Crepe suzette is a popular dessert in the French cuisine which primarily consists of a crepe and a sauce called beurre suzette made with tangerine orange juice and zest, butter, sugar and Grand Marnier. Often, the crepe suzette recipe uses orange curacao liqueur instead of Grand Marnier as a topping for the dish, which is served flambé. The commonest way of making crepe suzette is pouring the Grand Marnier on top of the freshly prepare crepe along with some sugar, which is then lit up for flambé. This makes the alcohol in the Grand Marnier vaporize which leaves behind a thickly caramelized sauce. To be precise, this is a thinly layered French dessert which is appealing both in terms of appearance and taste and the thin crepes of this dessert often make it look similar to a pancake.
History of Crepe Suzette Recipe
The origin of crepe suzette is still a matter of debate as some claim the dessert to be have been an accidental invention by 14 year old cook by the name of Henri Charpentier at the Maitre at Monte Carlo's Café of Paris in 1895. The dish was invented when he was preparing Prince of Wales and his friend Suzette, the prince’s favorite dish.
Crepe Suzette Recipe: Ingredients Used and Method of Preparation
The ingredients that go into the making of crepe suzette include tangerines or navel orange slices and juice, sugar, orange liqueur like Grand Marnier, orange zest, grenadine, dessert crepes and vanilla ice cream. The orange juice is boiled with sugar and once heated; it is mixed with orange slices and liqueur. In a separate pot, grenadine and orange zest are mixed, simmered and set aside. The crepes are then soaked for a minutes in the orange juice mixture in batches, rolled into cylinders and filled with orange sections and drizzled with orange zest syrup. The crepe suzette is the immediately served with vanilla ice cream.
Serving and Eating Crepe Suzettes
The crepe suzette is traditionally served with a sauce topping, which is drizzled over the crepes before and after rolling them. Most commonly, orange sauce is used for serving crepe suzette. In some cases, brandy is mixed with the sauce to add an extra zing or any other liqueur. Depending on the crepe size, one to three can be arranged on a single dessert platter. It is a traditional way of serving to ignite the sauce for flambé. In restaurants, crepe suzette is generally prepared as a chafing dish in front of the diners. Many prefer to refrigerate the crepes before serving them while some prefer serving the dessert with a dollop of orange flavored whipped cream or scoop/s of ice cream.
Crepe Suzette Recipe: Popular Variations
There are some innovative variations of crepe suzette which call for the addition of brandied cherries that are used as filling inside the crepe rolls.
Crepe Suzette Recipe: Health and Nutrition Facts
One crepe from the crepe suzette dessert accounts for 158 calories contributed by 51 percent fat, 39 percent carbohydrates and 10 percent protein.
