Anise and sesame seeds may seem like unlikely additions to your next batch of crêpes, but trust me–it’s outstanding. Together, the anise, sesame, and orange taste mysterious, somewhat exotic, and completely addiction-worthy.
I wish I could tell you that I just pulled this brilliant flavor combination out of my head, but, unfortunately, that’s not the case. The idea came from the wildly delicious Spanish crackers that I’m totally obsessed with. They’re awesomely olive oily, large, round crisps, dotted with anise and sesame seeds, and sprinkled with sugar. Even the packaging is delicious; they come wrapped in beautiful wax paper printed with poetic-sounding blue type. Legítimas y acreditadas.
I could easily form-a-pack a day habit if they weren’t so danged expensive. But it’s okay. It’s okay because I came up with these crêpes. These crêpes emulate the essence of my beloved crackers without the hefty price tag. The flavors are subtle, but intriguing and craveable. You’ll love them with coffee for breakfast, as an afternoon snack, or stacked into a torte for dessert.
Let’s do this. Mix up the crêpe batter. Flour, eggs, milk. Melted butter, a spoonful of sugar, and a pinch of salt. A few splashes of soda water. Sesame seeds, anise seeds, and the zest of an orange.
Make a work station next to (or on, in my case) your stove: batter, spatula, a couple pans, and a warm plate for the finished crêpes. Get your pans hot and dive in. Swirl a thin layer of batter around the bottom of the pan. Cook until the crêpe releases, then flip and transfer to the plate. Repeat. Don’t despair if you don’t get it quite right with the first couple. Like pancakes, the first one belongs to the dog.
Put the coffee on and set the table with everything you might need. Butter and sugar. Fresh berries. Ricotta with honey and orange marmalade. A jar of Nutella. Coffee. The newspaper. Now settle in–you’ve got a new obsession-worthy breakfast to tend to.
- ¼ c. (1/2 stick) Unsalted Butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1½ c. Milk
- ¾ c. Club Soda
- 2 Eggs
- 1 tsp. Sugar
- ½ tsp. Salt
- 2 c. All-Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp. Sesame Seeds
- 1 tsp. Anise Seeds
- zest of 1 Orange
- Vegetable Oil (for greasing the pans)
- Combine all in a medium bowl and whisk until well-combined. Let the batter rest for at least 30 minutes.
- Heat a crepe pan (or any non-stick frying pan) over medium-high heat. Using a paper towel, apply a thin layer of vegetable oil to the pan. Pour about ⅓ c. of the batter into the pan and quickly swirl it around until it coats the bottom of the pan. If your batter seems too thick to accomplish this, thin it out with more milk. Cook until the crepe releases from the bottom of the pan, about 1 minute. Flip and cook on the other side for 30 seconds or until golden. Transfer to a warm plate and repeat until you are out of batter. Serve warm with butter and sugar or ricotta cheese and orange marmalade.
Just printed this off. Going to leave it lying about where your sister can see it. Maybe it will inspire her to rekindle her crepe-making skills for a Mother’s Day breakfast…… looks delicious!
Good thinking!
I never heard of these before, you have me intrigued. Especially that they do seem a bit expensive (I looked it up on their website) Makes me want to try them that much more!
The crackers are worth the splurge, but my crepes are a good stand-in!
I’m glad I’m not the only one with a serious torta addiction. My only saving grace is that they’re hard to come by in my neck of the woods – which is just as well.
These crepes sound delish. I’m definitely going to put them in my crepe rotation. I usually just do a dash of sugar and some nutmeg – but these will make an excellent change.
You’re definitely not alone in your addiction! Hope you like the crepes.
my grandmother (and now I am a grandmother) who was from the pyrenees used to make her crepes with anise tea (boil 1 cup water with anise seeds… strain … add the water to the batter. yours is the ONLY place i found even a remote mention of anise.