Vegan Crepes With Smokey Tempeh and Sauteed Greens

Smokey tempeh and sauteed collard crepes with mustard sauce...wow, that title is quite the mouthful, and so is this delicious brunch! I made this brunch as a special treat for my boyfriend, who is the best guy in the whole world. 

This recipe is broken into four parts. Several of these steps can be done the night before to cut down on some cooking time (and allow for some extra snoozes).  Thanks to Veganomicom, from which these recipes were adapted.

Smokey Tempeh

• 1 8oz package of Tempeh
• 3/4 c. vegetable broth (or 3/4 teaspoon "better than bouillon" and 3/4 c water)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons liquid smoke (I know, it seems like a lot! But trust me!)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons maple syrup
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or crushed

Crepes

• 1 and 1/2 c. Soy Milk
• 1/4 c. water
• 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/4 c. whole wheat flour (Or Chickpea flour... I didn't have that so I used whole wheat)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot flour
• 1/2 tsp salt

Mustard Sauce

• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3/4 c. vegetable broth (or 3/4 teaspoon "better than bouillon" and 3/4 c water)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 c. rice cooking wine (or sherry cooking wine)
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 yellow mustard (or your mustard of preference)
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Sauteed Collards

• 1 lb collards
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 c. left over marinade from smokey tempeh

Please enjoy!

Step 1: Prepare the Tempeh

Tempeh is another one of those strange food items that most people are clueless and a little freaked out about. Once you cook it, though, I swear you'll be hooked. It's easy and nutritious! I will walk you through the preparation step by step so you can go out into the world and cook some tempeh!

**Steaming tempeh opens it up, degrades the bitterness and allows for the tempeh to soak up the marinade better. 

 Tip: Start the water boiling before you cut up the tempeh. Then the water will almost be ready by the time you are done cutting up the tempeh. 

STEP ONE
For this recipe, we are going to want our tempeh to be in long, skinny, flat pieces that will easily fit into a crepe. Refer to the pictures for this step. Cut the block into three equal pieces. Cut each of those pieces into three equal pieces. Cut each of those pieces in half long ways to make them flatter. 

STEP TWO 
Steam your tempeh with your favorite method of steaming. Since not everyone knows how to steam (we all start somewhere), I'll go ahead and show you my favorite method.  Fill a large pot about an inch and a half full of water. Get out that metal flowery thing (Oh, that's what that is for!!) and place it in the water. Turn the heat on high, and wait for the water to start to boil. Reduce the heat to medium heat and place your tempeh on top of the metal steamer, and cover the pot. 

STEP THREE
Steam the tempeh for 20 minutes. While the tempeh is steaming, move on to the next step... 

Step 2: Marinade

While the tempeh is steaming, go ahead and make the marinade. 

Mix together the vegetable broth, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, liquid smoke, olive oil, maple syrup and garlic in the bowl or tray that you plan on soaking the tempeh in. I like to use a pie dish because the flatness allows for a greater surface area for the marinade to spread to, and the tempeh gets marinated more evenly. 

Step 3: Make Crepe Batter

TIP: Do this step the night before to save some time!


Blend soy milk, water, all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, cornstarch and salt in your food processor or blender. I used a hand mixer, which worked just fine. The batter is soupy. 


Cover tightly and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.

Step 4: Mustard Sauce

By now, your tempeh is probably done steaming. Put the tempeh in the marinade and try and coat every piece. Marinate for 1 hour, stirring ever 20 minutes or so.. 


Mix 3/4 c. vegetable broth with 2 tablespoons cornstarch, and set aside. 

Sautee 1 tablespoon olive oil, minced garlic and 1/2 tsp. thyme for about 1 minute over medium heat in a sauce pot. 

Add 1/2 c. cooking rice wine and 1 tablespoon soy sauce and bring up the heat to high. Once the mixture is boiling, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for about 4 minutes. 

Add vegetable broth/cornstarch mixture, 1/4 c. mustard, and 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Stir frequently, using a whisk. Once the sauce starts to bubble, lower the heat to low and simmer for about 3 minutes.

This sauce is thick. Transfer to a bowl and let cool while you finish the rest of the brunch!

Step 5: Making the Crepes

Making crepes are difficult. Period. So don't beat yourself up when the first few aren't perfect. In fact, go ahead and assume your first few are going to look sloppy. This is where having a well seasoned cast iron skillet (about 8-9 inches) is going to come in handy. Also, a silicone basting brush (silicone helps it withstand high heat) is invaluable. 

Go ahead and fire up that cast iron skillet! Practice makes perfect!

STEP ONE 
Heat the cast iron skillet. It is ready when you can flick water on the surface and the water sizzles. 

STEP TWO
Spray with cooking spray. Then take a small piece of earth balance (margarine) and use your basting brush to spread it around the sides and bottom of the skillet

STEP THREE 
Pour between 1/3 and 1/2 c. batter onto the pan. With a pot holder, QUICKLY pick up the pan and shake the batter around to spread it evenly and thinly around the pan. The goal shape here is a circle. 

STEP FOUR 
Cook for 1 minute and 30 seconds. Flip. Cook 30 seconds on other side. Stack on a plate.

Repeat. If your cast iron is well seasoned, you won't need to use cooking spray every time. 

TIP: Butter and the basting brush is key here. 

Step 6: Cooking the Tempeh

Heat some oil on a large pan. Add the tempeh and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring ever 1-2 minutes. I like to pay attention and flip individual pieces after about five minutes to ensure that every piece gets a little crispy on each side.... 

Step 7: Cooking the Collards

TIP: If you have a large pot, follow these steps but substitute the pan with a large pot. The pot that I used to steam the tempeh in would have worked well. It makes it easier because the collards cook down a whole lot, as with most greens. 

As soon as the tempeh is done, put it in a separate dish and put some oil and garlic in pan. Medium heat. 

Cook garlic for a minute, and then add collards. I get them cut up already, but if you don't then you'll need to remove the stems. 

After two minutes, add marinade from the tempeh. 

Continue to cook for another 10 minutes. 

Step 8: Ta Da! Enjoy!

Serve and Enjoy!

Tip: You can enjoy these however you like. I laid out two pieces of tempeh on top of a crepe, covered with collards and doused with mustard sauce. You can eat with a fork and knife or pick up with your hands....