling on the lower third of each crepeand roll it up; do not tuck in the ends. Thin the remaining veloute sauce with cream until it flows heavily off a spoon. Butter a baking serving dish large enough to hold all the rolled crepes and spread a film of veloute sauce on the bottom. Arrange the crepes side by side in the dish.

    16. Mask them with the rest of the sauce and sprinkle the cheese on top. Dot with bits of butter. Bake in the upper third of the oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until the sauce bubbles. The top should be lightly browned; if it isn't, slide the dish under a hot broiler for a few seconds. Serve at once.

     
     
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