Mushroom Crepes Chasseur

Chasseur, which means 'hunter' in French, normally refers to a dish of mushrooms and game meat. But we vegans are hunting for just the mushrooms today! These yummy crepes were fun to make, and made me feel oh so French in my kitchen.

Start with the crepe batter: lightly spoon 1/2 cup all-purpose flour and 1/2 cup chickpea (garbanzo) flour into measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine the two flours with 1/4 tsp. salt. Add 1 cup warm water and 1 tablespoon olive oil, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Let stand for 20 minutes.

Heat an 8-inch nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat (or use a crepe pan, if you have one!). Remove the pan from heat, and ladle in 1/4 cup of the batter. Quickly tilt the pan in all directions so the batter evenly covers the bottom. Return to the burner and cook for 40 seconds, then carefully flip over and cook for 30 seconds on the other side. The crepe should be able to shake loose from the pan.

Transfer the cooked crepe to a piece of wax paper to cool, then repeat with the remaining batter, until you have 6 crepes total. (Note: I found it was helpful to re-coat the skillet with cooking spray after the third crepe). Stack the crepes between pieces of wax paper so they don't stick together.

Crepes can be hard the first few times, so don't worry if you need a couple of practice rounds. I find that it's easiest to use a very thin spatula to turn them over, and also that it helps to guide the crepe from the pan to the wax paper with the spatula, so it doesn't fold over on itself. Once you get the hang of it, I guarantee you'll have fun with the process!



Now for the filling and sauce! Bring 2 cups vegetable broth and 1/4 cup water to a boil in a saucepan. remove from heat and add 1/4 cup dried porcini mushrooms. Let stand for 30 minutes.

Drain the mixture through a sieve over a bowl. Finely chop the porcini mushrooms and set aside. Return the broth to the saucepan, and stir in 6 tablespoons red wine and 1 tablespoon agave nectar (in place of honey); set aside. (Note: if you want to cut back on dishes, just remove the porcini mushrooms with a slotted spoon, instead of using the sieve!) Any dry vegan red wine of your choice would work well in this recipe, but given the French flavors of the cooking, I recommend a vegan/unfiltered red from France!

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 cup chopped onion and saute 3 minutes. Add the chopped porcini mushrooms and saute for 1 minute. Add 8 ounces coarsely chopped button mushrooms and 4 ounces coarsely chopped shiitake mushroom caps; saute for 4 minutes.

Reduce the heat to medium, and stir in 1/4 tsp. black pepper, 1/8 tsp. nutmeg, and 3 minced garlic cloves; cook for 1 minute before adding 6 tablespoons of the broth mixture. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Bring the rest of the broth still in the saucepan to a boil, and continue to cook until reduced to about 3/4 cups (about 12 to 15 minutes). Whisk together 1 tablespoon water and 1 teaspoon cornstarch, and add to the reduced broth. Return the mixture to a boil, then cook for 2 minutes until the sauce is thick.

To assemble, spoon about 1/3 cup of the mushroom mixture into the center of each crepe. Fold over the sides and the ends, and place 2 crepes, seam-side down on each of 3 plates. Drizzle each serving with 1/4 cup of the sauce, and sprinkle with about 2 teaspoons chopped flat-leaf parsley. Each serving is 340 calories.

Bon appetit!

Cost:
vegetable broth $4.29
dried porcini mushrooms $4.99
dry red wine $19.99
onion $0.72
button mushrooms $1.49
shiitake mushrooms $3.99
flat-leaf parsley $1.69