Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Mini Beetroot Crepes Stuffed with Arugula, Goat Cheese & Ground Pistachio for the February 5 Star Makeover


The subject of this month's Five Star Makeover  - hosted as ever by the talented duo of Natasha of 5 Star Foodie and Lazaro of Lazaro Cooks! - is beets, an ingredient with endless possibilities if ever there was one. In fact, so many ideas popped into my head for this month's challenge I had a tough time choosing which dish to make.


But I am very happy with my choice:  these cute little beetroot mini crepes. I mean, nothing this pink could possibly be bad, right?

My idea was to take the flavors of the classic roasted beet, arugula, goat cheese, and pistachio salad and tweak it a bit. I was concerned that the crepes would only look good and not taste beet-y, but happily they did in fact take on a subtle beet flavor. These would be fun to serve at a lunch or tea ...  or you could just eat a whole pile yourself for a rather piggish snack. Not that I did that.

Mini Beetroot Crepes with Arugula, Goat Cheese, & Ground Pistachio
makes approximately one dozen 6 inch crepes

For the crepe batter:
1 large beet, peeled and shredded 
1/4 - 1/2 cup water
1 cup milk
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

For the filling:
6 ounces baby arugula
drizzle olive oil
squeeze lemon
dash balsamic vinegar
crumbled goat cheese
1/2 cup pistachio nuts, ground in a food processor

To make the crepes, whizz the grated beet and water in a food processor. Strain and press through a sieve or cheesecloth until you have 1/2 cup beet juice.  Combine the wet ingredients (beet juice, milk, beaten eggs, olive oil) in a bowl. Sift the flour and add the salt. Slowly whisk the flour into the liquid. If there are lumps, place the mixture in the food processor until smooth. Refrigerate for 1-3 hours.

Heat a crepe pan over medium high heat. Rub butter on the pan. Take the pan off of the heat and pour a small ladle of batter in the middle, swirling as you do so. The crepe should be about 6 - 7 inches. Place the pan back on the heat and cook until the edges of the crepe look crispy - about a minute. Flip and cook another 30 seconds.

The batter keeps in the fridge for up to 48 hours, so only make as many as you need. You can also freeze extra crepes.

To assemble the crepes, toss the arugula with a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and place a small handful, along with the goat cheese, ground pistachio, and a pinch of salt in each crepe. These were so light and good, that I really didn't feel guilty (or too full) after eating 3 ... or 4. Okay, 5. Tops.

Hey - they're little!
Make sure to check out all of the other fabulous creations when Natasha posts the round up on Friday! Just follow the link below.





29 comments:

  1. These crepes are so much fun! Agreed -- nothing this pretty shade of pink could possibly be bad. ;)

    I bet they'd be a huge hit at a little girl's birthday party too!

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  2. Oh, Junior and I just love the pink crepes! A must make for us!

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  3. Very nice! I could easily eat a whole plate of these! Just so perfect on that platter!

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  4. How adorable and pretty!! Love what you need with it.

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  5. Visually appealing and the fillings and potential uses are limitless. Love!

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  6. I love these! Beet anything catches my attention, but the filling sounds delicious as well! Wonderful idea :)!

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  7. Hi Trix - I just hopped over from Nancy's site and I enjoyed browsing around your blog. You take amazing pictures of great food! I wish my pictures beautiful like yours. Lots of delicious recipes here and will love to come back. :-)

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  8. Beets are not my friend, but these have enough appeal to pique m interest. Very lovely.

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  9. These crepes are so beautiful and I love all the lavors you put together.

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  10. Formibdable! The green, pink and white make such an appealing presence together. This is a wonderfully healthy, appetizing, a beautiful way to snack - brava!

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  11. What a unique idea! Definitely going to have to try those beet root crepes sometime =)

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  12. Trixibella, at first glance I thought your crepes were thinly sliced meat! I mean, who would've thought these pink crepes contained beet, not beef ;). I'm sorry but if you presented me a platter of these, I'd be a pig and eat the whole stack...as you said, they're minis. Lol.

    Love your classy makeover style, as usual. Many thanks too for your comments about mine (I wasn't sure if it was a makeover or just over). You're totally sweet!

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  13. I can't think of a prettier color than beet dye. Really is remarkable. I had one of those God-like sun rays hitting on my grated beets in the kitchen and snapped a picture... but it didn't do it justice.. too hot. They glowed like medieval stained glass (where the red came with the help of GOLD I hear). Stunning dish and great photography.

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  14. Oh I just love how you creation turned out, The crepes are adorable! I have played with the idea too. And the filling are 3 of my favorite things: arugula, goat cheese, and pistachio.

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  15. Amazing! Really. I don't think I am overstating anything. GREG

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  16. Love the color of these sweet little crepes, they sure are sweet and filled with some of my favorites;-)

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  17. what a great riff on the classic! Pink crepes have just been added to my irresistible food list!

    I would love to join the 5 star makeover crew. Who should I contact? Theresa

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  18. Pink crepes - I love it! So healthy and light, I could easily eat 5 of these, too :) And not feel guilty doing it!

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  19. This is such a creative dish, Trix! Everyone did such a wonderful job on this challenge. WOW.

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  20. Oh my goodness. This is so creative. I would have never thought of it. Opens up a whole new world for the beet. And, the arugula is just so right.

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  21. This was smart. What a great way to use beets! Love the pinkness of the crepes.

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  22. Beautiful color and execution on this dish. A big fan that you made them small. A prefect, neat little package. The flavors compliment each other.

    Way to go, Trix.

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  23. This is absolutely, positively, super-dupedly stunning.

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  24. They are just darling. The color, the size, the combination of ingredients, all simply lovely! YAY for the Cooking Group. Your contribution is fabulous.
    LL
    Ready for Junk Food?

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  25. These look delicious, and the color is fantastic. Well done!

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  26. These are so appealing--I never thought to serve a mini crepe as an appetizer before. Thanks!

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  27. This my friend is definitely a 5 star recipe. They are adorable and all of the ingredients have my stomach growling. So going to make these. Thanks for being a part of the YBR Ms. Trixie ;)

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  28. What a fantastic idea to use red beet for the pink crepes! They look so inviting!!!!
    Cheers:)

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  29. Beetroot is really so effective and also it is so testy so why not we should we eat or drink this.
    Thank You,

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