Crepes suzette: the recipe flambéed with Grand Marnier

Crepes suzette are a very delicious dessert, enriched with a sugar and orange sauce and flambéed with Grand Marnier. Here is the recipe and tips!

There are those who love them sweet and those who prefer them savory, in any case the crepes are always good. Unlike the classic recipe, crepes suzette are served without filling but with a sauce based on orange juice and caramelized sugar to which Grand Marnier, an orange liqueur similar to Cointreau, is added. In fact, you can add any spirit you prefer, but we present you the original recipe .

So let's see the preparation step by step to make delicious flambéed crepes suzette without setting the kitchen on fire. Finally, if you are curious, we will tell you about the origins of the dish – which are not French!

• Crepes recipe
• How to flambé
• Pairings
• Conservation
• History

How to prepare the crepes suzette recipe

1. Start by preparing the batter : break the eggs into a bowl, add a pinch of salt and the milk , beating everything with a hand whisk.
2. Add the sifted flour and mix again until you obtain a smooth batter. Try not to overdo it because incorporating air will make the dough more difficult to cook. Cover it with cling film and let it rest for 30 minutes .
3. Once the dough has rested, heat a non-stick pan, melt a few flakes of butter and pour in a small ladle of dough . Rotating the pan, distribute the batter over the entire surface and cook first on one side, until the edges begin to rise, and then on the other. Once cooked, stack the crepes on a plate and continue until all the batter is used up.
4. At this point, prepare the sauce called beurre Suzette . In a pan, melt the butter and sugar , mix and add the grated orange and lemon peels taken without affecting the white part of the citrus fruit.
5. Add the juice of all the citrus fruits and cook until the sugar has melted and caramelized slightly.
6. Dip the crepes folded in four and leave to flavor for 2 minutes.

If you want to speed up the preparation you can also prepare the crepes with the Thermomix .

How to flambé?

Flambéing is a very quick process, which must be done with the right amount of attention . Let's break it down into all its steps so that it has no more secrets!

1. In the pan with the crepes soaked in orange sauce, add the Grand Marnier.
2. With a common torch or gas lighter (long, please: otherwise you risk burning yourself) set the dessert on fire . Yes, it sounds weird but that's how it's done!
3. A flame will be released, which you will have to cover practically immediately with a pan or lid, in order to put out the fire.
4. Continue cooking for 2 minutes before serving hot.

If you are a bit clumsy or are trying your hand at a rather particular (and dangerous if done the wrong way) preparation such as flambé crepe suzette for the first time, protect your hands with oven gloves and tie your hair.

Here is a video that illustrates all the steps that separate you from this delicious dessert.

Pairings and variations of the crepes Suzette recipe

As for the wine – crepes suzette pairing, we recommend a passito , a sweet or fortified wine with a hint of orange.

If you make them for children , you can prepare crepes suzette without liquor (but obviously you won't be able to flambé them given the absence of alcohol). Serve them simply with their orange sauce, a dollop of cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Conservation

Crepes Suzette must be made and tasted at the moment to fully appreciate them. However, you can keep the batter in the refrigerator for 12 hours or the already cooked crepes , always in the refrigerator and covered with cling film, for 2 days .

Crepes Suzette: the story (which is not French)

A fascinating recipe like this is almost always accompanied by a story that has its roots in legend . Curiously, as happened with the ganache cream, also in this case, the recipe was born due to an error by a bungling chef .

It is said, in fact, that this dessert was born in 1800 in Monte Carlo (therefore they are not French crepes, as many believe!) in the Café de Paris by the hands of the apprentice of the great chef Auguste Escoffier, a certain Henry Charpentier. The young man served dessert to Prince Edward VIII of Wales, but out of emotion he poured some liquor into the pan. Due to an error, everything caught fire, giving life to what we know today as crepe suzette! There is also no certainty about the origin of the name: some say Suzette was the Prince's lover , and some believe she is the daughter of one of the companions at his table.

Another story, however, leads them back to the maître Josèph of the "Marivaux" restaurant in Paris who in 1897 prepared them for an actress named Suzette.

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Crepes: photo and video recipe for making the neutral dough (and some delicious inspiration)