Mango Papaya Brown Butter Cinnamon Crepes With Homemade Dulce De Leche Syrup Recipes

HOMEMADE CREPE-STYLE MANICOTTI

Steps:

• For the sauce: Combine the canned tomatoes in a large bowl, reserving the cans. Crush the tomatoes with your hands. Put the olive oil and garlic in a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the garlic is translucent and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until warm, about 30 seconds, then add the tomatoes. Fill each reserved can halfway with water, swish to collect any remaining tomato juice and add to the pan. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 35 minutes. Stir in the whole basil sprigs, season with salt and black pepper and remove from the heat. You should have about 6 cups of sauce.
• For the crepes: Puree the eggs, flour, milk, water and 1 teaspoon salt in a blender until smooth. Let rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Heat an 8-inch stainless steel skillet over medium-low heat (see Cook's Note). Pour 1/4 cup of the batter off center into the pan with a ladle or measuring cup, then swirl to coat the bottom. Cook until the crepe looks dry and pulls away from the sides of the pan, 1 to 2 minutes per side. The crepes should not take on any color. (It usually takes one or two tries to get it right so adjust the heat as needed.) Transfer the crepe to a plate. Continue cooking the crepes with the remaining batter, stacking them on the plate when they are done. You should have about 16 good crepes. At this point the crepes can be wrapped tightly and stored on the plate in the refrigerator up to 1 day.
• For the filling: Combine the ricotta, mozzarella, Parmigiano, Pecorino, parsley, nutmeg, 1 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper.
• To assemble, preheat the oven to 375F. Cover the bottom of each of two 9-by-13-inch baking dishes with 1 1/2 cups sauce (it is fine to also add the basil sprigs to the bottom of the dish if you like). Divide the filling among the crepes (about 1/4 cup each) and spread it in a line down the center of each crepe. Roll the crepes into cylinders (leaving the ends open) and fit them snugly in the baking dishes, seam-side down. Spoon 1 cup of the sauce in a line down the center of each baking dish (it will only partially cover the crepes). The manicotti can be assembled up to this point, covered tightly and refrigerated overnight; remove the covering before baking.
• Cover the baking dishes with lids or aluminum foil and bake until the filling is heated through and the sauce is bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the cover, sprinkle with some Parmigiano and continue to bake until the cheese is melted and the edges are light brown, 5 to 10 minutes more. Heat the remaining sauce in a small saucepan or the microwave and serve alongside the manicotti.

DULCE DE LECHE BROWNIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray.
• Place butter in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Stir until melted. Add chocolate and stir until melted and combined. Remove from heat.
• Stir white sugar, brown sugar, flour, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and salt into the melted chocolate mixture. Stir in eggs with a spoon or spatula until just combined; try not to use more than 30 or 40 strokes.
• Pour a little over 1/2 of the brownie batter into the prepared pan. Drop small spoonfuls of the dulce de leche evenly over the top. Gently drag a knife through the dulce de leche to create swirls. Cover with remaining brownie batter. Drizzle caramel on top in a swirling pattern.
• Bake in the preheated oven until edges start pulling away from the sides of the pan, 25 to 30 minutes. Let the brownies cool completely before cutting them into squares.

CRISPY CREPES WITH DULCE DE LECHE SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Toast pecans in a shallow baking pan in middle of oven, shaking occasionally, until fragrant and a few shades darker, 8 to 10 minutes. Toss immediately with 1/2 tablespoon butter and 1/8 teaspoon salt.
• Melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter in a well-seasoned crêpe pan or an 8-inch nonstick skillet. Blend milk, eggs, flour, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons sugar in a blender until smooth. Pour in melted butter, leaving a film of butter in skillet, and blend until well combined.
• Heat skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Half fill a 1/4-cup measure with batter and, holding skillet off heat, pour in batter, immediately swirling and tilting skillet to create a thin even layer. (If batter sets before skillet is coated, reduce heat slightly. Next crêpe will be better.) Return skillet to heat and cook until crêpe is golden around edges and dry in center, about 45 seconds. Flip crêpe carefully and cook until golden, about 15 seconds more. Sprinkle crêpe lightly with sugar.
• Make more crêpes with remaining batter, stacking them as cooked and lightly sprinkling each with sugar.
• Preheat broiler and butter an 8-inch round flameproof shallow baking dish.
• Heat dulce de leche paste and cream in a small saucepan over moderate heat, stirring, until smooth. Reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened, about 1 minute.
• Fold crêpes into eighths and arrange in baking dish. Sprinkle lightly with sugar, then broil about 6 inches from heat until edges are crispy, about 45 seconds. Serve with sauce and pecans.

