The Crepe Paper

My mom came into town today to visit, and she took me out to eat at the Ethiopian Diamond. I first ate there the day before Valentine's, and I became obsessed. You know when you crave something so intensely everything pales in comparison? I couldn't get that sourdough-ish bread out of mind, but it's too costly to keep it in sight.

It reminded me of something I remember Alton Brown saying, that every culture has a variation of the tortilla. I had never thought about it before, but it's true: There's the flour/corn tortilla, the pita, the spring rice roll, and the crepe. (Though, to be fair, I guess most of these things involve the same ingredients, and the need to pick up something messy without silverware is probably a universal concern.) My love affair with the crepe began in high school when our French Club would host an annual Crepe Party, where we basically had an excuse to eat loads of chocolate and fruit and feel fancy doing so. Anything that can pick up curries, strawberries, and eggs (thought not at the same time--I hope) is fabulous in my book, and it should be in yours as well.

The funny thing about crepes is that their recipe is very scientific. The recipe follow something like this: 2 parts flour to every part milk, and 2 eggs per part flour. The more melted butter, the better, and 1/4 tsp. salt is necessary. At least that's what I've found works well.

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 cup milk
4 eggs
4 tbs butter
1/4 tsp salt

Also: 
A toothpick
Some better to melt in a pan

1. Break the eggs into a bowl and add the salt. Whisk together.

2. Alternate between adding about 1/3 cup flour with 1/3 cup milk and whisk. It will be lumpy until all the ingredients are added, but you'll want a nice, smooth batter at the end that stays on your finger when you dip it in but also doesn't feel sticky. Add the butter.

3. Melt some butter in a small pan, and ladle about 1/8 cup (or a ladle's worth--this is relatively the best amount to use) into the pan, and pick up the pan and swirl the batter around until it's met the sides and sets. People are always thrown off by this step, but it really just requires about 20 seconds of concentration. You'll see the batter set because it changes color and takes on a bubble-y texture.

4. Rim the crepe with the toothpick and flip. The first few always fall apart, and I think there's some wive's tale about that. Regardless, it will take practice to get a good feeling of how to move swiftly to reverse them. It's not hard after that.

5. Top with literally anything you want--though I prefer sweet stuff on mine. Bananas, syrups, sugars, pineapples, apples... The list goes on!!

You'll make a surprisingly large amount of crepes with this recipe, so it's alwas good to make them in the presence of others, or else you'll eat them like pizza bagels: Anytime.