Savoury crepes with asparagus and pistachios

• 20 minutes to prepare • 120 minutes to cook • Serves 4

 

 

Oh Crêpe VI

Happy Spring, again!
It’s time to break out of boring food, and I think I have just the thing: savory crêpes!
They’re light and can be filled with almost anything, but to get your imagination started I’ve created another recipe for you to try.

The great thing about these is that you can make absolutely everything ahead.
I make extra crêpes and keep them in the fridge for quick meals for the next day or two.
Then, you just have to unfreeze them, put the fillings in, cook through, and serve.

So, the filling!
Asparagus season is here or will be shortly, and this creamy pistachios and asparagus' sauce is perfect with spring-tender stalks.
I just quickly boil them so they’d have lots of flavor without overcooking them. The sauce has a pistachio base, so if you have good blender, you should be able to throw it together in minutes.
Buon appetito!


Here's what you will need for the 4-serving recipe:

For 5 crepes:
160 g flour 00
2 eggs, lightly beaten
500 ml milk

For the filling:
300 g fresh asparagus
50 g pistachios
EVO oil

For the bechamel sauce:
300 ml milk
30 g butter
30 g flour 00
50 g grated Parmesan cheese
salt

1. Make the crepes, as described here
2. Rinse the asparagus under cool water to remove any grit. Snap off the bottom inch using your fingers; the stems will naturally break where the tough woody part ends and the tender stem begins
3. Peel asparagus' tough outer skin
4. Pour 1 l of water in a large pot and bring to boil. As soon as the water boils, dip asparagus in the pot, and go on with the cooking for about 5 minutes
5. Drain asparagus' and place them on a cutting board. Separate the stems from the tips, then cut the stems into small pieces
6. Place the stems, 3 tablespoons of EVO oil, and pistachios in a blender. Blend until you obtain a smooth sauce
7. Prepare bechamel sauce: melt the butter in a saucepan and add the flour.
   Whisk until smooth then slowly pour in the milk, a little at a time. Whisk continuously until the sauce is thick then turn down the heat, add the salt and allow to simmer, stirring, until the sauce is thick and cooked through (this takes around 5 minutes on a gentle heat). Once the sauce is cooked, remove the pot from the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese
8. Preheat oven to 200°C fan forced
9. Place one ladle of bechamel sauce on the bottom of a a large baking dish
10. Lay a crepe on a clean work surface and place a spoon of asparagus and pistachios' sauce onto the crepe. Add one spoon of bechamel, few asparagus' tips - smashed with a fork -, and fold it twice and place in the baking tray, seam side down. Repeat with 4 more crepes
11. Spread the remaining bechamel sauce and asparagus' tips over the crepes. Sprinkle over some more Parmesan cheese
12. Bake for 20 minutes, 15 minutes sealed with aluminium foil, and the last 5 minutes without it
13. Let it cool down for 5 minutes and bring it to your table!

In the following, Nutrition Facts of this dish are indicated. Data is provided per serving.