Chicken and Mushroom Crepes with Rosemary Cream Sauce

One of my all-time favorite restaurants is Beau Monde, a creperie in Philadelphia. As much as I usually like to order different things when I visit a restaurant multiple times, I always always always end up getting the coq au vin crepe with Swiss cheese and herbed butter whenever I go there. It is absolutely to die for. So when I had some gouda to use up and some Nutella in the cupboard, my mind immediately went to crepes. Don't worry though, I'm not planning on using those two ingredients together.

Where my mind did NOT go (until I was about to pour the batter, at least) was "Hold up, what are you thinking? You have trouble flipping pancakes sometimes, and here you are attempting crepes? This is totally not going to turn out well. I suppose you could make some pasta to toss with the chicken and mushrooms so your dinner isn't totally ruined." But luckily, all turned out well and we were able to enjoy an amazing meal.

Chicken and Mushroom Crepes with Rosemary Cream Sauce
(The recipe for the batter makes 6 crepes, while the recipe for filling makes enough for 4 crepes. I used the two extra for dessert.)

For the batter:
4 eggs
3 teaspoons of honey
1 pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups of flour
1 cup of non-fat milk

For the filling:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 sprigs of rosemary

2 Tablespoons of butter
12 oz. of button mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup of half and half
1 Tablespoon of flour
1 Tablespoon of chopped rosemary

extra butter for greasing pan (about 1-2 Tablespoons)

4 oz. of gouda cheese, shredded

4 sprigs of rosemary to garnish

Directions: Whisk together eggs, honey, and salt. Add flour and stir to combine. Slowly add milk, lightly whisking until smooth. Refrigerate batter for 30 minutes.

Place chicken breasts in a small pan so they fit snugly, but not overlapping. Cover with water, and add rosemary sprigs to the water. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce to just barely a simmer and keep partly covered for 10 minutes. Turn off heat, and allow chicken to sit in hot water for 15-20 minutes. Remove chicken, shred/cut into pieces, and set aside.

Melt half of the butter in a saucepan over medium high, and add mushrooms. Saute until cooked, remove, and set aside. Reduce heat to medium, melt the remaining half of the butter, and add garlic to the pan. Cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add half and half and chopped rosemary, stirring frequently as it reduces.

Whisk flour and 1 Tablespoon of water together to form a roux, and add to the cream sauce, stirring to combine. When sauce is thickened, add chicken and mushrooms, and stir enough to coat. Remove from heat, mostly cover, and set aside.

In a new pan, with a large, flat bottom, melt a bit of the extra butter over medium heat. Slowly ladle crepe batter into the pan and spread until it is a large circle and reaches the edges of the pan. Cook for about 3 minutes, or until edges start to look cooked. Gently flip crepe, and then add a spoonful of filling to the center of the face-up side and top with gouda. Cook for another 2-3 minutes, and bring edges up so that they wrap up the filling. (my pan wasn't big enough to get them properly wrapped, so mine looked more like enchiladas than crepes. Totally worked though!) Hold in place with a spatula if needed, and cook for another minute or so. Scoop onto a plate, and garnish with a sprig of rosemary and a bit more cheese. Repeat for the 3 remaining crepes. Enjoy!

And use up the remaining batter for dessert crepes! I cooked them the same way, spread Nutella on them, covered with sliced bananas, rolled them up, and topped with powdered sugar. Yum!

Different pieces of the recipe were adapted from Poor Girl Eats Well, Healthy Hedonista, and About . com.