La Chandeleur

À la Chandeleur, l'hiver se meurt ou prend vigueur ~ French Proverb

 

La Chandeleur is the French equivalent to America's Groundhog's Day, February 2nd. Originally a pagan holiday, La Chandeleur refers to candlelight ("la chandelle" = "candle"), and may be interpreted as a celebration of the lengthening of days....or perhaps more accurately as a welcome moment of warmth and light in the dark depths of winter.

Like all festive traditions in France, La Chandeleur revolves around cooking and sharing a meal: in this case, crêpes. Making crêpes together is fun and delicious. Freshly made crêpes are piled high on a plate, toppings are set out, apple cider poured, and everyone fixes their favorite: a squeeze of fresh lemon and sugar, nutella with bananas, confiture, chestnut purée...c'est à chacun à se faire plaisir!

Herewith, a basic recipe (and French translation) for your Chandeleur party, otherwise known as Superbowl Sunday this year...GO HAWKS!

    Crêpes

(makes 12 using a medium pan)

3/4 cups flour

3 eggs

1 cup milk

1 pinch salt

4 T butter

*optional French touches: a splash of Cognac, orange blossom water, vanilla sugar

 

Sift the flour into a mixing bowl. Add eggs one at a time, whisking together. Add the milk and 3T of melted butter, stirring until batter is smooth. Let stand in refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Over medium heat, grease pan using remaining tablespoon of butter. Pour 1 ladle of batter into pan and spread it around the pan, coating surface with batter to form a thin even layer. As the edges begin to turn golden, turn the crêpe over using a spatula and let it cook on the other side. Serve immediately, or stack crêpes together and keep warm in the oven on low heat.

Crêpes de Froment
(Pour 12 crêpes de 20cm de diameter)
150g de farine de froment
3 oeufs
25cl de lait
1 pincée de sel
60g de beurre

Versez la farine en fontaine dans un petit saladier: incorporez les oeufs un par un en fouettant, puis le lait, le sel et 50g de beurre fondu sans cesser de remuer jusqu'a obtention d'une pâte lisse.
Laissez reposer 2 heures.
Graissez la poêle avec le reste du beurre: mettez sur feu moyen, versez la pâte avec une louche en l'étalant rapidement, lorque les bords commencent à dorer, retourner la crêpe à l'aide d'une spatule et laissez cuire l'autre côté. Servez immédiatement ou gardez les crêpes au chaud à four doux.