Mother’s Day just may be my favorite holiday (aside from Christmas).
When you’re a mom, particularly of the stay-at-home variety, you appreciate appreciation. I mean you really appreciate it. Which is what Mother’s Day is all about. A day dedicated to you. It’s pretty great.
One of the best parts is all the hand crafted goodies.
Coupon books, art work, homemade tissue paper flowers.
& funny little things like this.
(from my kindergartener, Asher)
What I want to know, is why in the world would they put weight in there?
Is that some sort of sick joke?
(I thought it was hilarious, albeit strange.)
I especially enjoyed the part where my job is to: “take care when [Salem] cries.”
I love seeing the world from a 6 year old’s point of view.
The next best thing about Mother’s day is the breakfast.
Joseph made me savory crepes & lightly sauteed vegetables.
Which, on that note, I’m tired of sickenly sweet things for breakfast.
I’ve always been sensitive to sugar, & even have to be careful with my fruit intake.
In short, sugar (even the unrefined stuff) if not checked, makes me a little wacky.
So when Joseph asked me what I wanted for breakfast, what I really wanted, I told him I wanted savory crepes. No sugar in the batter, & I wanted to stuff them with sauteed vegetables & top with siracha sauce. He thinks I’m crazy.
But he made them for me.
These crepes are hands down my favorite, easy breakfast thing to make.
Traditional crepes are typically made of assortment of ingredients that make my stomach churn just thinking about them–eggs, flour, butter, & sugar.
This recipe uses none of that, & the result is a soft (yet durable), satisfying crepe. Gluten-free, dairy-free, & vegan.
The best kind of stuff.
I love that they don’t weigh you down & you can stuff them with any manner of sauteed vegetables or top with avocado & tomato slices.
Joseph sauteed yellow summer squash, onions, & mushrooms.
(All foods that he wouldn’t touch, but I love.)
If you must have sweet crepes, I don’t think it’s necessary to add sugar to the batter–just top with fruit &/or maple syrup. Plenty of sweetness there.
I first discovered how delicious vegan crepes could be from Neva & Jim Brackett’s Seven Secrets cookbook. It’s not a bestseller & it’s certainly not coffee book table material, but the recipes are straight foward, rather simple to execute, & satisfying.
This recipe is an adaptation of that in Seven Secrets. The original calls for half brown rice flour (which you can make on your own if you have a blendtec or vitamix, or wheat grinder) & half dry oats (finely blended), which works beautifully, but I like to use my all-purpose gluten-free flour blend.
I make a big batch (about 16 cups) & store it in a gallon glass jar in the pantry. Usually, you’d want to refrigerate gluten-free flours to keep them fresh, but I go through it quickly enough it’s not an issue.
Taking a tip from Shauna (ie. the “gluten-free girl”), I use her 40/60 ratio (40% whole grains & 60% white flour/starches).
I’ve played around with various combos & I really like a mix of mostly brown rice, with a little soy, & teff flours for my whole grain & white rice & potato or tapioca starch for my white flours.
This recipe calls for raw cashews. If you’re on a tight food budget (as we are), raw cashews are such a luxury.
Buying them in bulk & unsalted, raw, & in pieces (rather than whole, which can be nearly twice the price) can save you some money. Raw cashews are worth the purchase if nothing more than to use them for making amazing eggless crepes.
If you’re in a bind & don’t have raw cashews, tofu will also work. Just replace the cashews with same amount of tofu. I still prefer the cashews.
Gluten-free, vegan savory crepes
Ingredients
- 4 c. all-purpose gluten-free flour mix (see above) OR 2 c. brown rice flour & 2 c. dry oats, ground
- 3/4 c. unsalted, raw cashews
- 1 tsp. salt
- 4 1/2 c. plain, unsweetened soy milk (or almond milk, but I use soy)
Instructions
- To get a good crepe (ie. one that doesn't fall apart or stick to the pan), half the battle is won with a well seasoned cast iron skillet. We have two--a small & large one. I use both to get a small crepe (good for the kids) & large crepes. Heat your cast iron skillet on medium high. You'll turn it down to medium once it's hot.
- In a blender, blend cashews, salt, & milk on high until smooth.
- Mix with flour. The batter should be thin (thinner than pancake batter, for example). If the crepes are falling apart once you cook them, you may want to add a little extra flour (2-4 TBS. if needed).
- For a large cast iron skillet, I've found about 1/3-1/2 c. batter works well per crepe. Pour batter on skillet & grab handle & tilt back & forth until batter is evenly spread on the bottom of the pan. Cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the the top of the crepe is no longer wet & appears cooked.
- To get the crepe out of the pan, you need a thin, wide spatula. I've found that going gently around the edges, lifting the edges of the crepe away from the pan, & then removing the entire crepe helps to get it out without much damage.
- Adjust the heat of your stove as necessary. It shouldn't take more than 4 minutes to cook a large crepe. If it takes longer, chances are you are using too much batter (crepes should be about 1/8" inch when cooked) or your stove isn't hot enough. You don't want to burn the crepes either, so be patient. It may take a few crepes to get it down.
- Serve with sauteed vegetables, chopped avocados, &/or tomatoes. OR for sweet, use fruit & maple syrup.
- NOTE: These freeze really well. Freeze any leftovers in an airtight container with crepes lying flat.
Additional nutrition info (based on brown rice & oat flours): 180 mg sodium, 22 g carb, 7 g protein
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