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| Mint flecked chick pea flour crepe with chicken, zucchini, & chick peas. |
When asked to create an original crepe recipe for the
Association of Food Blogger's "Eggstreme Crepe Challenge," sponsored in conjunction with
Pete and Gerry's Heirloom Eggs and
Lodge Cast Iron Cookware, my head started to spin. Do I use traditional techniques and flour? Do I try to muster up a 100% egg wrap? Do I give a nod toward French or Asian flavors? I mucked about with a few different recipes, but ultimately chose a combination of my two favorite flavor profiles... Provencal and North African.
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An arsenal of aromatic spices, herbs, local produce,
organic flours, and Pete & Gerry's Organic Eggs |
This recipe is totally representative of my love for world food, especially from the French border cities and regions; places where cultures and cuisines have come together for thousands of years. It is also emblematic of my love for
local.Whenever possible, I try to find ways to integrate locally-sourced ingredients into a more worldly dish-- this recipe is inspired by cuisine from two continents, traditional family-style eating, fabulous Ohio meats and produce, and beautiful heirloom eggs.
Having lived in the south of France and regularly traveling to that region, my culinary instincts lean heavily toward the Provencal: fresh herbs, olive oil, goat cheese, veg. I've experienced the best Socca (a Nicoise chick pea crepe specialty) on streets of Nice and have tried to reproduced it in my own kitchen - sometimes, even successfully (Socca it to Me!). But Socca is not an egg-based recipe, yet I love working with chick pea flour and kept coming back to it as my potential crepe challenge recipe.
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| Traditional Moroccan clay cooker |
My wheels started turning, and I began looking from one side of the Mediterranean to the other- and back again... The cities in the southern most parts of France are a melting pot of ethnicity, in particular, North African (Algerian and Moroccan). For thousands of years, North Africa and southern European countries have traded, warred, and colonized, amalgamating both in culture and cuisine. Over the centuries, certain North African flavors and cooking techniques have found their way into French cooking, and vice-versa.
Fifteen years ago, I had my first taste of authentic Moroccan lamb tagine in Marseilles--- and it blew my mind. The complex, earthy blend of exotic spices, the rich sauce, the melt-in-your-mouth meat, and the vibrant vegetables all heaped on a plate hooked my palate for life. But 'what's a tagine?' you wonder? A tagine is the North African answer to Sunday dinner. Think (clay) crock pot. Think hearty stews and family style eating. Tagine is both the cooking vessel and the dish.
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| Mint from Chez Moi |
I have since been on a tagine odyssey, slow cooking meat and vegetable stews in my cone-shaped clay cooker at least once week for years. This challenge is about creating a crepe using heirloom eggs, and when I think of heirloom, I think of tradition. And to my mind, it is hard to find something much more traditional than an ancient cooking vessel loaded with aromatic herbs and slow cooking the best (and often extremely simple) ingredients one can find. Yes, I have used my tagine to make many an heirloom meal.
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| Penzey's Spices |
In an effort to stay true to my philosophy of using the best, local ingredients, I picked up some free-range, organic chicken from Columbus's
North Market Poultry and Game, as well as an array of organic & heirloom produce from a local farmer's market.
Most of my spices (in fact, nearly every jar in my pantry!) come from
Penzey's Spices, a mid-western mom and pop spice shop, with a local branch just up the street. Most of the herbs I use are cut directly from my garden while the garlic came straight from the ground, so it doesn't get any more local than the dirt in my back yard.
The most challenging aspect of making a tagine is finding that perfect blend of North African spices. There are plenty out there; it's just finding one that works for your taste buds.
Until I can create that perfect mix of 15+ spices making up the traditional tagine blend, I will stick with buying it pre-made, which surprisingly enough is easy to find these days. I have explored dozens of pre-mixed North African spice blends and have landed on two: Urban Accents
ras al hanout (as seen in the picture) is a general blend common to North Africa, typically including a mix of cardamom, coriander, turmeric, and cinnamon. The Tagine mix from
William Sonoma (even though it's not "local"), has been one of my favorites for years. It has a distinctly Moroccan flair, kind of heavy on the paprika and ginger. We'll use the former to flavor this chicken and the later to mix into the tagine broth. Keeping in mind any combination of meat, vegetables, tomatoes, and lemons is acceptable.
