Crepes with Bananas and Hazelnut-Chocolate Sauce

I used Rawtella (vegan Nutella) this past spring, in a hazelnut cheesecake, so was eager to try this crepe recipe when I spotted it.  I have a few suggestions for you, having gone through the labor of preparing this dish, but with some tweaks, this recipe would be great for dessert, or even for a leisurely brunch.

Ingredients:
For the crepes:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon vegan sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 and 1/2 cups plain non-dairy milk
• 2 Ener-G eggs
• Cooking spray

For the sauce:

• 1/4 cup hazelnut-chocolate spread (such as Rawtella)
• 2 tablespoons plain non-dairy milk
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large firm bananas
• Vegan powdered sugar (optional for garnish)

1. To prepare the crepes, lightly spoon the flour into a dry measuring cup and level with a knife.  Combine the flour in a bowl with the sugar and salt.  In a separate bowl, combine 1 and 1/2 cups milk and the Ener-G eggs. Add the milk mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until smooth.  Cover and chill the batter for 15 minutes.

2. Heat a 10-inch skillet or crepe pan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat.  Remove the pan from the burner and pour a scant 1/4 cup of the batter into the pan, tilting so the batter covers the pan evenly (it will be a very thin layer).  Return to the burner and cook until the edges left easily - the suggested cooking time was 1 minute, but I had much more luck cooking for 90 seconds.

3. Carefully turn over (the crepe should be loose enough to come off the pan easily at this point) and cook for an additional 30 seconds to 1 minute on the other side.

4. Transfer the crepe to a paper towel and keep warm.  Repeat the procedure 7 times, layering the crepes between wax paper or paper towels as you finish them.

Note: I found it very helpful to re-coat the pan with cooking spray before adding each portion of the batter.

5. To prepare the sauce, combine the hazelnut-chocolate spread in a small saucepan with 2 tablespoons milk and the vanilla extract.  Cook over medium heat, whisking until smooth; reduce heat and keep warm over low heat.

6.  Meanwhile, prepare the banana filling. Heat a large skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Peel the bananas, and cut in half lengthwise, then cut each piece in half crosswise, for 8 pieces of banana total.

7. Add 4 banana pieces to the pan in a single layer. Cook for 1 minute. Turn over and cook an additional minute.  Remove the bananas from the pan and repeat with the remaining banana pieces.

8.To assemble the crepes, place 1 banana piece in the center of each crepe, and fold over the sides and ends. Place the filled crepes, seam side down, on a work surface.

9. For a fun presentation, don't just spoon the chocolate sauce over the crepes. Instead, spoon about 1 tablespoon chocolate sauce onto each of 4 plates, creating a swirled pattern. 

10. Arrange 2 crepes on each plate over the sauce. Dust with powdered sugar for a lovely garnish if you'd like.  The crepes will be best served immediately.

Nutrition Info:
4 servings (2 crepes, 1 tablespoon sauce), Calories 312 

Tasting Notes:
A good bit of effort goes into making the crepes, so disappointingly, I'm not sure this recipe is currently worth the effort. But I have some tweaks in mind that would make it so. First, the recipe naturally makes more batter than you'll need - about enough for 12 crepes, but you only need 8. So do take a practice round or two, since there is a fine art to flipping the delicate crepes without them folding in on themselves. As mentioned above, I had the best luck cooking the crepes for 90 seconds instead of 1 minute, and when re-coating the pan with cooking spray before each crepe.

The banana filling was, well, just a banana. Somehow this didn't occur to me until I bit into the crepe, with all the crepe-flipping going on in the kitchen. Definitely jazz it up: cinnamon, brown sugar, agave nectar, maybe even cardamom. Anything so that you are eating more than warm banana in warm crepe.

Likewise the chocolate sauce felt lacking. I would thin it with more milk (I used soy tonight), so it is drizzlier and thinner. Whipped cream on top might also tie this whole dish together. That said, with each bite, you'll get sweet dough, banana, and chocolate, so don't get me wrong, these are still good.

Rating:
3.5