Crawfish Crepes with Creole Cream Sauce

My best friend was visiting her family in South Louisiana over the holidays, and wrote to me bragging about the great deal she got on frozen crawfish tails.  Not only am I jealous, but it gave me a craving for a great crawfish dish.   As I browsed through the pantry to see "what was there" to prepare my grocery list, my eyes landed on the crepe maker that my brother gave me several years ago.  That's all it took for my mind to formulate this grand scheme for this evening's meal.  I knew it would just be my husband and me, so this would be the perfect opportunity to break out an elegant meal that did not include juice pouches or homework projects or such.  

These crepes are delicate and delicious, and whomever you cook them for will definitely be feeling loved!  It's really a shame that you would only typically get this in a fine dining restaurant, because its a simple dish.  You could easily make this ahead of time and pop it into the oven for a dinner party or some such celebration.  And if you live in an area where you can buy ready made crepes, then you are home free!  Crawfish are "in season" here in the South in the Spring, but you can purchase the frozen tails all year round, which is super great. 

Don't be intimidated to make this!  1.  It's less expensive and way cooler for you to go buy the ingredients to make this yourself than driving down to New Orleans.  2.  You are going to impress the heck out of someone with this!  3.  I'll walk you through this step-by-step!  Deal?!  :)  Now I know that you looked at this long list and said "no way."  But seriously, there are just a bunch of seasonings here... nothing hard!  If there is one thing you learn about cooking when you grow up in Louisiana, it's that food should be well seasoned!

Print this Recipe!

Ingredients:   (for 4 servings)

Crepes - 

• 2 lg eggs
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 cup AP flour
• 3 Tbsp melted butter
• 1 tsp finely chopped chives
• pinch of kosher salt

Filling -

• 3 1/2 oz herbed goat cheese
• 2 oz cream cheese
• 1 tsp finely chopped shallots
• 1 tsp finely chopped chives
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 cup rinsed, chopped crawfish tails
• 2 tsp finely chopped parsley

Creole Cream Sauce - 

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 3 Tbsp finely diced onion
• 2 Tbsp bell pepper (mixed red and green)
• 1/4 cup diced tomato
• 1 Tbsp finely minced garlic
• 1/4 cup chopped crimini mushrooms (baby bellas)
• 1 tsp Creole seasoning
• 1 Tbsp finely chopped parsley
• 1 tsp  flour
• 1 cup rinsed crawfish tails
• 2 Tbsp butter to finish
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup heavy cream
• kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Garnish -

• finely diced tomatoes
• chopped parsley 

Menu Options!  If you don't have crawfish available to you, you could certainly use shrimp, scallops, or lobster.  Even lump crabmeat would be delicious.  And when I've not had time to make crepes, I've just the filling and sauce over nice crusty crostini as a fabulous appetizer!  I'm thinking the sauce would also be amazing over a nice bed of linguini or angel hair pasta.  :)

Plan of attack!  

You can make this ahead of time for your dinner party (even a couple of days in advance).  The crepes can be made and filled and just refrigerated.  Same goes for the sauce.  

For making on the same evening.. 1.  Make the crepe batter first.  2.  Make the filling second.  Make the sauce last.  It doesn't take long at all and you can do it while the crepes bake if you have everything prepped.

Crepes - 

Combine all the ingredients, whisking them together.  It should be the consistency of a heavy creme, not as thick as a pancake batter. 

1 cup all purpose flour + 3/4 cup milk + 1/2 cup water

3 Tbsp melted butter + pinch of kosher salt

2 large eggs + 1 tsp finely chopped chives

If you have time, refrigerate it for a while (30+ minutes) to allow the bubbles to dissipate.

Cook about 1 oz of batter at a time.  If cooking in a skillet, swirl the batter until you get a thin circle.  They only need to cook about 1 minute until the slightest brown.  Flip and cook about 15 seconds on the second side.  Set out on cooling racks.  I'm using a crepe maker, so my method was a little different, in that you just dip it and the batter cooks directly on the machine.

Filling -  

Combine all ingredients and set aside. 

3 1/2 oz herbed goat cheese + 2 oz cream cheese.  *I've also made this filling with Boursin cheese when I couldn't find goat cheese, and it worked really well.

1 tsp finely chopped chives + 1 tsp finely chopped shallots

1/4 tsp kosher salt + 1/4 tsp black pepper

2 tsp chopped parsley

1/4 cup rinsed, chopped crawfish tails

Washing your crawfish seems to be a hotbed of contention among my readers.  Many feel you should not rinse them.  Let me again reiterate that this is a personal choice.  If you want all the flavor of the fat, don't rinse.  If you are like me and bristle at the smell when you first open that package, then be guest to rinse them. 