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| Rise and rinse again |
Preserved lemons, however, are almost always called for in North African recipes. I just so happen to have half of a jar of
Preserved Meyer Lemons that I made this past winter. The lemons are packed in salt and spices (such as clove and cinnamon) and left to muddle and morph into brilliant lemony salty slivers that add an unusual depth of flavor to sauces. In the case of preserved lemons, you actually chop up the rind, while being sure to rinse off the salty lemon "guts," otherwise it will make your sauce overwhelmingly salty. Not delicious.
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| Preserved Meyer lemons |
So, I'm working backwards here. We have our crepe filling. Prepare the tagine ingredients 2 hours before hand, so you can let it slow cook for up to an hour. The chicken is pre-seared and the flavors will have time to mingle into a beautiful, heady sauce. Tagine--like any other slow cooker should be kept to cook low and slow. Quite frankly, you can make this recipe in any sort of Dutch oven, crock pot, or just regular pot, if that's all you have! The clay tagine happens to absorb flavors which it gives back to the dish each time you cook with it. Again, this is not necessary.
Now for the crepes. I usually serve tagine over cous-cous, tabouleh, or rice, but I have eaten tagine in France with chick pea flat breads. And it struck me... I have over the years had all sorts of Provencal/Algerian chick pea "shortbread-like" cookies, chick pea flour muffins, chick pea breads...
I should be able to turn chick pea flour and eggs into a traditional crepe substantial enough to hold up to the fragrant chicken stew. After a few rounds of experimenting with different proportions of eggs, flour, herbs, and beer (-->"more for me? or more for the crepes?" - that's always the most pressing question!), We have struck the perfect balance. I added a bit of white rice flour to lend the crepe a ricier texture. Throw in a little salt, olive oil, and fresh chopped mint (or herbes de Provence) and voila. A lovely stand alone Provencal crepe.
This is a one-pot wonder type of recipe-- (Well, one pot. Two pans. But who's counting?) I truly enjoyed creating a Provencal-ish crepe filled with Morroccan-ish stew, while using Columbus-New Hampshire-ish products. Worlds colliding on a plate.
Here's how to make Chicken Tagine Stuffed Crepes...
TOOLS:
Tagine: Clay cooking vessel to use stove-top (or a Dutch oven or slow cooker)
Lodge Skillet (or some sort of frying pan to sautee the meat)
Crepe Pan: Stainless steel is my preference, but non-stick, or even a regular griddle is fine
INGREDIENTS (yields 4 servings):
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| Seared chicken & vegetables slow cook in sauce |
For the Tagine
2 Organic, Free-range boneless Chicken Breasts- chopped into small pieces to fit within crepe
2 cups of Organic Low-sodium Chicken Broth
2 tablespoons of Urban Accents
Ras El Ranout Tagine Spice Blend (sounds like a lot, but trust me)
1/8 teaspoon each of spice: paprika, cumin, and cinnamon
2-3 strands of Saffron
1/2 Organic Lemon- sliced
1 Clove of garlic- finely chopped
1 small slice of Preserved Lemons - thoroughly rinsed and the rind chopped into bits
1/4 cup pitted kalamata olives- sliced
1 Medium Zucchini - diced
1 cup of Dry Chick Peas - pre-soaked over night, add a tsp of baking soda, as it prevents the skins from slipping off during cooking.
2 Tablespoons of Tomato Paste
Pinch of salt
Season diced chicken breasts with a sprinkle of salt and a teaspoon of
Ras El Ranout Tagine Spice Blend.Let sit for a few minutes while preparing the sauce.
Warm up clay tagine (or Dutch oven) over low heat, add chicken broth.
