HAVING FUN WITH CREPES

Since I discovered that I can make crepes with egg substitute, I have been having a wonderful time experimenting. The possibilities for fillings and sauces are endless. Making crepes, filling and sauce is a little work, but it is fun for a weekend when you just feel like cooking.
I have not tried making them with whole wheat flour since I think the gluten in regular flour is important in this recipe. If you consider that 1 cup of flour makes 14-16 crepes, there is not that much flour in each crepe.

You will need 1 1/2 large chicken breasts (cooked) for each filling. Since the crepe recipe makes lots of crepes, I just poached 2 pounds of chicken breasts. (They usually come in a 2-pound package containing 3 breasts.) I saved the leftover chicken and the leftover crepes for another meal.

Basic Crepes (for savory fillings)

1 cup egg substitute
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup low fat, low sodium chicken stock
2 tablespoons heart-healthy margarine, melted

Measure all the ingredients into a blender. Blend for about 1 minute. Let stand for 30 minutes.
Spray a 5" to 6" crepe pan or sturdy non-stick skillet with cooking spray. Heat over medium high heat. Measure out 1/4 cup of batter and pour it into the pan. Tilt the pan to distribute the batter evenly, making a VERY thin pancake. When there are several bubbles in the crepe, loosen the edges with a spatula and flip the crepe. Cook until there are brown spots on the underside and remove to a plate.

(Wrap leftovers in foil and freeze. To use let them thaw at room temperature for one hour and reheat at 325 degrees for about 10 minutes.)

Crepes Oriental
(Or Sid’s egg rolls revised for healthy eating)

My husband used to make egg rolls with a pork, cabbage and soy sauce filling. The resulting rolls were then fried and served with a sweet and sour sauce made with a lot more soy sauce. They were absolutely delicious but full of fat and sodium. I have adapted his recipe using chicken and just rolling crepes around the mixture. I omitted most of the soy sauce, adding flavor with toasted sesame seeds.

1 1/2 large chicken breasts
Cooking spray
1/4 of a head of cabbage
1/2 a small onion
1 garlic clove
1 tablespoon grated ginger root
1 tablespoon ground, toasted sesame seeds*
1 teaspoon sesame seed oil
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
pinch of salt, optional
Sweet and Sauce (below)

Poach the chicken breasts in a small amount of water. (I add some celery, onion, bay leaf and parsley so the poaching water makes a nice cooking stock. You can use 1/2 cup in the crepes.) Set aside to cool.

Chop the cabbage and onion. Mince the garlic clove. Spray a heavy skillet with cooking spray. Add the cabbage, onion and garlic and begin sauteing gently. Add the ginger root, sesame seeds, sesame seed oil, red pepper flakes and salt, if using. Cover and continue cooking until the vegetables are tender crisp. Chop the chicken and add to the mixture. Heat through.
Put 3 or 4 tablespoons of filling in the center of each crepe and roll. Top with sweet and sour sauce. (You should be able to fill about 8 crepes.)

*Toast sesame seeds by putting them a small hot skillet and shaking until they are toasted but not burnt. Grind them in a coffee grinder or food processor. Toasted sesame seeds are so tasty, I used to have to stop my daughter from eating them before I could use them in my recipe.

Sweet and Sour Sauce

1/2 cup pineapple juice
1/4 cup red wine
1/2 cup measures-like-sugar sweetener
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce, optional
1 1/2 tablespoons corn starch
1/4 cup water

Mix the first 5 ingredients and soy sauce, if using, in a small sauce pan. Mix the cornstarch with the water and whisk into the sauce. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened.

NOTE: If you are watching your sodium carefully, omit the soy sauce. Even reduced sodium soy sauce has 575 mg. of sodium per tablespoon. There is enough sauce in this recipe for 8 crepes. If you eat 2 you would ingest about 144 mg. of sodium.

Chicken and Mushroom Crepes

Cooking spray
8 ounces button or baby Portobelo mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon Mrs. Dash® Table Blend
1 1/2 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
1/4 cup white wine or chicken stock
Pinch of salt, optional
Several grinds of black pepper

Spray a heavy skillet with cooking spray and add the mushrooms, celery and onion. Saute over medium low heat until translucent. Season with the sage and Mrs. Dash®. Add the chicken breasts and white wine. Simmer about five minutes. Season to taste with salt, if using, and black pepper.

Divide the filling among eight crepes. Roll the crepes around the filling and top with the mushroom sauce.

Dried Mushroom and Sour Cream Sauce
Using dried mushrooms really punches up the mushroom flavor.

1 cup chicken stock
1/2 ounce dried mushrooms
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup fat-free sour cream
Pinch of salt, optional
Several grinds of black pepper

Bring the stock to a boil and pour over the mushrooms in a heat proof dish. Let stand about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Put the stock and mushrooms in a blender and pulse several times to finely chop the mushrooms.

Spray a sauce pan with cooking spray and saute the onion over medium heat until translucent. Add the stock and mushrooms, sage and thyme. Mix the cornstarch with the water and whisk into the sauce. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened. Stir in the sour cream and season to taste with salt, if using, and pepper.