Can you make crêpes in advance? Why, yes you can. You can refrigerate crêpes, if you think you’ll be using them all up in a day or so; or, you can freeze them for longer storage. I’ll show you how.
Crêpes, like fondue, seem to go in and out of fashion in the U.S., but in France, they’re mainstays—and not just in restaurants and seaside crêpe huts. French cooks pull them out for quick, easy, any-night desserts.
“Quick and easy?” you’d be fair to ask. “How can that be—when you have to make the batter and cook them up?”
Here’s the deal: Crêpes refrigerate and freeze admirably well.Most recipes make about 12 crêpes. Serve four tonight and freeze the rest. You’re home free with two more nights of dessert if you’re serving four, four more nights if it’s just the two of you.
Can you make crêpes in advance? Yes! Here’s how.
Follow any good crêpe recipe (here’s one); if you’re making crêpes ahead of time, be sure to cool the crêpes individually before stacking. Here’s how:
•Before you start cooking your crêpes, set four plates (at least 7 inches in diameter) on a countertop, ready and waiting to receive the just-made crêpes. After you cook each crêpe, slide it onto one of the empty plates. You can start to stack the crêpes once they’re completely cooled, freeing up empty plates for the next hot ones.
Then, either refrigerate or freeze your crêpes according to the methods below.
How to Store Crêpes in the Refrigerator
• To store cooked crêpes in the refrigerator, stack the cooled crêpes on a plate—they won't stick together if they're truly cooled before stacking. Cover the stack with plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 2 days. To reheat, warm each gently in a skillet over moderately high heat, about 30 seconds per side.
How to Freeze Crêpes:
• To freeze crêpes, stack cooled crêpes on a freezer-safe plate with a sheet of waxed paper between each crêpe. Cover the entire stack with plastic wrap and freeze. Defrost in the refrigerator and warm each gently in a skillet or the microwave before serving. You can also defrost frozen crêpes in the microwave until thawed; once defrosted, reheat each gently in a skillet over moderately high heat, about 30 seconds per side.
Can I Store Crêpe Batter in the Refrigerator?
Yes. Up to 24 hours. Be sure to stir the batter before using, as it will probably have separated.
Can I Freeze Crepe Batter?
Yes. I have done so, completely by accident (I was doing a cooking demo on T.V. in Chicago, and I put my premade batter in my hotel’s refrigerator. The fridge was too cold that it froze.)
But, no harm was done. I simply thawed it in a lower-temp refrigator. Still, I’m not sure why you’d want to freeze the batter, as crepe batter is so quick to make .
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If you like this post, you'll enjoy the 250 easy, everyday French recipes in my book,The Bonne Femme Cookbook: Simple, Splendid Food That French Women Cook Every Day. Right now it’s only available as an e-Book, but it will be republished in 2022.
