Vegan Sweet Crepes Recipe

Crepes are a traditional and popular food in French cuisine, though they've also become a breakfast and brunch staple across the globe. Thinner than a pancake, crepes are typically made from a simple batter of flour, eggs, and milk and specific spices can be added to make them either sweet or savory.

As with many other traditional items, a vegan version can easily be made to copy the original. Wellness coach and recipe developer Miriam Hahn brings us this recipe for vegan sweet crepes and says, "These crepes are so delicious and easy to make. They can be served with so many fun toppings and are perfect when you want something a little fancier than a pancake for a Sunday breakfast or brunch."

The crepes pair well with fresh fruit, strawberry jam, chocolate sauce, or even applesauce and can be part of a larger brunch spread as the dessert. Read on to learn how to make these vegan crepes that taste and look just as good as their dairy-laden counterparts.

To make this recipe, you'll need some pantry dry ingredients like all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. "If you want to give them a fall flavor, you can use pumpkin pie spice instead of cinnamon," Hahn shares. 

For the wet ingredients you'll need some soy milk, coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla extract, water, and avocado oil. "You can use any type of dairy-free milk in this recipe, and it will work just fine," Hahn says. If you want to dust on some powdered sugar, be sure to pick up some of that along with any other toppings.

To make the batter, pull out a food processor and add the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Pulse to blend the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl combine the soy milk, coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and water. Add this to the food processor and blend. 

Then, transfer to a bowl, cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes. "If you don't have a food processor you can easily do this step by hand. Just use a whisk to fully blend," Hahn explains. "Letting this chill in the fridge for 30 minutes will give the batter a slightly thicker consistency which will make them easier to flip," she adds.

Because crepes are super thin, they can be tricky to cook without falling apart or getting stuck in the pan. "A good non-stick pan that is 8-inches in size will work the best because it will have a clearly defined edge to shape the crepe when you are circling the batter in the pan," Hahn explains.

Start by adding 1 teaspoon of avocado oil to the pan and bring the heat to medium. Before adding the batter, flick in a drop or two of water to see if the pan is hot enough to make the water sizzle. If so, drop in ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon of the batter. Swirl it quickly to reach the edges of the pan. Cook for 1-2 minutes, then flip it over and cook for 1-2 more minutes. "You should see small bubbles before you flip and keep in mind the first crepe will take longer to cook because the heat is just starting to build up in the pan. To make flipping easier, use a thin, flexible pancake spatula and go around the edges of the crepe to loosen it from the pan during the first minute of cooking," Hahn advises. You should end up with seven or eight crepes from this batch.

Once you are done cooking the crepes, they are ready to serve. You can fold them into quarters for serving or present them flat or folded in half so everyone can add the toppings they choose. If you are hosting a brunch you can set up a crepe bar with toppings like fresh berries, bananas, peaches, whipped cream, Nutella, jam, dairy-free yogurt, candied walnuts, and powdered sugar.

The crepes will last for several days if kept in a sealed container in the fridge and can even be enjoyed cold. Now you have another recipe to add to your favorite brunch line up!