Crêpe Suzette

Pancakes in boozy orange juice.

Crêpe Suzette is really easy to make - I used to make it for breakfast when we spent our summers in France in the 80s/90s. If you substitute butter for marg and ensure you use vegan alcohol; pretty much any Crêpe Suzette recipe will work.

In fact, you don't really need a recipe at all. Just melt some margarine in a pan and add orange juice/peel, lemon juice/peel, sugar and Cointreau to taste. Simmer down slightly, add pancakes and warm through. If flambéing's your thing then pour a ladle of flaming cointreau or brandy over at the end - it's not strictly needed though. You can leave out the booze altogether if you like.

Here's the quantities I used last night:

• 6 Pancakes
• Knob of Margarine
• 1 Orange (zest only)
• 1 Lemon (zest + juice)
• 200ml Orange Juice
• 100g Castor Sugar
• 75ml Cointreau + extra for flambéing

I blogged my pancake recipe a year ago (clicky click) which worked perfectly. I mixed half of the soya milk with the flour first, then whisked in the rest of the milk. It looked a little thin at first but seemed to do the job and came out lump free.

Zest the orange and the lemon, then juice the lemon. Add to the orange juice along with the sugar and cointreau.

Heat the margarine in a pan, then add the liquid. Simmer for 5 minutes so that it reduces slightly and becomes more syrupy. Taste and add more sugar / booze as needed.

You may choose to remove the zest at this point - whilst it looks nice it doesn't taste so great. Add the pancakes one by one, sliding under the sauce then folding into quarters. Warm through for a couple of minutes.

If you feel the need to set fire to things; either seek professional help or heat a ladle of cointreau, light and add to the pan (or pour the Crêpe Suzette once served).

You can serve with icecream if you like, but it tastes perfectly fine on its own. I can thoroughly recommend eating it immediately whilst the pancakes are still delicate. I discovered to my dismay last night that if you pounce around with a camera for 20 minutes they can become rather chewy! :O

Pancakes

With Pancake Day looming I thought now would be an opportune moment to blog a vegan pancake recipe.

The pancakes we eat in the UK on Pancake Day are the large thin type, similar to crepes. They're basically just batter fried off on a non-stick pan, with little to no fat. You can either use a pan purchased with a non-stick coating or a traditional pan with natural coating developed over time. Whilst less romantic the former is easier, more hygienic and dishwasherable.

I've realised in the past few years that it's not so much the ingredients of the batter that matter, rather the consistency of mixture and temperature of the pan. Therefore for a simple batter all you need is plain soya milk and plain wheat flour - no egg replacer or shite like that. As they pancakes will be filled you needn't worry too much about developing their flavour.

Ingredients (makes 6 pancakes):

• 125g Plain Wheat Flour
• 350ml Soya Milk

Whisk the ingredients together, using an immersion blender if required to get it lump free. Heat the pan over a medium high flame and brush with a small amount of margarine.

Pour a ladleful of batter in the centre of the pan, then tilt to get even distrubtion. If required poor a little extra batter into any holes. If the pan is hot enough the batter should start to dry out and bubble within seconds - being ready to flip in 90-120.

Gently ease the edges after 30-60 seconds with a spatula and check it's cooking underneath. When golden ensure the pancake is fully loose and flip it over. Cook for up to 30 seconds on the other side, then serve. You'll probably find the first one doesn't work - this is quite normal.

The 'video' that follows was shot last night on my extremely crap iPhone 3G's camera (which wasn't designed to do video), after I'd had several cocktails and was feeling the effect. As such the quality and cameraman skills are somewhat lacking, but you should be able to gauge the general technique.


Last night's were filled with warm cherry compote and served with vanilla icecream, but lemon juice and sugar is more traditional. You can be as creative with fillings as you want - either sweet or savoury. Favourites include soya bolognaise, blackberry & apple stew, chopped banana & chocolate sauce.