The Ossington Stop is located in Toronto’s trendy west end at 1164 Dundas st. W. The area is also known as little Portugal. But if your’e feeling famished and want a taste for something unique to the neighbourhood, The Ossington stop is where you can get some flavour from the eastern block. Head chef and owner Denis Ganshonkov graced us today with this lovely Russian crepe recipe to help warm your soul during these winter months. Enjoy!
Savoury Russian crepes with meat and mushroom filling,
topped with sour cream, roasted king oyster mushrooms and herbs.
Equipment:
Deep bowl, whisk, heavy bottom pot, spatula, strainer, crepe/non stick frying pan, 6oz ladle, large frying pan.
Crepes (makes 12-14)
– 3 whole preferably free run eggs
– 2 cups of all purpose flour
– 3/4 litre whole milk
– 1 tsp of salt
– 1.5 tsp of sugar
– Vegetable oil to oil the crepe/non stick pan
– 1tbsp unsalted butter to sear rolled up crepes
Filling:
– 2 large onions medium dice
– 1 tbsp of unsalted butter
– 1/2 lb of good quality ground beef, regular ground
– 1/2 lb of good quality ground pork, regular ground
– 1 ltr of medium diced button mushrooms
– Salt and black pepper to taste
– 1/2 a bunch of dill finely chopped
– 1 egg, beaten
Garnish:
– 5 large oyster mushroom chopped diagonally or lengthwise
– 1/2 cup picked dill
– 1/2 cup picked flat leaf parsley
– Finely chopped garlic 1 clove in 1/2 cup of regular canola/sunflower/vegetable oil
– 1tbsp 14% or higher fat artisanal or good quality sour cream
– 3 tbsp unsalted butter
– Salt to taste
To make filling:
In a heavy bottom pot melt butter over medium heat, once bubbling, add onions and mushrooms and cook for approx. 20 mins on low heat, no colour. Once soft, add the meat and keep stirring well and cook for approx. 30 min, until the meat is just cooked, the filling should be soft, not browned.
Once cooked, take of the heat, season with salt and a generous helping of black ground pepper. Pepper should be tasted in the filling.
Once the filling is room temp, add dill and 1 beaten egg, mix well, taste and leave aside.
Crepes:
In a deep bowl combine 3 eggs, sugar, salt, and milk. Mix vigorously for approx. 5 minutes, the mixture should look fluffy and airy. Sift the flour and start adding to the mix. Once everything is added, keep mixing for another 10 minutes, until smooth, no lumps. Pass through a fine strainer.
To make crepes:
Heat the crepe/non stick pan on high heat, add a tsp of oil and make sure the pan in well oiled. Pour 6oz of crepe batter, move it around the pan to make sure it covers the surface and is approx. 2 millimetres thin, the thinner, the better!
Cook on one side until edges start to turn light brown. Flip and cook for approx. 1 minute. Once done, flip the top side down on to a cutting board.
Repeat for as many crepes as needed.
Let cool down completely.
Once cooked, take approx. 2 tbsp of the filling, place on one end of the crepe in a shape of a rectangle. Take the end of the crepe with the filling on it and roll forward, then take the sided and bring into the middle, roll forward two more time and you have your stuffed crepe! Make sure that the other end of the crepe end up on the bottom so that it gets nicely seared and doesn’t open up!
Repeat for as many crepes as needed.
Finishing the crepes:
In a non stick or crepe pan, melt 1 tbsp of butter at high heat until bubbly, place crepes (up to 4) on the pan and brown until golden on both sides. Let to cool.
Garnish:
In a large pan, melt 3 tbsp of butter on medium heat. Place king oyster mushrooms and turn the heat to high. Cook thoroughly on both sides until golden brown. Transfer to a paper towel, season with salt.
Plate:
Place two crepes on a plate, preferably with a flowery rim 😉 take 3 pieces on king oyster mushrooms, scoop a tbsp of sour cream on top, place 3 pieces of king oyster mushrooms on top, drizzle with garlic oil and top everything with picked herbs.
Приятного аппетита!
Денис Ганьшонков, Denis Ganshonkov
(Ossington stop)