If you live in an area where you can not find local, Louisiana crawfish.  You can purchase them online at CajunGrocer.com and they will ship them to you.
Fill the crepes -
Prepare pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Divide the filling equally among the crepes.  It comes out to about 1 Tbsp each.  Roll them up and place them seam side down in a casserole dish prepared with nonstick cooking spray.  It won't look like much, but it's a rich filling, so the proportions work well with the amount of crepe you get per bite.  If you think you'd like more filling, the recipe is easily doubled.

Sauce -

In a skillet, saute diced onions and bell peppers in the butter.  Cook a few minutes until they start to soften.

2 Tbsp butter + 3 Tbsp finely diced onion + 2 Tbsp mixed red and green bell peppers

Add the chopped mushrooms and allow them to cook down a minute.

1/4 cup chopped crimini mushrooms

Add in the diced tomatoes, chopped garlic, and parsley.  Cook another minute or so until fragrant.  Season with Creole seasoning.

1/4 cup chopped tomatoes

1 Tbsp chopped parsely + 1 Tbsp finely  minced garlic

1 tsp Creole seasoning

Add in the flour and stir it around to form the basis for our roux.

1 tsp flour

Deglaze pan with white wine and heavy cream.  Bring to a boil and cook until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon. 

1 cup dry white wine

1 cup heavy cream

Then add in the crawfish tails and pats of butter.  Cook only 1 minute or so more to warm the tails through.  They are already cooked, and you don't want them to be tough.  Turn off the heat. 

1 cup peeled and rinsed crawfish tails

2 Tbsp butter

Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

salt and pepper to taste

Assemble - 

Okay, here we are back at the crepes that we rolled.  When you are ready, bake the room temperature crepes uncovered at 350 for about 10 - 15 minutes until heated through. 

Arrange a couple of crepes on a plate, and spoon some of the crawfish sauce over the top.  Garnish with a bit of chopped tomatoes and fresh chopped parsley.

Happy New Year, friends! 

I am so thankful for the opportunity that this blog has given me to get to know so many of you over the last few years.  When you tell me that you are now cooking at home more, or that you have confidence to tackle recipes that you didn't before, it is so satisfying to have been a tiny part of that.  It's truly amazing what you can do in your life when you are surrounded by positive, encouraging, and supportive people!

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Here are some bonus recipe for you.
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Oreo Cream Crunch Layer Dessert

Written Method:

Menu Options!  If you don't have crawfish available to you, you could certainly use shrimp, scallops, or lobster.  Even lump crabmeat would be delicious.  And when I've not had time to make crepes, I've just the filling and sauce over nice crusty crostini as a fabulous appetizer!  I'm thinking the sauce would also be amazing over a nice bed of linguini or angel hair pasta.  :)


Plan of attack!  

You can make this ahead of time for your dinner party (even a couple of days in advance).  The crepes can be made and filled and just refrigerated.  Same goes for the sauce.  

For making on the same evening.. 1.  Make the crepe batter first.  2.  Make the filling second.  Make the sauce last.  It doesn't take long at all and you can do it while the crepes bake if you have everything prepped.

Crepes - 

Combine all the ingredients, whisking them together.  It should be the consistency of a heavy creme, not as thick as a pancake batter.  If you have time, refrigerate it for a while (30+ minutes) to allow the bubbles to dissipate.

Cook about 1 oz of batter at a time.  If cooking in a skillet, swirl the batter until you get a thin circle.  They only need to cook about 1 minute until the slightest brown.  Flip and cook about 15 seconds on the second side.  Set out on cooling racks.  I'm using a crepe maker, so my method was a little different, in that you just dip it and the batter cooks directly on the machine.

Filling -  

Combine all ingredients and set aside. *I've also made this filling with Boursin cheese when I couldn't find goat cheese, and it worked really well.

Fill the crepes -
Prepare pan with nonstick cooking spray.  Divide the filling equally among the crepes.  It comes out to about 1 Tbsp each.  Roll them up and place them seam side down in a casserole dish prepared with nonstick cooking spray.  It won't look like much, but it's a rich filling, so the proportions work well with the amount of crepe you get per bite.  If you think you'd like more filling, the recipe is easily doubled.

Sauce -

In a skillet, saute diced onions and bell peppers in the butter.  Cook a few minutes until they start to soften.  Add the chopped mushrooms and allow them to cook down a minute.  Add in the diced tomatoes, chopped garlic, and parsley.  Cook another minute or so until fragrant.  Season with Creole seasoning.  Add in the flour and stir it around to form the basis for our roux.  Deglaze pan with white wine and heavy cream.  Bring to a boil and cook until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon.   Then add in the crawfish tails and pats of butter.  Cook only 1 minute or so more to warm the tails through.  They are already cooked, and you don't want them to be tough.  Turn off the heat. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Assemble - 

Okay, here we are back at the crepes that we rolled.  When you are ready, bake the room temperature crepes uncovered at 350 for about 10 - 15 minutes until heated through.  Arrange a couple of crepes on a plate, and spoon some of the crawfish sauce over the top.  Garnish with a bit of chopped tomatoes and fresh chopped parsley.

