French Recipes

Crêpes vonnassiennes

Small potato-based crêpes from Vonnas, cooked in clarified butter until browned outside and tender but fully set within.

French Recipes
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Crêpes vonnassiennes — served on a plate
Prep 20 minutes
Cook 52 minutes
Total 92 minutes
Yield 24 small crêpes
Ingredients ↓
Introduction and overview

Crêpes vonnassiennes: savoury Bresse potato crêpes

Crêpes vonnassiennes are small savoury potato crêpes from Vonnas in Bresse, associated with the Blanc family and often called crêpes parmentières. Their structure comes first from smooth potato purée and only second from wheat flour, so they eat more like a tender, browned potato accompaniment than a conventional thin crêpe. The finished rounds are compact enough to sit beside a sauce, but soft enough to absorb it without turning pasty.

The useful control point is the potato itself. The peeled potatoes are boiled until tender, drained thoroughly, steam-dried, riced and then weighed before milk is added. That sequence fixes the water content before flour and eggs enter the bowl. The extra whites in this formulation are not whipped; they are stirred in as liquid whites, giving a supple batter while keeping the method close to the Georges Blanc-style published proportions.

Cook the batter in small portions rather than trying to make dinner-plate crêpes. A hot 24 cm pan needs only a film of clarified butter, and each round should be turned once the underside is browned and the top has lost its wet shine. The centre must be tender but fully set. Because the batter contains cooked potato, egg and dairy, it should be cooked promptly or held at 4 °C or below rather than left on the counter.

Success points

Success points

  • Steam-dry and rice. No visible water remains in the pan and the riced potato looks dry and fluffy.
  • Build the batter. Batter is smooth, thickly pourable and falls from a spoon in a broad ribbon.
  • Cook the crêpes. Each crêpe is browned on both sides, tender but fully set in the centre, with no wet batter remaining.
Ingredients

Ingredients

Potato base

  • 700 g waxy potatoes (Charlotte-type), peeled weight; start with about 800 g purchased unpeeled potatoes — Boil whole or in large even pieces; after draining and steam-drying, rice and weigh 600 g cooked potato.
  • 2000 ml water, for boiling potatoes — Cooking water is drained and excluded from nutrition.
  • 50 ml whole milk, heated — Add only enough to the riced potato to produce exactly 650 g smooth purée.

Batter

  • 90 g plain wheat flour, sifted — Ratio follows the published Georges Blanc crêpe-parmentière proportions scaled to 650 g purée.
  • 4 l arge eggs whole eggs, about 200 g without shell — Use refrigerated eggs.
  • 6 l arge egg whites unbeaten; about 180 g, Fold in as liquid whites; do not whip.
  • 15 g crème fraîche, full-fat — Stir in last.
  • 5 g fine salt — Seasoning for full batch.

For cooking

  • 30 g clarified butter, for greasing the pan — About 18 g is estimated to remain on the cooked crêpes; the remainder stays in the pan or on wiping paper.
Method

Method

Directions

  1. Boil the potatoes. Bring the listed 2,000 ml water to a boil, add the 700 g peeled potatoes, and cook until a knife enters the centre without resistance. Use medium-high then medium heat. Allow 18 minutes. Temperature: 100 °C. Potatoes are tender through the centre without breaking apart. Keep cooked potato hot until drained; avoid prolonged warm holding.

  2. Steam-dry and rice. Drain the potatoes completely, return them to the dry pan, and steam-dry over low heat before ricing; weigh 600 g of cooked potato. Use low heat. Allow 4 minutes. No visible water remains in the pan and the riced potato looks dry and fluffy. Use clean equipment for the cooked potato.

  3. Make the purée. Mix the 600 g riced potato with the 50 ml hot milk to obtain exactly 650 g smooth purée. Allow 3 minutes. Purée is smooth, cohesive and free of potato lumps. Use the milk while hot but do not leave the dairy mixture at room temperature longer than necessary.

  4. Let the purée cool. Cool the purée before adding eggs. Allow 20 minutes. Purée is no longer warm enough to cook the eggs on contact. If the pause extends beyond 20 minutes, refrigerate at 4 °C or below.

  5. Build the batter. Stir the 90 g flour into the 650 g purée, then add the 4 whole eggs one at a time, followed by the 6 unbeaten whites, 15 g crème fraîche and 5 g salt. Allow 8 minutes. Batter is smooth, thickly pourable and falls from a spoon in a broad ribbon. Cook promptly; otherwise cover and hold at 4 °C or below.

  6. Cook the crêpes. Heat a 24 cm frying pan, wipe with the clarified butter, and cook 24 small crêpes in successive rounds, using about 45 g batter for each; turn when the underside is evenly browned and the top has lost its wet shine. Use medium heat. Allow 30 minutes. Each crêpe is browned on both sides, tender but fully set in the centre, with no wet batter remaining. Keep raw batter separate from cooked crêpes and cook every portion fully.

Serving, storage and make-ahead

Practical

Serving, storage and make-ahead

Serve four small crêpes per person alongside poultry or meat with enough sauce to moisten them.

Serving, storage and make-ahead

For advance work, chill the finished purée at 4 °C or below and make the egg batter shortly before cooking.

Serving, storage and make-ahead

Cooked crêpes keep covered at 4 °C or below for up to 2 days; reheat covered at 160 °C for about 5 minutes.

Serving, storage and make-ahead

A different potato can work, but changing to a very floury type will alter water absorption and tenderness.

Nutrition per serving

Nutrition per serving

  • Serving size4 small crêpes
  • Calories240 kcal
  • Carbohydrate32.5 g
  • Protein11.3 g
  • Fat7.1 g
  • Fibre2.2 g
  • Sodium435 mg
Allergens and food safety

Allergens and food safety

Allergens: Egg, Milk, Wheat/gluten.

Keep egg-and-dairy batter at 4 °C or below if it is not cooked immediately.

Fully cook each crêpe; the centre must be set rather than wet.

Cool leftovers promptly and refrigerate at 4 °C or below.

Closing

Closing

  • Result: Browned, tender potato crêpes with a soft fully set centre.
  • Decisive technique: Weigh and steam-dry the cooked potato before building the batter.
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