Whole Wheat Protein Packed Seafood Crepes

There's something about spring and the warm evenings perfect for eating dinner outside that makes me think of my Grandma, and therefore the seafood filling on the inside of this crepe. From about April to November, every meal possible (only if it was a heavy rain it was a no) was enjoyed on the deck overlooking the remains of their Chardonnay vineyard. There was no such thing as too hot or too cold really...it was always 'deck weather' and I think the poor husband learned pretty quickly that their years of living in South East Asia had done a number on what they considered to be 'normal heat and humidity'. While the cocktails and wine offerings each night were the same, dinner never was unless you had a special request. My special request was always Grandma's seafood casserole: a variety of seafood in a light white sauce, topped with toasted breadcrumbs and parsley, served with toasted baguette and a salad. 

While I still have yet to make the true casserole for myself, last week I plucked her recipe card from the box and did a little tweaking (shocker) to turn it into a crepe. And I'm pretty sure this just became 'my dish'. I thought it was her souffle she taught me to make but I'm making a heavy bet this is what I'll make for my next 'special dinner/brunch'. 

The funny thing about this dish is it looks SO fancy schmancy and hard and 'bad for you'. Wrong on all fronts. The crepes (the wrap looking things) are 100% whole wheat meaning more fiber and important nutrients. The seafood filling is tossed in a skim milk based white sauce. And as for how hard it is to make? Basically the filling gets put in a pot with a lot of white wine, it simmers and then you use the wine stock to start your white sauce. IT'S BRILLIANT. Try it and I promise you'll want to make this again. I even texted a picture to Grandma. And over about three texts where it autocorrected, we surmised that she's impressed too.

whole wheat seafood crepes

filling fills 6 crepes

based on my grandma's seafood casserole: 

• 6 oz salmon, skin removed
• 1 cup medium shrimp with shells but deveined
• 1 bundle fresh parsley 
• 1/2 medium white onion, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 1 medium carrot, diced
• chardonnay or another dry white wine
• 1 1/2 T tablespoon butter
• 1 1/2 T all purpose flour
• lemon juice
• hot sauce

/// directions /// Simmer salmon and shrimp in a pot with a bundle of parsley in white wine (wine to cover, probably about 1.5 cups). Right before shrimp are finished cooking add celery, carrot and onion and simmer until the veggies are just cooked (al dente). Remove shrimp and de shell. Set shells aside for another recipe like a shrimp stock with grits! Chop shrimp into bite sized pieces and flake the salmon into bite sized pieces. Strain the liquid from the seafood and veggie mix and set aside for the white sauce.

Make the white sauce by melting butter in a pot. Add flour and whisk together allowing to turn golden brown. It should smelly nutty. Whisk in 1 cup of skim milk and the remaining seafood stock. Bring to a boil and reduce, whisking constantly. When very thick, remove from heat and fold 3/4 into the seafood mix. Top with a dash of hot sauce and a squeeze of lemon.

To make crepes: 

In a blender:

• 1 cup skim milk
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 tbsp melted butter

/// Directions /// Add everything to a blender. Blend, blend, blend. In a pan on the stove heat with a little bit of butter. the first crepe is a sacrificial crepe. It's going to suck but this is part of making crepes. So make your sacrificial crepe by pouring a small amount of batter into the pan and swirl it around so it coats the pan. Use a rubber spatula to loosen the edges. When the edges begin to bubble and the underside is set and golden, flip the crepe. Cook the rest of the batter. The first few are never perfect. Keep going.