Mornings are so hectic. Couple that with my unreasonable goal to get everyone well-fed with a healthy breakfast. It seems impossible most of the time but I’ve made a point to add new recipes to the breakfast roster so we aren’t always eating toaster waffles or cereal.
Here is a recipe that actually came to be on one of those hectic mornings. I set out to make Buttermilk pancakes and forgot half the flour – voila! I got Buttermilk Crepes! I immediately thought about how great these would be stuffed with savoury ingredients like ham, cheese and a vegetable (if the kids comply).
Ham and cheese, I’ve said it many times before, is a winning combination with my kids. However, you can easily dress these crepes up for a fancier brunch crowd with more mature tastes.
Most importantly, for very little ingredients, this Buttermilk Crepe recipe makes a big batch – this one will get you about 20 crepes! These crepes freeze so well, too and they defrost in a snap! I have added two make ahead options in the recipe below for your convenience.
I add a good thick slice of Maple Leaf Natural Smoked Ham, a slice of creamy cheese that gets nice and melted in the oven and a few spears of asparagus. If your kids aren’t into the greens, try a few slices of pear or apple – equally delicious! I feel so good about using Maple Leaf Ham because they’ve changed them – there is nothing artificial and no preservatives in their products anymore. You can include them in your family meals without the worry and that makes meal time MUCH easier.
In addition to my recipes making your meal prep a little easier, I hope the addition of Maple Leaf’s new, natural meats has helped too! I hope you have tried some of their new products such as Maple Leaf Natural Bacon, Maple Leaf Natural Smoked Ham and Maple Leaf Pure Pork Natural Sausage Meat (just to name a few of my personal faves!) and have given a few of my recipes a try! You can find all of my recipes HERE.
We are all in this together – wishing you all a wonderful school year!
With Love,
Julie
Buttermilk Ham & Cheese Crepes with Asparagus
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Yield: 8-10 1x
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1 bunch asparagus (20–25 spears, trimmed)
- 20 thin slices Maple Leaf Natural Smoked Ham
- 300g Fontina Cheese, sliced (or white cheddar, mozzarella, swiss cheese)
- 1 –2 tablespoon vegetable oil or 1 –2 tablespoon cooking spray, for cooking
Instructions
- In a blender, combine eggs, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, buttermilk and melted butter. Put the lid on your blender and process the mixture until smooth, about 1 minute. Refrigerate for 1 hour (this gives any gluten formed during the mixing process time to relax and allows air bubbles to work their way out).
- Heat a lightly greased large non-stick skillet to medium-high heat. Pour 3 tablespoons of the crepe batter into the centre of the skillet. Lift and tilt the skillet to evenly coat the bottom (you want the crepes really thin). Cook until the top of the crepe appears dry (About 45 seconds – 1 minute). Turn the crepe using a spatula and cook the other side for 20 seconds longer until just cooked not crispy (they will have time in the oven to get crispy). Remove the crepe from the skillet and transfer to a wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining batter, greasing the skillet as needed (I use cooking spray between batches because it’s easy to spray and continue cooking). When the crepes are cool, stack them with waxed paper or parchment paper in between to avoid sticking together. This recipe yields about 20 five-inch crepes. (You can store unused crepe batter in the fridge for a couple of days).
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a large skillet, bring 3 inches of water to a boil. Add trimmed asparagus and cook covered for about 3 minutes or until the asparagus appear bright green. Drain and immediately place asparagus in an ice water bath to stop the cooking process. Drain and pat them dry.
- On each crepe, layer a slice of Maple Leaf Natural Smoked Ham, a slice of Fontina cheese and one asparagus spear. Roll up the crepe as tightly as you can get it without tearing the crepe and place in a greased casserole dish or a parchment-lined baking sheet. You can refrigerate or even freeze any leftover cooked crepes.
- Bake the stuffed crepes uncovered in a preheated oven for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the crepes are heated through. Serve hot. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in your refrigerator for up to 3 days. When ready to eat them again, simply heat them through in your microwave or oven.
- Make ahead Options:
- Make the crepes on their own, let them cool and freeze with parchment paper between each crepe in a large re-sealable freezer bag. When you’re ready to use them, you can reheat them in the microwave, toaster oven or even on a frying pan. Stuff them with the ham, cheese and veggies (or whatever you choose) and then bake as instructed above.
- Complete the recipe. After the crepes are baked, let them cool on the baking sheet and then freeze them on the baking sheet on a levelled shelf in your freezer. Once they are frozen, tightly wrap each crepe in plastic wrap and store them in a re-sealable plastic bag. When you’re ready to enjoy, reheat in your microwave or toaster oven and warmed through.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
*This post and recipe were created as part of a paid partnership between Maple Leaf and Daily Tiramisu / Julie Miguel. However, and as always, all opinions are my own.
