10/26/10 ~ Plate Fodder

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Gluten-Free Crepes and a Sandwich (sideways, sort of...)

6:39 PM Toby Corn

Eggs Used - 8

To be honest - I don't make very good crepes. They always come out too pancake-y, too tough, too dough-y. I know it isn't the recipe - it's me. Which is probably why I came up with what I call the poor man's version. Essentially, it was a teaspoon of self rising flour blended into an egg and cooked dry on a non-stick griddle.

not..very..glamorous

I know... but crepes are just vehicles to do other things with. So, if I cheat a little on the wrapper, I can spend more time on the good stuff that goes inside....right? I mean, are you really that upset when your hot-dogs come encased in those manufactured protein sleeves as opposed to, well..... intestines?

yeah...

So, back to the crepes.... Even though the easy way works pretty darned well, the egg crepes still lacked a little in the taste department. I've been playing around with gluten-free baking mixes for almost a year now, and using xanthan gum as one of the additives to create some of the missing gluten stickiness. I decided to replace the self rising flour with my baking mix to see if it made any real difference.

Success! The crepes actually have a more true crepe texture and taste, although.. they still are a little "eggy." - But since I do love me some eggy flavor, the gluten-free crepes do just fine in savory as well as sweet applications. The upside to the whole non-traditional crepe is that they just hold up much better than traditional crepes and you really don't have to be terribly careful with them in filling.

Just so you know, the gluten free crepes also make an excellent alternative for flour tortillas in burritos and quesadillas.

So to begin with - the baking mix:

1 Tablespoon Amaranth or Sorghum Flour
1 Tablespoon Sweet Rice Flour
1 Tablespoon Potato Starch
1/2 Teaspoon Xanthan Gum
Place all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk well to combine - Set Aside

Gluten-Free Crepes
Makes 16 Crepes
Ingredients
8 Eggs
8 Teaspoons Baking Mix (if you are not concerned with gluten-free, or don't feel like hunting up the ingredients, substitute 1 teaspoon of self rising flour for each egg)
1 Non-Stick Griddle
1 Spatula
1 Blender
1 2-ounce Ladle
1 Small Bowl

Heat the non-stick griddle over medium heat
Place the eggs in the blender and blend on high for 20 seconds
Add the baking mix and blend until smooth (about 1 minute)
Filling the ladle, move to the center of the griddle, and in an outward spiraling move, tilt the batter onto the cooking surface to make an 8" circle. (Use the back of the ladle to fill in any holes the you may have missed.)
When the 1st side is cooked (about 30 seconds) carefully lift the edge of the crepe with the spatula and flip over
Cook for another 15 to 20 seconds.
Lift the crepe off with the spatula and transfer to a plate.

Now for the "sandwich"...

When I was a kid, the mall near my house had a Magic Pan Crepery. And, on special occasions, or when we were very good, we would get to go and have a grown-up lunch there. I loved the Magic Pan. I could stand there for hours and watch that crepe making contraption whirl those crepe pans around over the flames, cooking each one to perfection. It was nothing short of mesmerizing.

In addition to what you would expect, filled crepes, they also had a sandwich - a Muffaletta. Layers of meat and cheese - expertly shuffled between layers of crepe. It was a wedge of heaven.

It was also many years later before I realized that that wasn't what a muffaletta was...at all.
Still, it was a creative sandwich... and in my book, that makes it a great sandwich.
Here is my take on the Crepe Muffaletta.

Crepe Muffaletta
Serves 4
Ingredients
6 - 8" Crepes (recipe above... or use the frozen ones...or make your own)
1/4 Pound Thin sliced Provalone
1/4 Pound Thin Sliced Mortedella
1/4 Pound Thin Sliced Genoa Salami
1/4 Pound Thin Sliced Ham
1 Cup Olive Spread (Recipe Follows)
1 Cup Roasted Red Pepper - (Drained and pressed dry and cut into strips)