French Crepes for Candlemas Feb 2 revised version - Page 2

cherry · ‎03-09-2010

recipes for Candlemas

Gingerly Baked Custard

3 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
3/4 teaspoon Finely Grated Fresh Ginger
3 large Eggs, lightly beaten
2 1/2 cups Milk
1/3 cup Granulated Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg

Mix brown sugar with ginger and divide evenly onto bottoms of 6 buttered individual custard cups or ramekins.
In medium mixing bowl, blend eggs with milk, sugar, vanilla and seasonings. Pour evenly into prepared custard cups. Place cups in a large pan, then fill with hot water to come halfway up sides of cups (a hot water bath or bain-marie).
Bake at 350 F. oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until knife inserted near edge comes out clean. Remove cups from bain-marie. Run knife around edges to loosen. Place serving plate over top of cup and carefully invert custard onto plate. Serve warm or cover, chill and serve cold.

Honey Cakes (Liebkuchen)

1 cup margarine
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup honey
1 cup sour milk* (see below)
2 Tablespoons vinegar
6 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon mace
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon

Prepare sour milk and mix dry ingredients. Set both aside. Cream margarine and sugar, add egg, beat until light. Add honey, sour milk and vinegar. Mix thoroughly. Chill one hour. Roll out to 1/4″ thickness. Cut into 2″x3″ rectangles and place on buttered cookie sheets. Bake at 375° for 6 minutes. Frost with plain vanilla frosting.
* For sour milk, add 1 T. vinegar to 1 c. milk and let stand for 10 minutes.

Basic Crêpe Recipe (makes about 8 crepes)

1 c. Flour
2 Eggs
1 ¼ c. Milk
2 T. Butter, Melted (unsalted butter can be used for dessert crêpes)
¼ t. Salt for dinner crêpes (only a pinch of salt for dessert crêpes)
1 T. Sugar (for dessert crêpes only)
Butter for cooking

You can either mix all ingredients in a blender, food processor or with a whisk till smooth. It’s best to let the batter sit for ½ hour before cooking. You can add a little more milk or a little water if you find the batter is too thick.

Use a skillet that’s about 6 – 8″ in diameter. (I used an 8″ pan and got 8 fairly large crêpes.) Put about ½ to 1 teaspoon of butter in the bottom of the pan, enough to coat it. Melt on medium high heat. Pour in about 2-3 T. batter and tilt or gently swirl the pan so that the batter covers the whole bottom of the skillet. Cook on one side until golden brown. Flip. Cook the other side till it starts to become golden, which should happen quickly, and remove from heat. Repeat this process until you’ve used all the batter.

Here are many different ways to fold the crêpes:

1) Rolled – Put filling on one end of the crêpe and roll it up, sort of like a cigar.
2) Folded in Half – Put filling on one side and fold over in half.
3) Folded in Threes – Put filling in middle of crêpe, fold the left third side over and then the right side over.
4) Folded in Fours – Just like folding in threes, but then also fold over the bottom and top.
5) Folded as a Triangle – Put filling on half of crêpe and fold the crêpe over in half, then fold in half again.
6) Layered – Put filling on whole crêpe, put another crêpe on top – you can keep layering as long as you want. This would usually be done with thinner fillings.
7) Folded like a Burrito – Put filling in middle, fold over two opposite ends about 1 inch, and roll over the crêpe starting at the side, till it’s completly rolled up.

And… you can make them savory or sweet!

Savory Crêpes (or Dinner Crêpes)

Ham and Gruyere or Swiss Cheese Crêpes – Cube ham and fry, place in crêpe with shredded cheese and place in warm oven, at 300 F, to melt. This will take about 10-15 minutes. Cover if needed to prevent the crêpes from drying out. (A variation is to make this with chopped tomatoes.)
Mushrooms and Swiss Cheese – Sautee mushrooms in a little butter. Place in crêpe and top with cheese. Fold crepe and place in warm oven, at 300 F, to melt cheese. This will take about 10-15 minutes. Cover if needed to prevent the crêpes from drying out. (A variation is to make this with chopped tomatoes.)
Spinach and Goat Cheese – Sautee spinach. Spread goat cheese on crêpe, top with spinach and fold.

Dessert Crêpes (some of these could be good for breakfast too!)

Apple Cinnamon and Walnut Crêpes – Sautee chopped apples and walnuts in a little butter and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Scoop mixture onto crêpe and fold.
Lemon and Powered Sugar Crêpes – Sprinkle confectioners sugar on crêpe and squeeze a little fresh lemon juice on top. Fold and eat!
Your Favorite Jam Crêpes – Simply smear the crêpe with jelly, fold over or roll and top with a sprinkle of powdered sugar.
Nutella and Whipped Cream Crêpe – Spread nutella on crêpe, top with a dollop of whipped cream and fold up.
Banana and Nutella Crêpes – Spread nutella on crepe, and top with thinly sliced bananas. Fold crêpe and enjoy!
Sugared Crêpes – Sprinkle crêpe with sugar and fold or roll up. These work well if you want to eat them by hand.
Ice Cream Crêpe – Put vanilla ice cream on crêpe, some hot chocolate syrup and whipped cream and fold it up.
Hot Fudge and Strawberry Crêpes – Clean and slice strawberries and place on crêpe, cover with hot fudge and a dollop of whip cream. Fold and enjoy!

