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Cheesy curry crepes

Main Brunch
Serves 4
Prep 15 min
Cook 1 hr

The crepe batter can be made the day ahead, as can the crepes themselves: keep them in an airtight container in the fridge. These quantities will make a few extra crepes, but that will allow for any crepe-related catastrophes and/or a few extra to snack on. For a meat-free version, try leftover roast vegetables or chickpeas instead.

Ingredients

FOR THE CREPES
200ml whole milk
75ml water
75g greek-style yoghurt
3 eggs
165g plain flour
½ tsp ground turmeric
salt and pepper
FOR THE BECHAMEL
100g whole milk
50g greek-style yoghurt
15g butter
15g plain flour
¾ tsp medium or mild curry powder
¼ tsp ground turmeric
120g grated cheese – cheddar and gruyere work well
TO ASSEMBLE
vegetable oil, for frying
250g leftover roast chicken, beef or ham, shredded or chopped into 1cm pieces
4 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced (optional)
olive oil
mango chutney, to serve

Method

  1. Put all the crepes ingredients in a blender, add half a teaspoon of salt and blend on high speed until smooth. Pour into a jug and set aside while you make the bechamel.
  2. Put all the ingredients for the bechamel except the cheese in a small saucepan, bring up to a simmer on a medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, for about two or three minutes, until thickened and smooth. Take off the heat, add 50g of the grated cheese, a quarter-teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper, and whisk until smooth. Cover the surface of the bechamel with a piece of parchment to prevent a skin forming, then set aside while you cook the crepes.
  3. Put a small, 16cm, nonstick frying pan on high heat. Once hot, turn the heat down to medium-high and add a quarter-teaspoon of vegetable oil. Pour about 50ml crepe batter into the pan, swirl it around to spread the batter evenly over the base and cook for 30-40 seconds a side. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the rest of the batter – you should end up with 12 or 13 crepes. (If you like, use two pans, to speed things along.)
  4. Heat the oven to 240C (220C fan)/475F and line a large, 37cm x 32cm oven tray with baking paper. Take eight of the crepes (save the rest for a snack), lay them on a flat surface and spread each one with a heaped tablespoon of bechamel. Scatter about 30g of the chicken, beef or ham over the bottom quarter of each crepe, and top that with a teaspoon or so of spring onion and half a tablespoon of grated cheese. Fold the top half of each crepe over the bottom half, to cover the filling, then fold over the left side to cover the right, so you end up with little open-ended triangular parcels.
  5. Place the parcels on the lined tray, scatter the remaining cheese over the top and drizzle with half a tablespoon of olive oil. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden, then serve hot with the remaining spring onions sprinkled on top and some mango chutney alongside.