Paleo Crepes

Maybe Miriam was right.
Maybe blueberry preserves don't photograph very well.
Live and learn, I guess. The crepes are still delicious.

If the cheese-eating surrender-monkeys got one thing right, it's probably crepes. They're essentially a wrap for other things, and depending on what you wrap them around, they can be breakfast, lunch, dinner, or dessert. Regular crepes are already close to paleo, because their primary ingredient is eggs. Unfortunately, crepes also normally have wheat flour in them, which is pretty much item number one on the things-that-aren't paleo list.

I tried several times to substitute something else for the flour. Coconut flour and almond flour were both particularly dismal failures. Then, a pair of ladies from Catalyst Meals turned me onto the idea of using arrowroot powder. It works like a charm. I'm not a crepe expert or anything, but I can't tell any difference between these crepes and regular crepes.

Without any filling, these crepes are pretty darn paleo. If you're the kind of person who wants to eat crepes with no filling, though, then I don't know if we can be friends. Let's just assume that you're going to fill them. If you decide to fill these with something that's paleo, then you can eat them whenever you want. You could also decide to lean a little toward the indulgences category by filling them with fruit preserves or something else a little sweeter.

You'll also need some oil to grease the pan, and some water.

Ingredients

6 eggs
4 tbsp arrowroot powder
3 tbsp water
coconut oil


Equipment

Blender
Non-stick Pan
Thin Spatula

Add the eggs, arrowroot powder, and water to the blender. Blend the ingredients for about 15 seconds, until everything is completely blended together into a very loose batter. Set the batter aside for a few minutes to let it settle.

That, my friends, is the carafe from a Magic Bullet blender.
If you don't own one, you should ask yourself, "why not?"

Put your pan over medium heat and add about a teaspoon of coconut oil to it. As the oil melts, move the pan around so that the entire surface of the pan is coated in oil. It's very important to grease the pan evenly so that the crepes won't stick. Allow a minute or two for the pan to completely heat up.

You don't have to use coconut oil. Any oil will work.
(Well, olive oil may make your crepes taste like olives, but if you do a savory filling, that might be OK)

Pour about 1/4 cup of the batter into the center of the pan. Tilt the pan in a circular motion so that the batter spreads out into a circle. Put the pan back onto the heat and let the crepe cook on its first side until it is almost cooked all the way through. You should jiggle the pan a little as the crepe cooks to help keep it from sticking.

Here's a very short video of me doing a poor job of making the first crepe. It's a decent illustration of the tilting motion you should try to use, though.

Carefully use the spatula to flip the crepe onto its second side. Let this side cook for about a minute. Again, jiggle the pan a little as the crepe cooks to help keep it from sticking.

Carefully transfer the crepe to a plate. You may be able to slide the crepe out of the pan onto the plate, or you may have to use the spatula to move it. Be careful not to tear the crepe.

This is what your crepes should look like. If they are more brown than this, then your pan is too hot.

Cook the rest of the crepes using the same method as the first. Before you add the batter for each new crepe, you have to re-grease the pan with another teaspoon of coconut oil and give it about 30 seconds over the heat to get back up to the right temperature.

As you make each crepe, you can stack them by putting a square of wax paper between on top of each crepe as you make the stack. If you stack the crepes directly on top of each other, they may stick together.

Now that you have a stack of crepes, fill them with your choice of filling. Here are some suggestions:

• Chicken salad
• Deli meats
• Fruit preserves
• Almond butter
• Apple butter

Notes

• Crepes are tricky. They're thin, so it's easy to tear them when flipping them. To help avoid destroying your crepes, use a Teflon coated pan, and then make sure that the whole surface is greased with the coconut oil. A spatula made of very thin material also helps when you flip them.
• The amount of batter you need for each crepe depends largely on the size of the pan you're using. My only non-stick pan is actually a little large for this recipe, which makes it a little difficult to get the crepes into a nice round shape. Ideally, I'd use a pan in the 8-10 inch range (mine is more like 12).
• Your crepes shouldn't brown very much when cooking. If they do, you've probably got the heat too high.
• The batter for this recipe should be pretty thin. When you add it to the pan, it should flow freely while you tilt the pan to expand the crepe. If it doesn't, you need to add a little more water.