Early January and the first real snowstorm of the season has finally arrived! From my study window I watch as the world softly becomes enveloped under a peaceful white blanket of powdery snow. A lovely day to hunker down with a good book and a pot of chicken soup simmering slowly on the stove.
One of our favorite series is PBS Kitchen Vignettes; that features short whimsical cooking videos by Aube Giroux, food writer, organic gardener, home cook and film maker. We have enjoyed making several featured recipes including a delicious Blueberry Lime Layer Cake. She has won multiple James Beard Awards for Best Video Webcast (On Location). In 2012, she was the recipient of Saveur Magazine’s Best Food Blog award in the video category.
We have watched the Kitchen Vignette video, Crespelle in Brodo (Crepes in Broth) many times. Crepes are filled with freshly grated parmesan cheese and placed in rich chicken broth; sprinkled with parsley and more parmesan, they looked enticing! I decided to try my hand at making Crespelle in Brodo. I had bought a small crepe pan a few years ago and it was still hanging on my pot rack with the original packaging.
First, set a pot of home made chicken stock on the stove. This is well worth the effort; the resulting broth is delicious and there will plenty leftover to freeze for another time! I added extra carrots to the stock pot and one large potato. When I strained the soup, I reserved the carrot and potato and pureed it with about 6 cups of the soup. This thickened the soup slightly and added a lovely rich flavor and golden/orange color.
Making the crepes was surprisingly easy. I tinkered with the recipe from Kitchen Vignettes, but also checked out Deb Perlman’s method on her excellent blog, Smitten Kitchen. For my version of crepes, I substituted whole wheat pastry flour for half of the required flour. This gave the crepes a nutty flavor and also made them more wholesome and I used whole milk in my version. I also recommend using a crepe pan. I lightly oiled the pan and the crepes cooked quickly and beautifully. As they are finished , you can stack them together on a plate and they will not stick together! They also reheat nicely.
I am happy to report that Crespelle in Brodo was absolutely delicious, the soup rich, so full of flavor and the crepes! While easy to prepare, eating this made us feel that we were in an upscale Italian restaurant. We were curious that crepes or crespelle were Italian; a quick bit of research and we discovered that the dish comes from the Abruzzi section of Italy. This is where my husband’s family is originally from!
“Crespelle in Brodo”- based on a recipe from PBS Kitchen Vignettes
- For the Crepes:
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup cold water
- About ¼ cup grapeseed or sunflower oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
- About 3 to 4 cups freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese
- Fresh chopped parsley for garnish
Instructions
- For the Soup:
- 1 whole small chicken
- Enough water to cover the chicken
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2-3 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 large potato, peeled
- 2 large carrots, cut into large pieces
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried dill
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 unbleached white flour
- 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 cup cold whole milk
- About 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- About 3 to 4 cups freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese
- Fresh chopped parsley for garnish
- In a large heavy-bottomed stock pot, sauté the chopped onion, celery over medium heat until translucent and fragrant. Add the whole chicken and add water to cover. Bring to a boil and then simmer, covered, for at least 3 hours. About an hour in, as the chicken cooks, take out some of the breast meat to save for serving the soup.
- After about 3 hours of simmering, strain everything out of the broth. Reserve the chicken meat for other recipes and use the bones to make a bone broth. Remove bay leaves, onions and celery, but save carrots and potatoes. Using a fat separater, remove fat and pour about 5-6 cups of broth strained broth back into the pot. Use or freeze remaining broth for other recipes. Use an immersion or stand blender to purée carrots and potatoes into the broth, which will thicken it slightly. Add salt and pepper to taste. Keep broth warm on low heat until the crepes are ready.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the salt and flour. Make a well into the center of the flour and crack all 3 eggs. Whisk together well and gradually add the milk, a little at a time, whisking well to avoid lumps. After all the milk has been added, if the batter is lumpy, you can run it through a fine-meshed sieve to get rid of any lumps.
- Grease up a heavy skillet or a small crepe pan, using about 1 tsp oil per crepe. Make the crepes using about 1/4 cup of batter per crepe. Swirl the batter around, cook for about 30 to 60 seconds on each side or until golden and bubbly. If the batter is too thick, add a little more water, a couple tablespoonfuls at a time. Stack the crepes on a large plate. They will miraculousy not stick together.
- Sprinkle a generous handful of grated cheese on each crepe and roll it up into a cigar shape. (Divide the cheese evenly among the crepes but save some for garnish). Place the rolled crepes seam down into a large serving bowl. Serve two to three crepes per person and ladle a generous scoop or two of broth on top of the crepes. I also added some of the reserved chicken breast chopped, to the soup. Garnish with a little cheese and chopped parsley. ENJOY!
STAY SAFE AND WARM!!
An Update: Leftover crepes also made an excellent breakfast. We first discovered these fruit, yogurt, granola and maple syrup crepes at the Starving Artist Cafe & Creperie in Lee, Massachusetts!
A Musician's Travels 