You can see that your imagination is the only limit when it comes to making crêpes!

cherry · ‎03-09-2010

Recipe: Crêpes de la Chandeleur (Candlemas Pancakes) for Candlemas Day

Crêpes de la Chandeleur (Candlemas Pancakes) for Candlemas Day

Recipe: Crêpes de la Chandeleur (Candlemas Pancakes) for Candlemas Day

Crêpes de la Chandeleur (Candlemas Pancakes) for Candlemas Day

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The 2nd of February is Candlemas Day – this ancient festival marks the midpoint of winter (the half way point between the shortest day and the spring equinox) and also the end of Epiphany. The day is named after the practice of bringing all the future year’s supply of candles in to church, whereupon they were blessed, hence Candle and Mass, although the word has been compounded into “Candlemas” (with one “s”) now. Candles were very important and a potent symbol of light and hope – many people thought that they protected them against the plague, hunger and many other diseases and illnesses. In Scotland, children used to bring candles into school on this day, to light the dark and gloomy day with flickering lights. The children were also supposed to raise money, which they gave to the teachers who would buy sweets for the class, and then the ritual of choosing a “Candlemas King and Queen”was decided, and awarded to the girl and boy who had brought the most money into school! Apart from it being a day of light and candles, it is also a day of pancakes, goddesses, poems, weather predictions and proverbs. (http://french.about.com/od/culture/a/chandeleur.htm)

cherry · ‎03-09-2010

Symbols, Customs, and Foods

Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis) are known as "Candlemas Bells" because, being the usual earliest blooming flower of all, they often bloom before Candlemas (some varieties bloom all winter long in some places). Legend says that they sprang up by the hand of an angel, who then pointed them out as a sign of hope to Eve, who was weeping in repentance and in despair over the cold and death that entered into the world after she and her husband sinned. Because our Hope is Christ, the Light of the World as Simeon says in his canticle today, it is providential that the snowdrop should bloom by this Feast! If possible, gather some Candlemas Bells to bring inside (folk belief is that bringing them indoors before this date is bad luck, and bringing them indoors today "purifies" one's house.) These flowers, along with carnations, are also the "birth flower" for those born in January.

As to foods, tamales and hot chocolate are eaten today in Mexico, the party being given by the one who found the trinket inside the Kings' Cake on Twelfthnight. Crepes are the traditional Candlemas fare in many parts of Europe. These crepes can be filled with savory things or be used with sauces to make them a dessert. Below is a recipe for the classic Crepes Suzette as created by Henri Charpentier, protegé of Escoffier, for Edward, Prince of Wales:

Crepes Suzette

Crepes
2 eggs
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon cream
2 tablespoons milk
1 pinch of salt

Stir the ingredients smoothly to the consistency of olive oil, or until it will pour back silently and smoothly from a foot or more above the mixing bowl. Remember this is a French pancake and must be thin. Put 1 teaspoon of butter into a small round-bottomed frying pan (not aluminum) and when it bubbles pour in enough paste to cover the bottom of the pan. Be quick in moving the pan so as to spread the paste thinly. Keep the pan moving; that paste is a delicate substance. After 1 minute turn the pancake over, then turn it again and again until it is nicely browned. Fold the circle in half, then again to form a triangle. Make eight of these, which should serve four. This first step is a smoky one and should be done in the kitchen. The pancakes, however, are to be cooked a second time, a procedure which occurs in the dining room.

Note that when it comes time to turn the pancake over, there's a French tradition of doing so while also flipping a fine coin (in the manner you'd flip a coin to determind heads or tails) in your other hand. If you're able to do both at the same time, then good luck follows. It could be great fun to have any guests you might have gather in the kitchen to try their hand at mastering the flipping of both at the same time!

Suzette Sauce
Vanilla sugar
Juice of 2 oranges
Skin of 2 oranges
Juice of 1 lemon
Orange Blossom water
Rum
Kirsch
Maraschino
White Curacao

This sauce should be made in advance since it keeps for many months without spoiling. It can be made in great quantities; like good wine, it will improve with age. Vanilla sugar is one of the requisites for a fine cuisine. Put three or four vanilla beans in a quart jar of granulated sugar. After several days the sugar will be delicately flavored by the vanilla in the beans.

