A champagne breakfast to celebrate Christmas!

Ingredients (serves 12)

  • 100g plain flour
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 egg, plus 1 extra yolk
  • 300ml low fat milk
  • 1 tbsp sunflower or light olive oil
  • 2–3 tbsp melted butter

Method

Sift the flour and salt into a mixing bowl. Make a well in the centre. Beat the egg and extra yolk and add them to the well. Stir the eggs, concentrating your stirring only in the eggs, gradually drawing in flour from around the edge. Don’t force the flour in; it will be incorporated automatically as you stir the eggs.

As the egg mixture becomes thicker, add a little milk to loosen it, then keep stirring. Continue like this until all the flour has been incorporated. Beat to ensure the thick mixture is smooth, then add the remaining milk and oil. Chill the batter in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, which allows the starch cells in the flour to swell (so lightening the batter).

When ready to use, check the consistency of the batter; it should be a thin cream consistency. Pour it into a jug.

Place a non-stick pan over a low to medium heat. Wipe out the pan with kitchen paper dipped in the melted butter. Pour a little of the batter into the frying pan, just enough to thinly coat the bottom of the pan, about one to two mm thick. As you pour the batter in, swirl the pan to encourage the batter to cover the base completely, then pour any excess back into the jug. Return the pan to the heat and use a palette knife to trim away any batter left up the side of the pan from pouring excess batter back into the jug.

After one to two minutes, use the palette knife to release and turn over the edge of the crepe to check the colour on the underside. When golden brown, use the palette knife and your fingertips to turn the pancake over. Cook the second side until golden, one to two minutes, then carefully remove it from the pan to a plate.

As the pancakes are cooked, stack them interleaved with strips of greaseproof paper (about three cm wide). This will help to keep the crepes separate as they are piled up. Repeat with the remaining batter, wiping out the pan with kitchen paper dipped in the melted butter for each crepe. Serve with your choice of filling.

Images and recipes extracted from Leiths How To Cook, published by Quadrille, distributed by Hardie Grant Books. RRP $59.95.

kJ 320.5 | Fat 7.1g | Carb 22g | Protein 6.8g

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