Let’s prepare the meat and pea sauce

Prepare the aromatic mince by finely chopping the carrot, celery, and onion together.

Take the milk out of the fridge.

As for the peas, you can use canned peas (only after rinsing them thoroughly under running water), frozen or fresh if they are in season, but in any case preferably already cooked.

Heat a generous tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in a low pan on medium flame.

When the oil is hot, add the ground meat and let it brown over high heat for 5 minutes or until it is completely dry, without any liquids, stirring very often.

Once the meat is completely browned, add the aromatic mince, stir and let it flavor for a couple of minutes, keeping the heat high.

After a couple of minutes, pour in the wine, stir and let the alcohol evaporate for a minute, stirring often.

When the alcohol has evaporated, add the peas, the tomato sauce, some basil leaves, salt, cover and let it cook for 30 minutes, on the smallest burner at low flame, leaving a slit between the pot and the lid (the sauce should be dry).

In the meantime, we can make the eggless crepes.

Sift the all-purpose flour and semolina (you can also use only all-purpose or 0 flour, but the semolina adds a flavor note and makes the crepes much tastier, in my opinion) together in a large bowl.

Add the milk (at room temperature), the salt and mix until you get a fluid batter like yogurt, smooth and without lumps, which we will let rest for 15 minutes, covering the bowl with a saucer. If the batter seems too thick, add another teaspoon or tablespoon of milk.

While the batter rests, prepare the béchamel sauce.

In a saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. When it’s melted, add the already sifted flour, stir quickly with a steel whisk until a cream forms (a few seconds), which we will let cook for 30 seconds; then, add all the milk and mix well with a spoon or the steel whisk.

Salt, spice with nutmeg and let it thicken, stirring very often (keeping the béchamel on low flame will take about 10 minutes). We should get a very thick béchamel, because besides further flavoring our smiles, it should act as a glue to keep them closed and prevent them from opening during the gratin stage.

With the heat off, add the grated cheese and stir to blend it into the hot béchamel.

Let’s prepare the crepes.

Put a thin layer of butter in a 5-inch non-stick pan and let it heat over medium flame.

When the butter is melted, add 2 generous tablespoons of batter and quickly rotate the pan a bit to ensure the batter covers the entire bottom.

Place the pan back on the burner and let the crepe cook for a minute or a bit longer until you can turn it to the other side using a spatula. If the crepe resists, extend the cooking by a few more seconds. Don’t worry if the first crepe breaks or doesn’t look attractive.

Continue until you finish the batter, always putting a thin layer of butter in the pan. As you remove the crepes from the pan, place them on a plate, one on top of the other.

Well, now we can form our smiles.

Take a crepe and place it on a cutting board.

Brush the inside of the crepe well with a thin layer of béchamel, focusing on the edges.

Put a tablespoon of meat and pea sauce (very dry, without liquids) and a scant tablespoon of béchamel in the center of the crepe, flattening the filling slightly if necessary to close it perfectly.

Fold the crepe into a half-moon, brush the surface with a bit more béchamel and place it on a baking sheet (lined with parchment paper), using a spatula to help. The smiles can also be passed in breadcrumbs, depending on tastes, before being gratinated.

Continue until all the crepes are filled.

Place the baking sheet in the oven, turn on the grill and let them gratinate for about 10 minutes or until golden.

They are delicious both hot and warm.