Grandma Nancys Crepe Recipes

GRANDMA NANCY'S MANICOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a medium bowl combine the ricotta, 1 cup of the grated cheese, eggs, and pepper.
• Fill each crepe with approximately 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture centering it in a straight line down the middle. Top with the shredded mozzarella. Take one end of the crepe and fold over the cheese filling. Then take the other end and pulling slightly, fold over in a wrapping motion overlapping the stuffed portion of the crepe. Repeat until all 12 crepes are filled.
• Spread one cup of the sauce in the bottom of a large baking pan that has been sprayed with a non-stick cooking spray. Place the filled manicotti in the pan, seam down, side-by-side. Do not overlap, and do not layer them. Spoon the remaining sauce over the manicotti. Be sure to cover all the pasta. Sprinkle with the remaining grated cheese. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for approximately 30 minutes or until the sauce is hot and bubbling.
• Remove from the oven and let stand for approximately 10 to 15 minutes before serving. This will give the manicotti time to settle which will make for easy serving. The manicotti will fall apart if served immediately.
• In a pan heat the olive oil. Add onions and cook until translucent. Add garlic and cook for a few minutes on medium heat. Do not let garlic burn. Add tomatoes, basil, oregano, and pepper. Let tomato mixture cook for approximately 30 minutes.

BASIC CREPE RECIPE

Steps:

• In a bowl whisk together flour, water, eggs and a dash of salt until smooth. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Rub an oiled paper towel along the inside of an 8-inch nonstick skillet. Heat skillet. Pour 1/4 cup batter onto the pan. Swirl batter around to cover surface. Cook over medium heat until firm, about 20 -30 seconds. Flip crepe with fingers or spatula. Cook for about 7 seconds on other side. Remove from pan and stack on a plate.

GRANDMA NANCY'S CREPE RECIPE

Steps:

• Blend all ingredients together until it looks like a loose pancake batter. This will make between 8 to 10 crepes, depending on how thin they are made. They work best when they are almost paper thin. Pour small amount onto hot crepe pan and cook approximately 2 minutes on each side.

GRANDMA NANCY'S ZEPPOLI

Steps:

• Dissolve the 3 packets of yeast in 2 cups of warm water. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes.
• Place flour and salt in large deep bowl. Add yeast mixture. The best way to mix this recipe is with your hands. Gradually add water while mixing until it resembles a loose doughy consistency, not too thick and not too watery. You may not have to use all the water. Make sure all the flour is combined. Transfer dough to a larger bowl. Cover with 2 medium size towels and put the bowl in a warm place for 2 hours to rest. After 2 hours, you will see that the dough has tripled in size and is ready for frying.
• Place 2 quarts of oil in deep pot (4 or 6 quart size). Heat oil until very hot. (Grandma did not use a thermometer. She knew the oil was ready by dropping a small amount of dough into the pot).
• You can use a large serving spoon, but we still use our hands, drop golf-ball size piece of dough into hot oil. Fry 1 side for a minute until golden brown. Turn over and fry for another minute. Drain in a large colander (Italians call it the scolapasta).
• Transfer drained zeppoli to large platter and cover loosely with foil to keep warm. When half the dough is used, combine the raisins with the remaining dough. Repeat the frying process until all the dough is used.
• Place the warm zeppolis on large serving platter. Serve with powered sugar.

GRANDMA KNOBEL'S CREPES

Steps:

• Sift flour, sugar, and salt into a large bowl. Add milk, eggs, and vanilla and whisk until smooth and slightly thinner than a regular pancake batter; do not overmix the batter or it will result in tougher crepes.
• Heat an 8- to 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon oil to the center of the pan.
• Pour about 1/2 cup batter into the dot of oil. Hold the skillet by the handle and tilt the pan around so the batter evenly coats the entire skillet; the crepe should be about 1/8-inch thick. Cook until the bottom is medium brown, the top is dry, and the edges are starting to curl, about 1 minute. Flip the crepe and cook until golden brown on the other side, about 30 seconds. If each crepe takes longer than 2 minutes to cook, the batter may need to be thinner or you may need to use a higher heat.
• Place crepe on a plate with a dab of butter on top. Drizzle with maple syrup, roll up, dust with powdered sugar, and serve.
• Repeat Steps 3 and 4, adding more avocado oil to the skillet as needed.