Spinach Crepes with Maple-Stewed Blueberries

The evening I prepped this recipe was just like any other. I puttered barefoot in the kitchen to the tunes of Buena Vista Social Club, music I am revisiting and finding as just moving as the first time I heard ‘Chan Chan‘.

I cracked eggs and beat them with flour, melted butter and sauteed spinach into a crepe batter that would chill while we slept, or supposedly slept. There was no way I could have known what the night held, although little Clara had been nursing a cough during the day and was reaching for me to cuddle more than usual.

The last of my prep finished, the table set for the morning, and the final email sent, I headed upstairs to wind down for the night. It was close to eleven, and it had been a long day. A long week. A leisurely Saturday morning breakfast and the whole weekend stretched out before us, full of projects and plans, among them an autumn hike in the fall foliage of the Laurentians.

Spinach Crepes with Maple-Stewed Blueberries | Simple Bites #breakfast #brunch #recipe

Clara’s crying drew me into her room as I passed by her door; she tried to speak but it turned into a hacking raspy cough. She clung to me; her little pyjama-clad body was burning up. Why do children’s ailments seem to always flare up at night? Who knows. Perhaps because it is only then that are we completely free from distractions and can bestow our full attention to the sufferer.

Comforting a sick two-year-old is a little hit and miss. Her requests were mumbled and unintelligible, mixed up between hiccups and coughing sessions. The only message coming through loud and clear from Clara was ‘Hold me’. So hold her I did. We rocked, sang and cuddled for the better part of an hour, then I laid her in bed and kissed her goodnight.

But the sobbing started again as soon as I slipped under my own duvet. Clara is usually a solid 7pm-7am sleeper and goes down without a peep. It was certain she was feeling miserable. We tried her in our bed for about 30 minutes, but that resulted in no sleep for any of us.

I slipped downstairs with her in my arms and set her on a chair at the table while I fixed her a warm lemon and honey. She gulped down half a banana, too, and I remembered she hadn’t been much interested in her supper. The clock on the stove glowed 12:45. I calculated that my boys already had a 5 hours jump start on their sleep. I would have a tough time keeping up with them tomorrow.

Her coughing subsiding for the moment, Clara seemed to want companionship most of all. So I unfolded a quilt, lifted a pillow from a chair and stretched out on the floor next to her bed. We held hands, her hot, banana-sticky fingers in mine, and she fell into a deep sleep. Around twenty-past one in the morning, I finally turned in to bed. If it wasn’t for knowing these crepes awaited me in the morning, I might still be under the covers.

Spinach Crepes with Maple-Stewed Blueberries | Simple Bites #breakfast #brunch #recipe

The boys have nick-named our favourite green breakfast “More Than Amazing Crepes”; I think it’s pretty amazing that they contain 3 packed cups of fresh spinach and still get gobbled up in a flash. The boys top them with the usual line up of bananas, Nutella, whipped cream or maple syrup, but Danny and I love to pair ours with gently stewed blueberries. I’ve made the sauce with both fresh and frozen blueberries and it’s delicious either way.

There’s something about sitting down, civilized-like, and treating my family to a special breakfast that made me forget how rough the night was. Noah squeezed the orange juice by hand (and left out his infamous ‘straw technique’ this time) while I flipped the crepes and Danny brewed coffees. Clara was still a tad feverish, but not too sick to tuck into a plate of crepes and ask for extra whipped cream.

We never made it up North to see the fall foliage, but best laid plans can only get you so far. Planning ahead brought us around the table for spinach crepes that Saturday, and that was enough.

Spinach Crepes

Your favourite breakfast just had a greenover. These delicate and vibrant crepes are my kid's most requested breakfast.
5 from 7 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Breakfast & Brunch
Cuisine: French
Essential Ingredient: spinach
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 16 crepes
Calories: 300kcal
Author: Aimee

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted, divided
  • 3 cups baby spinach packed
  • 3 medium eggs
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

  • Heat 1 tablespoon of the butter in a saute pan until bubbly. Add spinach all at once and sauté, stirring continually, for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
  • Crack the eggs into a blender and pulse a few times. Add the warm spinach and blend until smooth.
  • Add the flour and blend again. Stop the blender, remove the lid and scrape down the sides.
  • Add milk, 3 Tablespoons melted butter, salt and vanilla to the crepe batter. Blend until smooth. Blend an additional minute. Place the blender jug in the refrigerator and chill the batter overnight.
  • In the morning, blend the batter one more time as it will have separated overnight. Preheat a 8 or 10-inch non-stick pan over medium heat.
  • Brush pan with melted butter and pour a scant 1/4-cup of batter into the centre. Immediately lift the pan and tilt in a circular motion so the batter coats the pan in a circle. Cook for about a minute, or until the edges are light golden.
  • Slip a flexible spatula under the crepe and flip it with a delicate hand. Cook for an additional 30 seconds, then remove and fold into four.

