Of candelabras and crêpes.

I love pancakes, from sour cream-topped Russian blinis (not the store-bought travesties) to American buttermilk and oat flour flapjacks drizzled with Grade B maple syrup; from paper-thin Italian crespelle to filled Vietnamese bánh xèo to spongy Ethiopian injera (torn and dipped with the right hand only); from Dutch mini kiddie poffertjes showered with powdered sugar to enormous pannekoeken with all the savory or sweet trimmings; from the dark, very filling buckwheat galettes of Brittany, in the north, to the paler, more refined crêpes, sold at any carnival and most street carts across France. I love pancakes.

It is perhaps no surprise that a day just for pancakes, to me, seems highly logical. In France, February 2nd is la Chandeleur, the day for crêpes. The name is derived from the word chandelle, or candle, as these are lit for this holiday. It is the last of the festivals around Noël, and so this is also the day that the crèche (nativity scene) is put away in the Provence. I wrote last year about some of the other origins, both pagan and Christian, of la Chandeleur.

While I'm on the subject, there's famously also Mardi Gras, whose counterpart in Anglo countries is Shrove Tuesday (from the verb to shrive, or to obtain absolution through confession and penance). Mardi Gras is the day before Ash Wednesday, which is the beginning of Lent (during which, for forty days one gives up something desirable and perhaps even fasts). Accordingly, the rich perishables--eggs, milk, butter--historically needed to be consumed beforehand. Ergo, pancakes.

I have collected, as you might imagine, (way too) many pancake recipes. Friends, family and strangers on the street have been kind enough to share their favorites with me. But my stand-by crêpe recipe is from the Petit Larousse de la Cuisine, which is the starter/standard reference for French cooking. Pff: there's no background story to relate, no whispered exchange of portions or unusual additions, no chance meeting with an exalted chef, it is just a basic recipe from page 972 that has never let me down. If you want to make savory crepes (say, sprinkled with Gruyere cheese), simply omit the vanilla and liqueur flavoring. If you'd prefer a sweeter batter, take a look at Parisienne Clotilde Dusoulier's recipe on her Chocolate & Zucchini blog. She also helped develop a "crêpes 101" page at Martha Stewart's site if you'd like a refresher in pan technique...Happy Pancake Day!
Pâte de Crêpes Sucrée/Dessert Crêpe Batter

For 500g of batter (serves 4 or more, as these are quite thin).

2 organic eggs
10g organic butter (about 1 scant tablespoon)
100g flour, white/all-purpose (about 1 cup gently filled, not packed, please)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2.5 dl organic whole milk (1 cup)
1 tablespoon liqueur, such as rum or Grand Marnier (optional)
1/2 vanilla bean, or two teaspoons vanilla extract (optional)

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Mix the eggs in a bowl. In a separate large bowl, sift the flour and salt then add the eggs. Pour in the milk, thinning it with 2-3 teaspoons of water. Lastly, add the melted, cooled butter and the liqueur and/or vanilla. Allow to rest at room temperature (and this really is worthwhile!) at least one hour, preferably two. Just before using, thin with an additional teaspoon of water.

Crêpes for Candlemas.

In a country that tries so assiduously to be laïque, or secular, where you cannot wear small religious insignia to school, the old Catholic ways, even if watered down, recede rather slowly. Take the feast of Candlemas, or la Chandeleur. Held forty days after Christmas, this is the celebration of the presentation of Jesus at the temple; then again, for others, it's all about Mary, and her purification. At any rate, blessing is involved, in this case, of beeswax candles, which confer auspicious events in the new year--if the candle can be carried home without the flame going out. While the holiday has an accepted Catholic timeline going back to the 300s A.D., there are a number of Roman, and later Celtic, elements that were incorporated into the occasion. Some insist that this day had far less to do with baby Jesus, and centered more around celebrating light, winter's end (amen!) and efforts to ensure a good harvest. Over time, superstitions also took their place, as evidenced by this British saying for example:

"If Candlemas Day is clear and bright,
winter will have another bite.
If Candlemas Day brings cloud and rain,
winter is gone and will not come again."

In the US, the superstitions were liberally reinterpreted, becoming Groundhog Day. Seriously.

Lacking groundhogs of their own, the French turned to culinary ritual, as is their wont, taking the lead from Gelasius I, who was pope in the late 400s. In addition to introducing the benediction of the candles (hence Candle Mass), he fed the hungry pilgrims gathering in processions around Rome a galette, the heavier precursor of the dainty crêpe.

Thus, here in France dessert crêpes reign on the Chandeleur evening of February second. Specifically, after 8 pm. If one can flip a crêpe in the pan while holding a gold coin in the other hand, well, prosperity in the coming year is all but assured.

Whatever the true, entire story of la Chandeleur may be, it makes kids big and small happy, mine included. I made a gateau de crêpes aux pommes, using a recipe from the February edition of Cuisine et Vins. Caramelized apples, almonds and Calvados-soaked raisins were tucked between delicate layers of crêpe. We all agreed the result was delicious, and my never having found a gold coin to clutch was forgotten in the haze of post-prandial bliss.