Pink Crêpes with Cream Cheese Filling

Description
A really original starter! The beet flavour does not come through, but you will have these beautifully cerise-coloured crepes. As a starter, one is enough per person, with edible garnish, as the filling is rich. The recipe offers lots of interpretations: fold into a parcel and tie with chives or spring onions, OR make it into a sweet pancake with cinnamon-sugar. The recipe is extremely easy.

Ingredients
Filling 6 servings Change size or US/metric Change to: servings US Metric 50 minutes 25 mins prep
 * 1 	 medium fresh   beet, washed, topped, unpeeled
 * 1 	cup cake flour
 * 1/2 	teaspoon salt
 * 3 	large eggs
 * 2 	tablespoons butter, very soft
 * 1 	cup milk
 * 7-8 	ounces cream cheese
 * 4 	tablespoons very finely chopped spring onions
 * 1 	tablespoon very finely chopped fresh parsley
 * 1/2 	teaspoon salt
 * 1/2 	teaspoon garlic, finely chopped
 * 1/4 	cup milk

Directions

 * 1) Cook the beet until tender, and cool. When peeled, the beet I used weighed about 3 oz or 80/90 grams.
 * 2) Cut up the beet and put in processor. Add the flour, salt, eggs and butter, and whizz.
 * 3) First add 1/2 cup milk, then more, until you have a thin pancake batter consistency.
 * 4) (The amount of milk might depend on how dry the beet was and the size of the eggs. If using smaller eggs you might need more than 1 cup milk).
 * 5) Whizz in blender until very smooth. You'll have just under 3 cups liquid.
 * 6) Pour into a jug or bowl, cover, and leave in fridge for at least 1 hour.
 * 7) FILLING: Scrape the cream cheese into a bowl, and add all the flavourings except the milk.
 * 8) Normally you will find the mixture too stiff to use as a filling, so add milk little by little, until you have a satisfactory consistency for a filling: easy to scoop out but not runny.
 * 9) Cover and refrigerate until needed.
 * 10) CREPES: Use a small crepe pan. The smallest I have is 6"/15cm in diameter.
 * 11) Heat over medium heat. If not non-stick, keep butter handy and grease pan with butter.
 * 12) If the batter has thickened on standing, add a tiny bit more milk.
 * 13) Use 2 - 3 tablespoons batter per crepe: you want to aim for thin crepes. Swirl the batter to the edges of the pan so the crepes are of even thickness.
 * 14) Watch -- and when the last raw swirl of batter on top starts to firm, turn crepe. Give it about 10 seconds on the other side, then slide out on to a plate.
 * 15) Stack them on this plate as you continue.
 * 16) You should get about 12 crepes if your pan diameter is 6"/15cm.
 * 17) The fillimg is enough for six of these crepes. If you wish to use all the crepes, double the filling ingredients.
 * 18) Use the filling sparingly as it is rich. Fold crepe over. Decorate with a sprig of spring onion and some parsley or salad leaves. A tiny bit of julienned carrots will also look good, or a few thinly sliced lemon rind strips.
 * 19) Serve warm or at room temperature.
 * 20) Leftover crepes can be covered and frozen.
 * 21) *In this case cream cheese really is a better bet than a low-fat cottage cheese, as it makes a big difference to the taste.
 * 22) If you wish to use a FLAVOURED cream cheese, that is fine. (I used the green onion flavoured one). One heaped tablespoon filling should be enough per crepe.