Oeufest 2010:

7 adults, 57 eggs. We tested the limits of egg consumption with a variety of sweet and savory dishes – high in cholesterol, high in protein, high in fun: The Egg.

Recipe from Le Parfait Cuisinier, 1811

The simple delicious crêpe – originating in Britanny as an accompaniment to their ubiquitous apples, the crêpe is today the most recognizable street food associated with France. But it was not always so – until the 19th century, crêpes were a local phenomenon and as late as 1798 a major dictionary was still comparing them to the beignet in an attempt to describe them – which is of equivalent usefullness as comparing a beignet to a strudel. Shortly thereafter they began to appear in a profusion of forms in cookbooks.

Mmmmm

They are actually easier than pancakes because cooking them all the way through is so easy:

4 eggs, beaten, with 2 cups of white flour, a pinch of salt, and a little over 2 cups of milk (keep adding a little at a time until the consistency is right) will make you 12-18 crêpes.

Heat a heavy skillet somewhere in the medium/medium high area – I brush the pan gently with olive oil between each crêpes – pour and tilt the pan until a thin layer is reasonably evenly distributed.

Remember that, like with software, there are no bugs in crêpe making, only features. Funny little arms coming off the side, thin on one side, inexplicably thick on the other – these are charming, not mistakes.

We served a number of savory fillings on the crêpes (mostly egg related – we’ll see them in future Oeufest posts), but butter and sugar is still a winner.