Nutrition

Calories: 300kcal

Maple-Stewed Blueberries

5 from 7 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Condiments
Prep Time: 2 minutes
Cook Time: 6 minutes
Total Time: 8 minutes
Servings: 1 cup
Calories: 292kcal
Author: Aimee

Ingredients

  • 1 Tablespoon salted butter
  • 1 cup blueberries fresh or frozen
  • 2 Tablespoons pure maple syrup
  • a squeeze of fresh lemon

Instructions

  • In a small sauce pan over medium heat, melt the butter and toss in the berries.
  • Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour in the maple syrup. Add a squeeze of lemon.
  • Cook the sauce for an additional minute, then remove from heat and spoon over crepes.

Nutrition

Calories: 292kcal | Carbohydrates: 48g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 105mg | Potassium: 203mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 38g | Vitamin A: 430IU | Vitamin C: 14.4mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 0.4mg

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Recipe Rating




29 Comments

  1. Poor Clara – I always wish I could crawl into their pitiful little bodies and be sick for them!

    On the up side, think of all the vitamin C they’re getting from the spinach and blueberries in this recipe! 🙂

  2. I’m sorry to hear about your little one being sick! She sounds like a trooper 🙂

    This recipe is so clever! I am always sneaking spinach into things and this will certainly be my next endeavor. Perfection!

  3. Awww! I hope Clara is feeling better. So much healing in the comfort from mommy. My kids always ask for honey and lemon, too, and brewed with a little sage from the garden helps if their throat is sore. I found that warming an onion to place on their chest works wonders for cough. I heat up a thick slice of onion, wrap it in flannel and put it on their chest. Stinky but effective.
    Will have to try your spinach crepes- they look so good.

  4. Sorry to hear that Clara was sick. I hope she’s feeling better today. Your crepes sound good since we love spinach. I wanted to check with you on the recipe since you have 1/2 cup or 1 stick of butter listed in the ingredients. Are you really using a whole stick of butter or is that a typo? They sound so healthy otherwise. Thank you.

    1. Thanks, Cheryl. She’s much better!

      So, the base crepe recipe calls for just 3 Tablespoons butter – but then I melt the rest and brush it, a little at a time, on the pan for each crepe. Come to think of it, I don’t always use all the butter up. And some non-stick pans don’t need any.
      However, I do use an organic, high quality butter. It’s a healthy fat!

  5. 5 stars
    Sick kids are so heartbreakingly sad. I hope she recovers quickly, and mama gets a good long nap too!

    I’ve been looking forward to this recipe. We have a long weekend off from school coming up and these will be on the menu. Beautiful photos!!

  6. This is an AWESOME recipe, thank you! My kids would love this, and so would I knowing they are eating something good (even if it’s topped with sweet stuff!). I’m definitely pinning it and hopefully making sooner rather than later 🙂

  7. 5 stars
    Hi Aimee! When I saw your post, I knew I had to make the crepes straight away:-)

    Here in South Africa we have something similar (sans the spinach) called pannekoek and we usually have it with cinnamon sugar or with a savoury filling of choice.

    So, I served your yummy spinach crepes with a ratatouille sauce and added some chopped up, left over venison meat. Topped off with grated parmesan and fresh herbs. Delicious!!

    Thanks for an awesome blog. I can’t wait for your recipe book. Will have to order it through Amason, don’t think it will be on the shelves in RSA. Or will it?

    Good luck with the sick kiddies.

    1. Hi Deidre, Thanks for sharing, I love hearing about versions on pancake around the world. Sounds like your dinner was spectacular!
      At this point, I doubt the book will be down your way. Sorry! Thanks for the support, though, and yes, it will be on pre-order on Amazon very soon.

  8. Sounds like Clara was in the perfect hands 🙂 I was wondering – have you ever tried this with kale? I’m not the biggest fan of spinach and have come across several recipes saying they can be used interchangeably. I think I’ll have to test it out! I don’t have any blueberries right now, so that frozen mango I have should be a fabulous replacement…

  9. having sick little ones at home is the worst but looks like you guys made the best of it the next day. . glad to hear that Clara was feeling better . . and I LOVE these crepes!! and I especially love that your kids love them too!!! cool green food!! Pinned!!

  10. 5 stars
    My friend brought this batter over to us as a new baby meal and they were such a hit! My big kids even made them by themselves!

    But I’m not very experienced with crepes, so I have two questions: can I simply omit the spinach to make a regular crepe? I don’t always have spinach on hand.

    Also, is the overnight refrigeration simply for convenience’s sake (which I do love), or is it necessary for the batter?

    I know we will make these crepes often, so I’d love to know if you’ve figured out the limits of the recipe already so I don’t have to 🙂 Thanks!

  11. I’m wondering if any part of this recipe could be frozen? Maybe before the flour is added? I have a ton of Swiss chard in my garden that I’d like to prepare for this recipe and freeze.

    1. Great idea! So the finished crepes freeze very well and reheat beautifully.
      You could also blanch some chard, cool, and freeze it cooked. It would still puree up as usual for the recipe once it is thawed.

  12. 5 stars
    Made these for Shrove Tuesday last night and they were so easy and so tasty! My husband wasn’t sure what to think when I told him we were having spinach crepes for supper, but he was pleasantly surprised. 🙂

  13. Do you have to keep it in the fridge overnight or is that because you are thinking it is a breakfast thing? I am planning on serving for dinner so how long would it need to be in the fridge?