This one is a family recipe. My grandfather made them for Christmas, then my dad, my aunt, my brother... and now me!
They basically are buckwheat flour crepes with raisins eaten with icing sugar.
I'd also say that it's an acquired taste. My mum says that the only reason I like them is because I've eaten them every Christmas since I have teeth. They were still served to any guest coming to my home around Christmas.
They're definitely a specialty from Liège, and not an easy one to find. You can find them in a few bakeries only or on the Christmas market. They're also not always made with buckwheat flour. Sometimes they're just crepes with raisins.
RECIPE:
My aunt gave me my grandfather's recipe. You can play with the split between buckwheat and white flour. My aunt doesn't add the oil. Traditionally the dough is mixed by hand but I've used my mixer set at the minimum speed and finished with a whisk.
Then something went wrong... Either because I used gluten free flour or because the fresh yeast was no longer active, the dough didn't rise enough (or at all) overnight, it split and became too liquid. I had to add a bit of flour before cooking the bouquettes.
Servings: 20
Calories: 304 kcal / serving
Ingredients:
* 250 g buckwheat flour
* 500 g white flour
* 42 g fresh yeast
* Lukewarm water
* 1 tsp salt
* 250 g unsalted butter
* 500 g raisins
Variation:
* Add 250 ml oil (like my grandfather)
Gluten free:
* Use a mix gluten free flour
* Add a few grams of bicarbonate of soda and/or baking soda and/or xanthan gum
* Let the dough rise for a shorter time
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Resting time: 24 hours
Cooking time: 1 hour
Method:
Dough:
* Prepare all your ingredients:
- Take 42 g yeast out of the fridge
- Bowl: 250 g buckwheat flour & 500 g white flour
* Mix the 2 flours
* Make a fountain in the flour
* Gently dilute the yeast in lukewarm water
* Pour the diluted yeast in the fountain made in the flour
* Incorporate the flour (by hand or with your mixer set at a low speed)
* Slowly add lukewarm water until the dough is semi-liquid
* Add 1 tsp of salt
* Cover the dough with a towel and let it rest 24 hours
Tips:
* If you use dried yeast, no need to mix it with warm water, mix it directly with the flour
* Sieve the flour to avoid lumps
* You can put the salt underneath the flour before adding the yeast
* The dough will grow more in a warmer room
Warning:
* Don't boil the water or mix the salt directly with the yeast, it will deactivate the yeast
* The dough should at least double in size overnight, make sure the bowl is large enough
Cooking:
* Put a little bit of butter in the pan
* Once the pan is hot, pour dough in the pan
* Cook the crepe on both sides
Conserving:
* Cover the pile of crepes with a towel
Tips:
* The pan used to cook the crepes has to be really hot
* If you don't use a non-stick pan, add more butter
* The first crepe is rarely sexy
* Don't eat the crepe on the top of the pile, it's going to dry out and protect the other crepes from drying out
It shouldn't look like that...