MANGO CREPES A LA MODE

Steps:

• Blend flour, water, milk, eggs, 4 teaspoons vegetable oil, salt, and sugar together in a mixing bowl using an electric mixer until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Heat a crepe pan or skillet over medium heat. Brush with remaining 1 teaspoon oil. Stir batter well before pouring about 5 tablespoons into the heated pan to form a very thin coat. Cook crepe until set and bubbles start to appear on the surface, 1 to 2 minutes. Run a spatula around the edge of the skillet to loosen crepe; flip crepe and cook until the other side has turned light brown, about 1 minute more. Transfer crepe onto waxed paper. Repeat with remaining batter, being careful not to stack crepes until completely cooled.
• Heat a saucepan over medium-high heat. Pour in orange juice and sugar. Bring to a boil; add mangoes, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Return to a boil and cook for 2 minutes; set aside to cool.
• Lay crepes on a flat, clean surface. Add mango filling to each and roll like a cigar. Place on a dessert plate; top with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup.

CARAMELIZED CREPES STUFFED WITH DULCE DE LECHE

Steps:

• Combine the flour, water, milk, eggs, salt, vanilla, and cinnamon in a blender and puree until smooth. You may need to scrape down the sides of the jar a few times. Add the melted butter and mix well.
• Leave the batter in the blender jar and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for up to 1 hour.
• Place a nonstick skillet over medium heat and brush some melted butter on it. When the pan is hot, use a ladle to pour in about 3 tablespoons of the batter. To help create a thin crepe, tilt your pan in all directions so the batter covers most of the surface of the pan.
• Allow the crepe to cook until the edges start turning golden brown, about 2 minutes. Use a wide spatula to turn the crepe over. (I agree with the adage that says your first crepe never comes out right and you get a free do-over. The first one just coats the pan with fat so the rest cook evenly and slide off easily.)
• Place the crepe on a dish and cover it with plastic to keep moist. Repeat until you run out of batter. You should be able to make about 12 crepes.
• Rub some butter on the bottom of a 1-quart baking dish (the shape doesn't matter) and set aside.
• Working with one crepe at a time, place 2 tablespoons of dulce de leche in the center and fold the crepe in half. Fold it a second time to create a triangular shape. Place the crepe in the baking dish. Repeat with the remaining crepes, placing the folded crepes in the baking dish so they slightly overlap.
• Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of sugar evenly over the crepes. Brown (with a blowtorch or under the broiler) until the sugar caramelizes and turns golden brown, about 5 minutes under the broiler.
• Garnish by sprinkling confectioners' sugar over the crepes. Serve warm.
• TECHNIQUES
• Resting the Crepe Batter
• The secret to a successful crepe batter is to allow it to rest for at least an hour after the batter has been mixed. This allows the starch in the flour to absorb the liquid in the batter, which improves the texture of the crepe.
• Caramelizing the Crepes
• While you can skip this step, it really adds to the texture of the dessert. The easiest and most efficient way to do this is with a small blowtorch that can be found at most kitchenware stores. If you do not have one, place the baking dish as close to your broiler as you can get it and allow your broiler to caramelize the sugar.
• ADVANCE PREPARATION
• You can make the crepes a few hours in advance and keep them wrapped in plastic at room temperature. They will hold at room temperature stuffed with the dulce de leche filling for another couple of hours. It is best to eat the crepes the day they are made.