My parents were out of town this weekend, so naturally I made the most over-the-top breakfast I could think of. I love my family, but when it comes to eating, they are not patient. They cannot even begin to fathom why it may take longer than 30 minutes to prepare breakfast, when one can so easily opt for cereal or porridge.
They would not have tolerated the hour-long preparation for these crepes – but I’m here to tell you why you should. The short answer? Because they were freakin’ awesome. And because if you love brunch even half as much as I do, then these will blow your mind (related: since moving away from Ottawa I am so brunch deprived!).
The over-the-top description is not just because of the time they took to make, either. Oh no. The ingredients were also of heart-stopping decadence. I might have made the crepes on a pan greased with…bacon fat.
Oh god. Still here? Good. Phew. I was sure you would have jumped up and gone running away from your computer shrieking “she has turned into a fat-loving, cholesterol-raising Paula Deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen.” Or something like that.
If my dietician mom had been here on Saturday, she never, EVER would have let me serve these. She practically disowned me when I told her I fried potatoes in duck fat (STILL THE BEST THING EVER). But you know what? Indulging is okay every once in awhile. As my friend Christine put it over Facebook, this meal was “very eastern European of me.” I couldn’t help it. The bacon fat was just sitting on the counter, looking all forlorn in a little glass bowl. It brought a tear to my eye.
Well, now that the confessional is over…
Making crepes was an adventure. I’ve only ever sort-of made crepes before, back at the end of third year (two years ago, but who’s counting?) when my friend Alan (yes, the one mentioned in the recent pizza post) came to visit me in Ottawa. And by sort-of made, I mean that Alan totally made them, and I stood by the side of the stove in awe as the eggy mixture somehow formed into something that resembled a pancake.
It really wasn’t that bad, and so I will update my Twitter status in which I said that making crepes for the first time was “a terrifying experience.” Terrifying is not the right word, so I hereby revise it to instead say “exhilarating.”
Yes, crepe making is exhilarating. How do you guys get your thrills?
The first crepe was filled with unsure, jolty movements, burnt fingers and hesitation.
Then I learned – crepes are not delicate. No, no, no, crepes are tough cookies that can be flipped and turned in one fluid, not-too-graceful motion. Crepes almost have a sense of elasticity to them, and in mid-flip you can let the sides hang off the spatula and jiggle about before landing on the pan again. It’s all very exciting.
Anyways, these were completely unreal. Thanks to Pinterest and this recipe for the eggs-in-a-crepe basket inspiration. A major breakfast win.
Side note: I am very excited to have been able to achieve a semi-nice brown base for these photos. Thank you, upside down place mats.
Recipe: Bacon and egg stuffed crepes
Adapteed from Framed Cooks
– 1 cup flour
– 1 tablespoon sugar
– 1/4 teaspoon salt
– 1 1/2 cups milk
– 4 large eggs
– 3 tablespoons melted butter
– Half package of bacon
– 4 eggs
– Chopped fresh parsley
Combine flour, sugar, salt, milk, four eggs and the melted butter in a bowl and whisk together. Let rest for 15 minutes.
Heat a 12 inch non-stick skillet over medium heat and lightly coat with bacon fat or butter. Add 1/3 cup batter and swirl to completely cover skillet. Cook until underside of crepe is very lightly starting to brown, about 2 minutes.
Loosen edge of crepe with spatula and then either using large spatula or your fingers, lift it up and flip it over. Cook another 1-2 minutes and then slide out of skillet onto wax paper. Repeat until all crepes are done. You should have about 6 when you are done.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Place crepes on a rimmed baking sheet (you can fit 2-3 per sheet). Place 1/4 of the bacon in centre of crepe and carefully crack egg onto it. Fold edges of crepe toward center, using the egg white as a kind of glue. Season with salt and pepper and bake until egg white is set, about 10-12 minutes. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve at once.
Makes four very-filling servings.
Hilary Makes 
Thanks for the recipe.
No problem! thanks for the comment :)
I made these the other day and OMG yum as!! Thanx for the recipe :)