Blend in your choice of African spices. I use two tablespoons of the pre-blended mix, then add in the whatever flavors I'm in the mood for (tonight was more cinnamon and paprika) and saffron.
Stir in the olives, preserved lemon, and once at a low simmer, blend in the tomato paste.
Taste it to make sure it's not to salty. If it is, add a touch more tomato paste or chicken broth.
It should be a deep brown sauce (perhaps muddy looking, some might say, but the color will change into a rich beefy-looking sauce as it cooks). Put the lid on and let it simmer while you sear the chicken.f
In your Lodge skillet (or some sort of frying pan) saute the seasoned chicken in olive oil. Cook it until it has a nice brown sear, then add it to the tagine sauce, along with the lemon slices, zucchini, and chick peas.
Put the lid back on and don't open it or a good 35 mins. Keep the heat on low as the cone will generate condensation which keeps the tagine moist. If you open it, the steam is compromised. No peeking. You can give it a stir after about 35 minutes and check to see if the vegetables are reasonably cooked. If not, let it slow cook another 10 minutes.
For the Crepes
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| Chick pea flour crepes flecked with fresh chopped mint |
3 Pete and Gerry's Hierloom Marans Eggs
1 cup of chick pea flour
1/4 cup of Bob's Red Mill White Rice Flour
1 cup of water
1/4 cup of lager beer- traditionally used in Briton crepes to help rise (or replace w/ sparkling water)
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon fresh chopped mint leaves
Olive oil - for coating the pan
Whisk dry ingredients together, then add water and beer, salt, and mint, stirring until smooth
Add two Pete and Gerry's Organic Hierloom Marans Eggs. Whisk until the batter is smooth and completely blended. Should be a medium thin texture.
Let batter rest in refrigerator for about 30 minutes.
Bring to room temperature before making the crepes.
Pour 1/2 cup batter into the crepe pan and roll pan around until it evenly reaches the edges
Cook two minutes per side. You'll know the crepes are done when they start to develop little holes.
The more crepes you make, the quicker they cook, so those made toward the end of the batch might take only a minute per side.
Careful not to overcook or they won't be pliable enough to roll. (But never fear, if you over cook them, just tear the crepe into shreds and use it to dip in the leftover tagine sauce)
Fill each crepe with the tagine mixtures, roll, and drizzle with sauce.
VARIATIONS:
This crepe truly does stand alone and the filling variations are endless.
I often slather a crepe with hummus and load it with crunchy cucumbers, sprouts, tomatoes, and a dollup of yogurt.
I also roll leftover ratatouille in a chick pea crepe and call it a "WRAP-tatouille"...
One more idea is to fill it with ham and cheese, topped with soft cooked
Pete and Gerry's Heirloom Eggs. This is a very traditional southern French filling.
This Eggstreme Crepe Challenge is sponsored by:
The Association of Food Bloggers: "The Association of Food Bloggers was started in an effort to clearly define what a reputable Food Blogger should be. There has been much confusion as to what standards there are for Food Bloggers, if any. The goal of the AoFB is to qualify reputable Food Bloggers and serve as a community where those involved in the Food Industry can gather and exchange valuable information. If you are a food blogger that meets their member requirements, learn more about becoming a member here."
Pete and Gerry's Heirloom Eggs: "Pete and Gerry's is a real family farm. We've produced high-quality eggs for four generations in the heart of New Hampshire's White Mountains. We're committed to producing fresh, organic, cage-free, Omega-3 eggs from hens that are Certified Humane. This commitment remains unchanged as we add other family farms to our farm family. We hope you enjoy our delicious eggs."
You can follow along and get some eggs-elent recipes on Twitter #Eggstremecrepe
Typically, a customer will be introduced to a more mild cheese, and then can work their way up to more intensely flavored cheeses. Murray's has found that this way, they can help demystify the cheese world and expand a customer's palette. The "Under $5" baskets of cheese provide yet another opportunity to sample a variety without breaking the budget or committing to a huge chunk of cheese.
