The making of a crepe in Paris

Back in August I flew Air France to India which meant flying through Charles de Gaulle airport. It also meant a lengthy layover in a less than optimal airport terminal. On my way back home I had five hours to kill and there is very little in the way of food or entertainment in CDG. Fortunately I had a business trip to Paris last April and learned my way around the city in the few short days I was there. My luggage was checked through to Boston so when I landed in Paris, I got another stamp on my passport and bought myself a rail ticket for the RER into the city for some breakfast.

Thirty minutes later I hopped off the train at the Châtelet Les Halles stop, walked a few blocks to the river Seine, and crossed the bridge over to the Notre Dame de Paris. Having been here in the spring, I knew there were plenty of crepe stands in the shadow of the cathedral, and I was on the hunt for an egg and cheese crepe. At the end of Rue du Cloître Notre Dame, behind the cathedral, I found Brasserie Esmeralda. It had just opened for the day and I was the first customer. This meant I was able to see how the crepe griddle is prepared at the beginning of each day, and no crowds.

The first step in preparing the griddle for a day of crepe making is adding a small nob of butter to the griddle, allowing it to melt, and finally wiping it off with a clean paper towel. It's crepe making time!

Next, a ladle of batter is poured in the center of the griddle and spread around using a wooden batter spreader. If you watched Gordon Ramsay's Hell's Kitchen this past season, you may remember the crepe episode, this spreading of batter is no easy task for the inexperienced!

Once the batter has set, it is flipped ever so carefully with a long spatula, like the ones that are used for icing cakes. For my egg and cheese crepe one whole egg is cracked onto the crepe and gently scrambled.

Next, lots of shredded cheese is added (I forgot to ask what kind of cheese is used.)

Finally the crepe is folded in eighths, wrapped in paper, and handed over to me, to eat! This delicious egg and cheese crepe needed some more salt and pepper but otherwise was very good. Nice, light, perfectly cooked crepe, tasty egg, and delicious cheese. I can't wait to go back to Paris for more crepes! I can't think of a better way to spend a layover; not only was I not sitting around the airport, I was eating crepes in Paris!