With a knife peel 2 oranges and 1 lemon so thin that the pulp remains on the fruit. Cut the peel julienne style and mix it with 4 tablespoons of vanilla sugar. Squeeze the strained juice of the 2 oranges and 1 lemon into a chafing dish. Add the vanilla sugar, etc. and 1/8 pound of butter. Let it come to a boil and then add 1 teaspoon of orange blossom water, 2 ponies* of kirsch, 2 ponies of white curacao, 2 ponies of rum and 1 pony of maraschino. When it comes to a boil, remove it from the fire. This is the sauce which, if prepared in advance, will keep indefinitely.

After the Crepes Suzette have been made and have been brought to the dining room, the final step is ready to be taken. Put some of the above prepared sauce into a large chafing dish (the quantity depends on your desire) and when it begins to bubble lay the pancakes in the sauce. Those who have no chafing dish need not worry: it's not the chafing dish that makes the Crepes Suzette, it's the sauce. If necessary, make it in the kitchen using a pan. Cut minute pieces of orange and lemon peel (no pulp) and put a little on top of each pancake. Blend 1 pony* of each of the cordials used in the making of the sauce by placing them in a small heated casserole. Make the cordials flame and pour it over the pancakes which are in the bubbling sauce. Serve immediately. The perfect Crepes Suzette are not too liqueur-y. This is an equally delicious sauce for compotes, puddings, ice cream or sweet omelets. * [Ed. a pony is 2 TBSP, approx.]

Serve whatever Candlemas foods you eat today with candles burning everywhere!

The eve of this Feast is the absolutely last (and best) day for taking down the Christmas tree, putting away the creche, etc. In some Latin countries, the creche isn't just put away, but is replaced with a figure of the Child Jesus sitting on a chair, acting as a sign that it is time for the devotion to the Divine Childhood to give way to a focus on the grown-up Savior and the public ministry, forty days of fasting, and Passion to come.

In any case, when Candlemas is finished, all feelings of Christmas give way to the penitential feelings of Septuagesima and then Lent. The English poet, Robert Herrick (A.D. 1591-1674), sums it up in his poem "Ceremony Upon Candlemas Eve" -- and reveals a folktale in the process:

Ceremony Upon Candlemas Eve
Down with the rosemary, and so
Down with the bays and misletoe ;
Down with the holly, ivy, all,
Wherewith ye dress'd the Christmas Hall :
That so the superstitious find
No one least branch there left behind :
For look, how many leaves there be
Neglected, there (maids, trust to me)
So many goblins you shall see.

This very ancient carol also speaks of the departure of Christmas on this day. It is called "I Am Christmas," and was written by James Ryman, a Franciscan Friar, ca. 1492. Note that the reference to Hallowtide (the days of the dead centering around All Saints Day) here refers to the fact that it was during Hallowtide that monarchs used to announce where they would be spending Christmas.

I Am Christmas

Here have I dwelled with more or lass
From Hallowtide till Candelmas,
And now must I from you hens pass;
Now have good day.

I take my leve of king and knight,
And erl, baron, and lady bright;
To wilderness I must me dight;
Now have good day!

And at the good lord of this hall
I take my leve, and of gestes all;
Me think I here Lent doth call;
Now have good day!

And at every worthy officere,
Marshall, panter, and butlere
I take my leve as for this yere;
Now have good day!

Another yere I trust I shall
Make mery in this hall,
If rest and peace in England fall;
Now have good day!

But oftentimes I have herd say
That he is loth to part away
That often biddeth 'Have good day!";
Now have good day!

Now fare ye well, all in fere,
Now fare ye well for all this yere;
Yet for my sake make ye good chere;
Now have good day!

Candlemas Day is also known as "Groundhog's Day" in America, the day when, if the groundhog sees his shadow, there'll be 6 more weeks of Winter. All Europeans have a similar belief about how Candlemas weather portends the length of winter. The English have a saying, "If Candlemas Day be bright and clear, there'll be two winters in the year." The Germans also have a few sayings about how the weather at Candlemas bodes ill or well for the nearness of Spring:

Wenn der Bär zu Lichtmess seinen Schatten sieht, so kriecht er wieder auf sechs Wochen ins Loch.		When the bear sees his shadow at Candlemas, he will crawl back into his hole for another six weeks.

Ist's zu Lichtmess mild und rein wirds ein langer Winter sein.		If Candlemas is mild and pure, Winter will be long for sure.

Wenn's an Lichtmess stürmt und schneit, ist der Frühling nicht mehr weit; ist es aber klar und hell, kommt der Lenz noch nicht so schnell		When it storms and snows on Candlemas Day, Spring is not far away; if it's bright and clear, Spring is not yet near.

German immigrants to the United States brought their Candlemas traditions with them when they settled in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Each year, a great to-do is made over the town's official groundhog, "Punxsutawney Phil," emerging from his den to predict the weather, said prediction being broadcast by all the major media in the U.S.A. The movie "Groundhog Day," starring Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell, centers around an endless Groundhog's Day in Punxsutawney, a town located at the intersection of Rt.36 and Rt.119 in western Pennsylvania.