CrankyCakes

Oh, I’m running these monkeyboys hard in the last couple of weeks before school starts.  All weekend we were wet and dry and wet and dry.  On our way home from brunch at The Spot, from a tour of the very cool tugboat that was in Burlington harbor this weekend, from ECHO (who still, ahem, has not changed their “no outside food or drink” policy, making local moms question the value of membership in these tough times), we stumbled on a virtual water park.  The beautiful UVM green was being watered by, count ‘em, FOUR irresistable sprinklers.  We didn’t resist.  The boys and I darted through the pivoting water, got soaked, slipping and sliding and laughing our heads off, cool for the first time in days.

Thanks, UVM grounds crew.

We got home and the boys fell into TV comas on the floor.  Z. was laying on his back with his knees bent, bouncing and saying, “p-choo!,” “p-choo!” CrankyGreg asked him what he was doing and he explained how now his tushy shoots lightning.  Rock on, dude.

But today is Monday and so after a day at the beach we came home to tend to our Monkey Menu.  They were completely pooped and though I’m always into staging a helping-Mommy-in-the-kitchen shot, I took pity and just made the meal we had agreed on.

I love the idea of crepes, placing them in the same making-great-use-of-leftovers category as nachos, dumplings, pizza, and the like.  They’ve got a little protein, a little carbs, and it seems to me that if you add in anything plus a fruit or vegetable you’ve got a complete meal. I just told the boys that they were really flat pancakes that we could wrap around anything they liked.  No, Z., not whipped cream.

I always prefer a whole-grain option when it’s possible.  But I didn’t think my kids would last the hour that the buckwheat variety would take to rest, and I wasn’t sure if they’d have the right texture with whole wheat, so I went ahead and made them with white flour but added flaxseed for some boosted nutrition.

We made three varieties:

• E. decided on peanut butter with fresh blackberries (we have the astonishing bumper crop going strong).
• Z. decided on turkey sausage with canned peaches and goat cheese.
• I made the grown-ups’ with turkey sausage, goat cheese, and marinara sauce.  I tucked salad greens into mine because eating salad on the side just seemed too complicated.  Yup.

Flax-Enhanced Savory Crepes
From The Joy of Cooking

About 12 7 1/2″ crepes  (This assumes you’re using a traditional crepe pan.  If you’re using a standard 9″ skillet, as I was, you’ll end up with fewer.)

• 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 T. ground flax seed
  
• 1/2 c. milk or soymilk
  
• 1/4 c. lukewarm water
• 2 large eggs (I assume you can use egg replacers here.)
  
• 2 T. melted unsalted butter or olive oil
  
• 1/2 t. salt

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Cover blender  and let sit for 30 minutes, or up to 2 days.  (I didn’t do this.)
2. Have any fillings ready.
3. Place a skillet or seasoned crepe pan over medium heat. (The recipe suggests a non-stick pan.  I don’t use non-stick cookware because of information like this.  Something that might be that dangerous, AND I have to throw it away if I get one scratch in it?  No thanks.)
4. Stir the batter and pour just enough to barely coat the pan, lifting the pan off the heat and tilting and rotating so that the batter forms an even, thin layer.
5. Turn once the top is set and the bottom is golden.  (The JoC suggests using your fingers, which is patently crazy.  Use one of those thin and springy spatulas if you have one.)  Cook 15-20 seconds on the other side.
6. If you’d like to cook all of the crepes and then fill and serve them at the same time because you are a civilized person who wants everyone to eat together, just stack the crepes as they’re done with pieces of parchment between them.  Then you can fill and roll them and eat them up.  The leftovers can be frozen with the parchment still in place for up to 1 month.