This recipe is part of the Made–To–Order Recipe Series. The Made–To–Order Recipe Series introduces a standard recipe with countless potential variations, along with several suggested preparations to choose from. The standard recipe will equip you with the blueprint and inspiration to customize the recipe to your taste and preferences. After making one of the variations from The All Purpose Kitchen, I encourage you to put your own spin on the recipe and make it yours, Made–To–Order. For an in depth description of the crêpe making process, how to fill crêpes, and how to store crêpes, head over to the Crêpes Made–To–Order Recipe.
I’m a maple syrup snob; I’m not afraid to admit it. If a maple syrup has any artificial flavors, thickeners, corn syrup, color additives — if there is anything other than pure reduced maple tree sap — I wont touch it. That is not at all to say that I can’t enjoy crêpes without maple syrup; there are plenty of suitable alternatives. Crêpes in all their versatility pair wonderfully with honey, fruit jams, brown sugar, or nutella. However, pure maple syrup pooled around a warm crêpe topped with fresh fruit, is absolutely magical and there’s nothing quite like it. If you’re making a batch of crêpe batter, I definitely recommend that you enjoy one this way before trying one of the other options from the Crêpes Made–To–Order Recipe Series:
- Crêpes Made–To–Order Recipe
- Crêpes with Nutella and Banana
- Crêpes with Brown Sugar and Bourbon Peaches
- Crêpes with Egg, Cheddar and Sautéed Spinach
- Parmesan Crêpes with Pesto, Sun–Dried Tomato, Mozzarella and Prosciutto
- Crêpe Cake with Maple Buttercream
Maple Syrup!
Join me in geeking out to some maple syrup factoids…
Maple syrup is nothing more than tree sap boiled down to a syrup. The trick to achieving the magic of pure maple syrup is the right tree, the right time of year, and the right evaporation process. Only the north eastern region of North America possesses the ideal conditions for maple syrup production, and virtually all of the world’s maple syrup supply comes from this region, with Quebec, Canada accounting for 75% of global production.
Sugar maple trees produce the best syrup, and only for a 4-6 week season between February and April, depending on the exact location. During maple season, the temperatures must be below freezing at night and approximately 40-45 degrees fahrenheit during the days. This provides the correct pressure for the maple sap to flow. The maple season ends as the weather warms, the flow of sap slows, the leaf buds begin to open, and the sap turns bitter.
The trees are tapped by drilling a hole in the trunk and inserting a spout. When collected, the sap is almost entirely clear water, with a sugar content of about 2%. The sap is then boiled to evaporate water until the concentration of sugar reaches 67% and the syrup is 219 degrees fahrenheit.
A healthy tree will yield about 10 gallons of sap per season, and it takes about 40 gallons of raw sap to produce 1 gallon of maple syrup. Following responsible farming practices, the harvesting process does not negatively impact the health of the maple trees. A healthy tree can produce sap for over 100 years.
Maple syrup is graded based on color and flavor. As long as the syrup is free of any impurities, additives, and flawed aromas or flavors it is labelled Grade A. There are then 4 sub–categories which come down to personal preference rather than quality. The categories range from the lightest color and most delicate flavor to the darkest color and most concentrated flavor. They are therefore intuitively named: “Golden Color and Delicate Taste,” “Amber Color and Rich Taste,” “Dark Color and Robust Taste,” “Very Dark and strong Taste.” In general, lighter maple syrups are best for drizzling or finishing a dish, and darker syrups are best for cooking with, but this is still subjective and there’s no wrong choice when it comes to pure maple syrup.
Crêpes with Fresh Berries and Maple Syrup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, plus more for cooking crêpes
- 1 cup (5 oz) All Purpose Flour
- 1 teaspoon Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 1 Egg
- 1¼ cups Whole Milk
- 2 cups Fresh Berries (any combination of strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, or blackberry)
- 1 cup Maple Syrup
Instructions
- Microwave butter in 20 second intervals until melted; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, whisk the egg and milk until uniform. Sift about ½ of the dry ingredients mixture through a fine–mesh strainer over the milk mixture; whisk together until a few lumps remain. Sift remaining dry ingredients over the batter; whisk until a few lumps remain. Add the melted butter and whisk until smooth.
- Set a 12–inch non–stick skillet over medium–low heat for 3 minutes. Increase heat to medium; melt ½ tablespoon butter until bubbling subsides and butter begins to smell nutty, 2 minutes. Ladle ¼ cup batter in center of pan; lift pan off of heat and tilt in circular motion to disperse batter over surface. Cook until bottom of crêpe is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Flip crêpe and cook until second side is spotty golden brown, about 1 minute. Crêpes can be served immediately, or stacked and covered with aluminum foil to keep warm. Continue cooking batter, adding more butter to the pan as needed.
- To serve, fold crêpes in quarters and arrange 2 crêpes per plate. Divide berries evenly over crêpes. Warm maple syrup for 30 seconds in microwave. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of maple syrup over each plate of crêpes. Serve crêpes, passing remaining maple syrup at the table.
Notes
- Low–fat or dairy–free milk can be substituted for the whole milk.
- If using salted butter, omit the salt from the batter.
- The batter can be cooked right away, but will develop even more delicious flavor if allowed to rest refrigerated overnight.
- Batter can be covered and refrigerated for up to a week; whisk to recombine before cooking. Cooked crêpes that are cooled to room temperature can be stored together in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1 week, or in the freezer for 1 month. To reheat, stack crêpes, cover with a damp paper towel, and heat in microwave until warm, about 30 seconds.
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