Looking for new crêpe filling ideas? How about this winning combo, inspired by Provence…
A persillade and fresh goat cheese… both are reminiscent of the exuberant flavors of Provence, and they serve as the dual inspiration for this recipe. An essential condiment in so many Provençal dishes, a persillade is a mixture of parsley and garlic that’s chopped up together, allowing the two flavors to merge. And fresh goat cheese, of course, is the national cheese of Provence – you can’t have a Provençal meal without including the creamy cheese in one way or another. In this recipe, we bring the two ingredients together in perfect harmony.
Time-tested French flavors come together to make the best crêpes you’ve ever had – at home or anywhere else!
The simple but powerful persillade brings a flavor-punch to the sautéed mushrooms, which make a most delicious stuffing for the crêpes. And as for the goat cheese, it’s melted into a fonduta that adds a marvelous moisture and tanginess to the crêpes. Plus, the fonduta is so easy to make that it comes together in minutes!
Served with grilled or roasted asparagus and a green salad tossed with a lemony vinaigrette, these savory crêpes make for a most delicious and festive main course.
Food & wine pairing: Pinot Blanc with mushroom & goat cheese buckwheat crêpes
A full-bodied white wine, like a Pinot Blanc or Pinot Gris from Alsace, works marvelously here. You could also pour an unoaked Chardonnay. But, perhaps surprisingly, this recipe also lends itself very well to a bone-dry rosé – especially one made with Pinot Noir grapes.
Buckwheat crêpes with mushrooms en persillade and goat cheese fonduta
makes 8 crêpes or serves 4
active time: 1 hr 15 min (includes making the crêpes)
For the fonduta
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
- freshly ground white pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 7 oz (200 g) fresh goat cheese – crumbled
For the mushrooms
- 1 oz (30 g) curly or Italian parsley leaves (1 cup medium packed)
- 4 large garlic cloves – skinned
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lb (455 g) shiitake mushrooms – stems removed and cut in 1/4″ cubes (see Viviane’s tip)
- 12 oz (340 g) oyster mushrooms – torn in 1/2″ pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 recipe buckwheat crêpes
- 1 large jelly roll pan – lightly buttered
- Preheat oven to 375 °F (190 °C).
- Step 1: To make the fonduta – Place the milk and cream in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. As soon as the mixture is boiling, reduce heat to medium and add the salt, pepper, lemon juice and goat cheese. Whisk continuously until the cheese has melted and the mixture is very smooth. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.
- Step 2: To make the persillade – Finely slice the garlic and then coarsely chop. Move the garlic to the side of the board. Place the parsley leaves on a chopping board and coarsely chop. Add the garlic to the chopped parsley and finely chop the two ingredients together. Place the persillade in a small bowl and set aside.
- Step 3: Heat a large non-stick skillet over high heat and add the butter. As soon as the butter has melted, add the oil and mushrooms, toss well and spread evenly over the whole surface of the pan. Sauté undisturbed for 2 minutes until the mushrooms begin to brown. Toss again and continue to sauté until the mushrooms are golden-brown but still moist, about 4 to 5 minutes, tossing only from time to time. Add the salt, pepper and persillade, toss again and sauté for another 30 seconds until the garlic releases its flavor (but make sure not to brown it). Transfer the mushrooms to a bowl. To assemble the crêpes, lay a crêpe on a cutting board. Place a couple of spoonfuls of the mushrooms in the upper right corner of the crêpe (from 12 to 3 o’clock), drizzle the mushrooms with the fonduta, fold the crêpe in a triangle and place on the prepared jelly roll pan. Repeat until all the ingredients have been used up (for a total of 8 crêpes). Bake the crêpes for 8 to 10 minutes, until hot, and serve immediately.
- Cook’s note: The crêpes can be prepared up to 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate until ready to bake.
Viviane’s tip
- Shiitake and oyster mushrooms are available all year long, which is why I chose them for this recipe. But many different kinds of seasonal wild mushrooms can be used to make these delicious crêpes. Try using cèpes (also known as porcini), chanterelles, hen-of-the-woods, trumpet, hedgehog or even lobster mushrooms. If you want to use commercial mushrooms, then I recommend crimini mushrooms. (Portobello mushrooms are too strongly flavored for this dish.) Whatever mushrooms you decide to use in this recipe, make sure to cut (or tear) them in small pieces (1/4″ to 1/2″). It’ll make the delicate crêpes much easier to eat.
What beautiful crepes! There is a restaurant here in San Diego where they offer gluten-free crepes made with 100% buckwheat flour, and they are delicious. You have inspired me to try making them at home with this fabulous recipe. And, the asparagus on the side is just perfect too!
This is a winning combination! I saw the buckwheat crepes and immediately came over to see what you did with them. Elegant dish!!!
As I knew it would, your mushroom filling sounds outstanding!
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Mj, thank you so much for your lovely comment. I do hope you make buckwheat crêpes sometimes… The flavor is so deep, almost earthy. Absolutely addicting!
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