This week’s recipe post is thanks to Gena, author of Choosing Raw, a great resource for exploring a raw food lifestyle (or incorporating more raw into your diet). When we saw her recipe for strawberry filled banana crepes we just had to find out more. If you’re trying to eat raw foods or simply want to try a fun breakfast treat, Gena’s Raw Breakfast Crepes are a yummy way to try something new.
For the crepes:
(makes 2 crepes, or 1-2 servings, depending on appetites)
- 2 large or 3 small ripe bananas
- 1 teaspoon ground flax seed
1) Place the bananas and flax in a food processor. Process until the mix is a very smooth liquid.
2) Line two dehydrator sheets with teflex. Pour half of the liquid onto one of them and spread it with a spatula or inverted spatula.
You want to aim for it to be relatively thin (let’s say 1/8 inch). Smooth it into a circular shape; this can be messy, since you’ll make the edges pretty later on. Repeat with the other half of the banana mix on another sheet. Dehydrate at 115 degrees for 3 hours, or until the crepes are totally smooth to the touch (careful, if you check these before they’re ready, you’ll likely mess up the surface!) Think of this as drying nail polish: don’t touch it until you’re pretty sure it’s hard enough.
3) When the crepes are truly ready, remove them from the dehydrator, and very CAREFULLY peel the crepe from the teflex sheet. Trace a perfect circle on the crepe (I used the lid of a pot to do this) and then, using a very sharp paring knife, cut a neat circle out. What’s left will be thin, light and sweet!
For the strawberry “jam,” there's only one ingredient: 1 cup sliced strawberries
1) Place strawberries on mesh lined dehydrator sheets and dehydrate for six hours or so.
When they’re ready, they ought to be shrunken and dry, but clearly still a little plump inside.
2) Transfer strawberries to a food processor fitted with the “S” blade, and process till the mix resembles a messy, textured jam.
(This technique was one of my favorite discoveries from my homegirl . She’s a genius, that one!)
The fillings
1 batch banana soft serve (check out Gena’s article on this amazing DIY banana ice cream or ChiquitaBananas.com’s video on making your own ice cream from our favorite fruit)
For the berry layer
1/2 cup berries of choice
To assemble:
1) Lay out a single crepe and top with 1-2 tbsp of the jam. Over that, spread 1/3 cup banana soft serve.
2) Finally, top this with 1/2 cup fresh berries. Fold, and serve!
Isn’t it heavenly looking? After you cut in, you’ll have a mess on your hands. But a tasty mess…
Obviously, these crepes are pretty much the same as homemade fruit leather, so you could absolutely serve them up plain. And they’re a bit more decadent than I tend to like for breakfast, but naturally, it isn’t hard to modify them to suit any sort of breakfast craving. You could cut the sweetness by using less jam or soft serve, or eliminating one or the other. You could also fill these with pudding; I intend to make a chocomole version very, very soon.
Thank you, Gena, for sharing your recipe for homemade banana crepes. You can check out Gena’s other raw food recipes over at her blog, ChoosingRaw.com. Mmm...chocomole...