Creole Red Snapper

Recently, we were on a Father's Day trip with my husband's extended family.  They took a deep sea fishing trip and limited out on Red Snapper, so you betcha we were going to cook them up.  The thing is, after getting up so early, and fishing all day in the heat, most of the "fisherman" promptly fell asleep.  So... what do do with these beautiful HUGE filets?  It had to be something fairly simple - since we were staying in condos with limited cookware, etc.  I wasn't sure of the palate's of some of the family members, so I was shooting for a balance for "regular" enough to feel safe for someone to try it without hesitation, but "exciting" enough to feel special. 

So this is what came out of the equation!  Oh my goodness... this may be one of my favorite fish preparations ever, and so easy!  Very moist and flavorful, but super easy!  I didn't have take any photos that day, but you'd better believe that I have recreated the dish for my family again since then!

When I say 3 filets, that's because each filet is so large that they take up a whole casserole dish each!  If you are using smaller fish filets, just adjust accordingly.

Click Here for Printable Recipe

Ingredients: (for 8 servings)

• 3 large filets of red snapper
• each one takes up a whole dish
• 2 sticks of butter 
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tsp Creole seasoning
• juice of one large lemon
• 2 Tbsp chopped parsley
• 2 Tbsp chopped chives
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 2/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano reggiano 

Step-by-Step:
Begin by preparing your sauce.  Super easy!
Into a medium sized sauce pan, melt butter and next seven ingredients together.

2 sticks butter (1 cup)

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp Creole seasoning

juice of one large lemon

 (

2 Tbsp chopped chives (green onions would be fine, too)

2 Tbsp chopped parsley

These things will then magically transform into a fabulous sauce!

Brush this sauce liberally over both sides of the fish filets.  I like to first do one side...

Then flip that side "down" onto a bed of sliced onions or carrots, then brush the other side.  Why on a bed?  Well, the vegetables impart some additional flavor to the fish while it bakes, AND it does a very important job - which is to keep the fish up off of the bottom of the dish so it won't stick!!  Nothing is worst than making a beautiful piece of fish that you can't get off of the dish, or that tears apart when you try to unstick it!  My preference is sliced onions (round, like onion steaks), but on this particular day, I didn't have any.

So now, lets make the breadcrumbs.  If you have some Panko bread crumbs, these would be fine to use, but I didn't, so we made breadcrumbs.  Some dried out French bread works great, too. (The drier, the better!)  But like I said, if you don't have any, just make them.  Throw a few pieces of bread in the blender, and let it go!

Mix the breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese into the remainder of the sauce.  We are going to turn this into a wonderfully seasoned paste that will bake on the top of the fish and create a crust!

1 cup bread crumbs

2/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano reggiano

Now, spoon that awesome cheesy breadcrumb paste onto the top of the filets, distributing it evenly among the fish.

 

This is how it will go into the oven.

And this is how it comes out!  WOW!!!   For these big filets, I baked them on 400 degrees F for 30 minutes.  The fish should be opaque and flake easily in the center with a fork.  For smaller fish filets, adjust your cooking time.

I garnished with a little extra fresh chives and thin lemon slices.  Each person can squeeze a little lemon over their portion.  Each of these filets is probably enough for 3 adult portions.  They were HUGE!

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Here are a few random "bonus" recipes for you!  Click the links to take you directly to them.

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Written Method:

Begin by preparing your sauce. Into a medium sized sauce pan, melt butter and next seven ingredients together.  These things will then magically transform into a fabulous sauce!  Brush this sauce liberally over both sides of the fish filets.  I like to first do one side...Then flip that side "down" onto a bed of sliced onions or carrots, then brush the other side.  Why on a bed?  Well, the vegetables impart some additional flavor to the fish while it bakes, AND it does a very important job - which is to keep the fish up off of the bottom of the dish so it won't stick!!  Nothing worst than making a beautiful piece of fish that you can't get off of the dish, or that tears apart when you try to unstick it!  My preference is sliced onions (round, like onion steaks), but on this particular day, I didn't have any.

So now, lets make the breadcrumbs.  If you have some Panko bread crumbs, these would be fine to use, but I didn't, so we made breadcrumbs.  Some dried out French bread works great, too. (The drier, the better!)  But like I said, if you don't have any, just make them.  Throw a few pieces of bread in the blender, and let it go!  Mix the breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese into the remainder of the sauce.  We are going to turn this into a wonderfully seasoned paste that will bake on the top of the fish and create a crust!  

Now, spoon that awesome breadcrumb, cheesy paste onto the top of the filets, distributing it evenly among the fish.  For these big filets, I baked them on 400 degrees F for 30 minutes.  The fish should be opaque and flake easily in the center with a fork.  For smaller fish filets, adjust your cooking time.  Garnish with a little extra fresh chives and thin lemon slices.  Each person can squeeze a little lemon over their portion.  Each of these filets is probably enough for 3 adult portions.  They were HUGE!