Pennsyltucky Griddle Crêpes

Welcome to the Virtual Vegan Potluck’s dessert tray! My vegan Pennsyltucky Griddle Crêpes are filled with regional goodness that represent what my blog is all about, exploring vegetarianism in central Pennsylvania of the United States of America. For another helping of Lou’s Creamy Beetroot & Coconut Tart with Chai Spices and Fresh Mint on her fridge scrapings blog, press the “go back” button.

If my recipe and demonstration video don’t demystify vegan crêpes, nothing will.

I haven’t made anything that has required a lot of cooking skill in months with all of my energy having gone into marathon training. The race is over but the big hungry appetite lingers on. I awoke early one Sunday morning with the hopes of trying out the new restaurant downtown that offers vegan crêpes. They don’t open until 11 AM and I got the crazy notion to just use what I have in my pantry and cupboard to make my own.

Taking on vegan crêpes seemed like a huge deal when I read all of the other recipes that highly suggested the use of special non-stick crêpe pans, thin round tipped metal spatulas or wooden crêpe turners and spreaders.

I only have cast iron griddles/skillets so vegan crêpe success seemed highly unlikely. Let me share the ingredients I had and *the advice I used that lead to a complete success.*

Pennsyltucky Crêpes
yields six 9″ vegan crêpes

Ingredients
1 Cup all purpose flour
1/4 Cup tapioca starch (got mine at a local Asian market)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 Cup plant-based milk (I used coconut)
2 Tablespoons maple syrup
spray oil for griddle
1/2 Cup plant-based whipped topping (I used MimicCream’s Healthy Top that I got from Spencer’s Market)
1/2 Cup apple butter
ground cinnamon for topping

Directions
Sift first the 4 dry ingredients together. Add them as well as the milk and maple syrup to a blender. *Blend together for about 30 seconds and scrape sides down to make sure all ingredients are smooth. Refrigerate batter for 1 – 2 hours.*

Pre-heat skillet over medium-high heat until a light sprinkle of water sizzles and dances away. Pour one serving of the chilled batter into 1/3 Cup measuring cup and allow the rest to remain in the refrigerator. Give the griddle a very light spray of oil (my cast iron is well seasoned) and pour the 1/3 C batter into the center of the hot skillet. Immediately tip the skillet in a gentle circular motion so that the batter spreads into an ever increasingly large and thin round crêpe (see video clip below). You can see the outer edges will be wafer thin as you set it back onto the heat.

Small bubbles will form on the surface over the next minute or so as the top starts to dry out. You will notice it will lose its glossy wet look and you can actually touch it without leaving a fingerprint. The crêpe will be close to being ready to be flipped when the papery edges are lifting away from the skillet. Use a spatula to lift an edge, or as I did gently with my fingers, and peek to see if the center is golden. The crêpe may even start to shift on its own and can be flipped with a spatula or by hand. A dear Pennsyltucky grandfather I knew, Pup Pup Deihl, said flipping pancakes more than once makes them go sour. Stick with his advice and allow about 30 second for the finishing touches on the second side your crêpe.

Crêpes should be moist with just a slight crispiness on the outside and I liked serving them before they lost that crisp exterior. I made a couple at a time and filled them to serve before I went back to the griddle. Use a couple tablespoons of plant-based whipped topping and the same amount of good old dutchy apple butter as a filling and roll them up. Garnish with a dollop of whipped topping, apple butter and/or cinnamon.

This was the first time I have ever made crêpes and they ALL turned out. They made for a really special brunch but will also make a great dessert for our Virtual Vegan Potluck. Be glad you saved room for them, they are delicious!
Don’t stop now, hold on to your fork and head on over to K-bobo’s Gormandize with Us for a big helping of creativity and flavor and some Chocolate Banana Ice Cream Pie. Just click on the “go forward” button to continue to enjoy the Virtual Vegan Potluck.