Rosie Makes Crepes For Her Thanksgiving Gateau.

I first made Julia Child's Gateau of Crepes years ago and it has become a Thanksgiving tradition in the Hawthorne Household. Yes, it may be a bit labor intensive, but it's worth every minute. This is a hearty, handsome dish. Layers of vegetables - carrots, broccoli, and dill - are separated by crepes, bound by a cheese custard, and baked in a crepe-lined mold. Right now (and we're talking Tuesday) I'm just making the crepes. Tomorrow, Wednesday, I'll prepare the mushroom duxelles, the broccoli, and the matchstick carrots. On Thursday, I'll make the cheese custard and assemble and bake the dish.

Here are my well worn pages from Julia Child And More Company.

When I make this recipe, I always double Julia's amounts and freeze the leftover crepes. If you're going to the trouble of making crepes, you might as well double them. My ingredients: 2 cups Wondra or instant blending flour 1 1/3 cups each water and milk (I imagine Julia meant whole milk, although she didn't specify. I used 2/3 cup 1% milk and 2/3 cup heavy cream.) 6 large eggs 1 1/2 tsp salt 6 TB melted butter

Measure the flour by scoop and sweep. Add salt. Whisk in the water.

Whisk in the milk.

Add in the eggs, one at a time, whisking after each addition.

Pour in the melted butter.

Whisk until smooth and blended. Let rest for at least 10 minutes so that the flour granules can absorb the liquid. Makes for a tender crepe. If you use regular all purpose flour, let it rest for 1-2 hours.

Pretty crepes.

For the first crepe, heat your pan and add a little butter. Pour in 1/4 cup batter and swirl the pan to evenly and thinly coat. After the first crepe, no more butter is needed. The crepe is ready to flip when it releases itself from the pan and slides around easily when you shake the pan.

Don't be timid when flipping. Flip with a grand flourish. Flipping is always impressive and you must give it your all. Cook the other side about 30 seconds. The other side will never ever look like the first side. The other side is used for the "inside." Tomorrow, I will assemble my Gateau. Stay tuned.