I must confess I had tried to make vegan crepes with chickpea flour in the past but they didn’t turn out well: they stayed floury and stuck to the pan. Then in my Facebook group I saw a recipe posted by a dear reader of mine, Katia, who had made cecine (chickpea flatbreads).
I was curious and read carefully how she made them. I might have discovered nothing revolutionary, but I understood my mistake: I had not let the batter rest. Once I corrected that mistake I didn’t end up with cecine but with crepes, since I preferred to spread the batter thinly across the pan.
Nice, right? They turned out perfectly, soft, just like crepes made with eggs, not at all floury and with a delicate flavor that makes them perfect for both sweet and savory recipes. And they are so easy to make, really child’s play…
And you don’t need much: only chickpea flour, water, a pinch of salt and a little oil. A good nonstick pan and that’s it. With these quantities you get 8 crepes, not very large, about 6 1/4 in (16 cm) in diameter and 1.5 Weight Watchers points each: let’s see how I made them and thanks again to Katia for the recipe!
How I used these crepes:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very economical
- Rest time: 8 Hours
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Cooking time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 8
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Healthy
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 3.5 oz (about 3/4 cup + 1 tbsp) chickpea flour
- 6.8 fl oz (≈3/4 cup + 2 tbsp) water
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil (2 measuring teaspoons)
- Total points = 12 WW points
- Points per 1 crepe = 1.5 WW points
- Points per 2 crepes = 3 WW points
Tools
- Bowl
- Sieve
- Whisk
- Pan
- Spatula
Steps
I recommend making the batter for these vegan crepes the night before so you can cook them in the morning: the batter needs to rest for a few hours. Start by measuring the water into the bowl: remember that 200 ml of water equals 200 g (≈6.8 fl oz ≈ 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp). Then add a pinch of salt (even if you’re planning on sweet fillings, trust me) and whisk a bit to help it dissolve.
Then add the sifted chickpea flour and whisk very well.
Once you have a fairly liquid, lump-free batter, cover the bowl and leave it out of the fridge overnight. This is a very important step: as I explained at the start of the recipe, in the past I didn’t let the batter rest and the vegan crepes never turned out well.
The next day add 2 teaspoons of oil to the batter and whisk again to combine well. Even just 1 teaspoon of oil is enough, but it doesn’t change the WW points much.
Heat a nonstick 8 in (20 cm) pan very well.
Pour a small ladle of batter into the center of the pan and quickly tilt/rotate the pan to cover the entire bottom. Lower the heat a little and wait for it to cook underneath.
When to flip? You’ll notice because if you try to lift the crepe from the edges of the pan with a silicone spatula it should come away very easily without forcing. Don’t insist and be patient: they won’t stick even if the pan hasn’t been greased — obviously this assumes the pan is good quality. The first crepe is always the trickiest; the others will cook much more easily.
So cook the crepe on both sides until you see it slightly golden, then place it on a plate. I put a sheet of kitchen paper underneath to absorb moisture.
Repeat this operation for all the crepes.
Once all the vegan crepes are cooked you can either fill them immediately or store them at room temperature for a day (I kept them in a turned-off oven) or freeze them — but separate them with a little parchment paper so you can thaw them easily.
I also prepared a savory recipe that I’ll show you shortly. I can tell you in advance it will be perfect for the Easter table and it’s made with asparagus. Really delicious.
We enjoyed it here, even the Dutchman approved, which is always a good sign since we don’t always share the same tastes. Let me know if you make them — leave me a comment below or on Facebook; further down you’ll find the link to my group, the Mangia senza Pancia Club.
Enjoy!
by Giovanna Buono
Tips
If you really struggle to cook these vegan crepes because they stick to the pan, put only 1 teaspoon of oil in the batter. Then before you start cooking, pour the second teaspoon of oil into a small dish and brush the pan before cooking each crepe. That way the WW points won’t change.
Katia made cecine this way — a bit more like pancakes but with the same batter. You just need to avoid letting the batter run all the way to the edges of the pan. I’ll definitely try those cecine too.
