Blood Orange Crȇpe Suzette

Crȇpe Suzette is a classical French dish and elevates the simple pancake into something special. With the addition of blood orange it really stands out as a Valentines dessert, whilst being relatively easy to make. A great tip is to make an excess of crȇpes on Shrove Tuesday, thus half the job of Valentines day dessert is already done.

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Crȇpes
100g plain flour
Pinch of salt
2 medium eggs
225ml milk
Zest of 1 bloody orange
2 teaspoon demerara
 
Sauce
50ml Gran Marnier
250g demerara sugar
50g butter
Zest and juice of 2 orange and 2 blood orange
Segments of 2 blood orange
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Begin by sieving flour into a large mixing bowl followed by the remaining dry ingredients. Make a well in the centre and crack in 2 eggs. Slowly begin whisking, trying to incorporate a little flour from the edges (an electric whisk is a handy addition, making this step easier). Once the mix begins to thicken start adding a little milk. Continue whisking and adding milk till you are left with a shiny smooth batter about the consistency of single cream.

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To cook the crȇpes you will need a 20cm non-stick frying pan, a small ladle and a palette knife or spatula. Heat the pan over a high heat and use a piece of kitchen towel lightly soaked in vegetable oil or melted butter to grease it. Once the pan is hot turn the heat down to medium, grease the pan and add a small ladle of batter. Be sure to tilt the pan whilst adding the batter to make sure of even coating (if there are any gaps just add a teaspoon more to fill in). The crepe should take around 40 seconds to cook depending on temperature. Once cooked flip and leave in the pan for a further 20 seconds. Tip out onto a plate and continue the previous steps making sure to layer each crȇpe with baking parchment.
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For the sauce you can use the same pan from the crȇpes but be sure to wash thoroughly. This step can be done 2 ways: 1) Place all ingredients into the pan and heat over a medium temperature till a sauce is formed. This method will suffice for those short on time but does not compare to the  latter. 2) Place pan over a medium heat and sprinkle with the sugar, turn the heat to low and leave the sugar to melt and caramelize whilst keeping a watchful eye as caramel is known to turn from golden brown to black within moments. Once a light golden caramel is formed flambee by standing back and adding the Gran Marnier (be sure to warn others and keep any flammable objects out of the way). Quickly add the butter and blood orange juice and turn down to the lowest heat to melt. If the sauce begins to thicken too much add a little more orange juice or alcohol depending on your preference. Once the correct consistency is found add the segments.

To finish place a crȇpe to warm in the pan with the hot blood orange sauce, fold in half, then quarters and push to the corner of the pan. Continue in this fashion till you have enough hot crȇpes. Serve on a plate drizzled with sauce and segments, either on their own or with ice-cream.

​Food Credit
Robert Willcox

Photo Credit
Anisha Chauhan