@allaboutpastries: Recipe For Baked Chicken Crepes; and for Dessert, Zingy Lemon Crepes. Plus More Interesting Posts You Might have Missed!

Crepe 'fest' today in my post, but who doesn't like crepes? They are so versatile; once you have a 'stash' of them in the freezer you are ready to throw a dinner combination together within minutes. This is Part Two of my crepe posts, if you click on the blue you will be taken to Part One which fully covers How to Make Crepes!

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I like to make double of most things and freeze what I don't use. I had in my freezer: crepes, roasted chicken, and a lovely veloute sauce made using some rich chicken stock (I had also in my freezer); I was ready to go!

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Lets first talk about sauces. You know that Béchamel, the roux based white sauce, is made with butter and flour cooked together, stirred over a medium heat. When the butter and flour (the roux), is combined and glossy, you add cold milk until the sauce thickens and bubbles, stirring all the time or it will go lumpy. Add seasonings, or cheese, or herbs; whatever is required for your recipe needs.

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Veloute works on the same principle: butter and flour combined (your roux). Instead of milk though, you add a good stock. Fish stock if a fish veloute is required, chicken stock if a chicken veloute is required, ...... etc. The sauce when thickened is enriched by the addition of cream. More flavoursome than Béchamel.

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The ingredients for both sauces are the same:

25g (1/4 cup/1 oz) plain (all purpose) flour

25g (1/8 cup/1 oz) butter

500 ml (2 cups/16 fl ozs) liquid

You just alter the type of stock used in the sauce.

In my case for the chicken crepes I required chicken flavoured veloute - lucky for me I had some already made in the freezer!

Creamy Baked Chicken Crepes

Ingredients required:

2 crepes per person

Sufficient cooked chicken to fill each crepe

500 ml (2 cups/ 16 fl ozs) Chicken Veloute

Method:

Spread onto each crepe about a tablespoon of veloute.
Down the centre of each crepe place the cooked chicken (I like to pull the cooked chicken apart rather than cut it into chunks, it lies better and is easier to roll the crepe up when filled).
Place in an oven proof dish, side by side, cut side down if possible. (I over fill mine so sometimes I have to put the cut side up to stop the filling falling through the gap)!
Spread the rest of the veloute on top of the crepes.
Bake in moderately hot oven until golden brown and crisp around the edges. (400F (200C/ Gas Mark 6)

(Although the veloute in this picture looks lumpy, I know it isn't; just thawed from frozen and will smooth out during cooking).

So, let's look at dessert.......

Zingy Lemon Crepes

These are 'easy peasy' as once you have the crepes there is no cooking involved! Firstly, lets do the .....

Lemon Sauce

Ingredients Required:

2 large unwaxed lemons

6 heaped teaspoons sugar

Method:

Top and tail the lemons

Using a serrated knife

Begin to slice the skin off the lemons just leaving the flesh and removing all of the white in the process.

Use a circular downward sawing action.

Hold the lemon and start to slide out the segments without the membrane. Do this over a small bowl to catch any luscious juices which drip down during this process.