Crepes: Easy Elegance

Last March, when chefs from Ritz-Carlton hotels around the country presented dishes at an epicurean event at the Ritz-Carlton Marina Del Rey, Norman Love, chef at the Ritz-Carlton St. Louis, came up with dessert crepes that anyone could prepare at home. “I wanted to keep things simple yet glamorous,” he says. “If you don’t want to bother making crepes, ready-made crepes are in the markets now. All a cook has to do at home is to whip up the simple fruit sauce to put on the crepes.”

The colorful sauce, however, can be a showpiece when prepared in a chafing dish tableside in front of guests. For a serving, fold each crepe in half or quarters and dip in the hot sauce to reheat. Allow one or two crepes per guest and serve with extra sauce on top.

NORMAN LOVE’S BANANAS-AND-MANGO CREPES

6 tablespoons butter

2 bananas, sliced

1 cup cubed mango

1/2 cup light-brown sugar, packed

Juice of 2 lemons

1 cup mango juice

Dash ground cinnamon

Crepes

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in skillet. Add banana slices and mango cubes. Saute until fruits are coated with butter.

In separate pan melt remaining butter with sugar and cook until caramelized. Add lemon juice, mango juice, sauteed fruit and cinnamon. Serve as filling or topping for prepared Crepes. Garnish with cut-up fruits, if desired. Makes 9 servings, 2 crepes each.

Crepes

3/4 cup flour

2 tablespoon sugar

Dash salt

3 eggs

1 tablespoon browned butter

1 cup milk

Combine flour, sugar and salt in bowl. Beat eggs in another container. Add butter and milk and stir into flour mixture until smooth. Heat crepe pan and brush lightly with butter.

Add enough batter to coat bottom of pan and cook until done underneath. Turn and cook other side. Remove and keep warm. Continue with remaining batter, stacking crepes as done. Makes 18 crepes.