Things of thinginess

First things first, the recipient of May's shrinky dink giveaway is Sarah of Slinging Stitches! I liked all the posts, it reminded me of all the crafty things I haven't picked up in ages, as well as a few messes I used to make for the fun of it. :D

It's still spring here, and for proof that it's May we had a tiny morel harvest on Friday. Three, we found three morels. Actually, I found a big one off the driveway near where I found several last year, but the entire top had been bitten off by something so I hardly think that it counts. These three were in an entirely different spot at the base of a rotted out stump that had been filled in with dirt.


Since there were only three, I ended up making a mushroom side dish with additional white button mushrooms and some fresh shitake mushrooms. I cut them all up and sauteed them with lots of garlic in olive oil with a bit of thyme and freshly cracked black pepper. It never ceases to amaze me how small morels shrivel when cooked, yet still retain a kind of crunchy texture.

Meanwhile, today I made a lunch of crepes and I like to record recipes when I tamper with them. These crepes were whole wheat and are quite robust in tooth. They're not exactly the delicate buttery things that most people anticipate when promised crepes, but I like them. I think they would be better with a savory filling but we had them with strawberries and whipped cream.

Strawberries were dressed with agave syrup and a bit of cognac, and the whipped cream was lightly sweetened with agave syrup as well.

Recipe after the jump.

Whole Wheat Crepes - 16-17 9in crepes, or a scant 1/4c of batter per crepe. Serves 4.
4 extra large eggs
210g (1.5c) white whole wheat flour (all purpose works too, as does cake flour, and for more delicate crepes replace some of the flour with cornstarch.)
1.5c milk
3tbsp melted butter
pinch of salt (opt)
water or additional milk
a drop of oil to start the crepe pan

Melt the butter and then mix it with everything else until smooth. A blender is the easiest way to do this. Once it's all blended together, add enough water or milk to make 4.25c of batter. If you like thicker crepes, take it to just 4c. Let the batter rest for a little while as you do other things. If using all purpose flour let it rest for a full hour.

Heat a crepe pan or other flat bottomed pan over medium heat (#6 on our electric range) until sizzling hot. Brush the surface of the pan with a drop of oil and pour in a scant 1/4c of batter (depending on how thick you like your crepes). Roll the pan to distribute the batter evenly and let it cook until the edges start curling up and all the batter is set. It should be forming a golden brown lace pattern on the underside. Use a toothpick or something to tease up the edge enough to grip and with two hands gently lift the crepe and flip it over. This batter is a bit fragile when the crepes are still hot, so be careful not to tear it. Cook for another 10sec or so and then slide out onto a plate. The pan should retain enough oil for all the following crepes as the butter in the batter melts.

Crepes don't stick to each other so they can be stacked with impunity. They can also be frozen, but I find that the edges tend to get very crumbly so I prefer making a small batch fresh whenever I want them.



We're going out to dinner tonight, so I'm spending the afternoon knitting obsessively. My Arabesque modification hit a problem in that I made the bodice much, much too large. So I've ripped out two days of knitting and am starting again with drastic modifications. I'm really pleased with how it's developing, though, so I haven't yet burnt through the enthusiasm. As long as my left hand can keep up with the demands I'm putting on it tensioning such inelastic yarn, I think I'll be able to power through all the pitfalls.