All-Purpose Crepes
Start to finish: 45 minutes (15 minutes active)
Makes 20 5-inch or 10 8-inch crepes
1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cold milk
2/3 cup cold water
3 large eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons melted butter, plus more for brushing on the pan
In a blender or food processor, combine all ingredients and blend until smooth. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Heat a 5- to 8-inch crepe pan or nonstick skillet over medium-high until drops of water dropped onto it dance. Brush the pan lightly with melted butter. Pour in 2 to 3 tablespoons of batter and tilt the pan in all directions to cover the bottom evenly.
Cook for about 1 minute, or until browned on the bottom. Turn and cook briefly on the other side.
Cool the finished crepe on a rack while repeating the process with remaining batter. When cooled, crepes can be stacked and refrigerated for 2 days or frozen for several weeks.
(Recipe adapted from Julia Child’s “Julia’s Kitchen Wisdom,” Knopf, 2009)
@Giza 12 Point:
Vichyssoise (Chilled Leek and Potato Soup)
Start to finish: 1 hour, plus chilling
Servings: 6 to 8
3 cups peeled and sliced potatoes
3 cups sliced leeks, white parts only
1½ quarts chicken stock or broth
Salt, to taste
½ to 1 cup heavy cream
White pepper, to taste
2 to 3 tablespoons minced fresh chives
In a 3- to 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat, simmer the potatoes, leeks, stock or broth, and a bit of salt for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.
Pass the mixture through a food mill or transfer it to a blender and puree until smooth. Pass the milled or pureed soup through a fine mesh strainer. Stir in enough cream to reach desired consistency, then season with white pepper and additional salt. Oversalt slightly, as salt loses flavor in chilled dishes.
Chill the soup. When ready to serve, ladle into cups and garnish with chives.
(Recipe adapted from Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck’s “Mastering the Art of French Cooking: The 40th Anniversary Edition,” Knopf, 2001)
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