It’s often unfathomable what happens in a year’s time. Even though the day-to-day may seem to slow, steady and rather uneventful to me, looking back over the last 365 I lose my breath over what has manifested, changed, grown, fell apart, appeared, disappeared, reappeared, brightened and blossomed. It’s a beautiful trip.
One such facet of my life that has really blessed me this past year is my friendships. I have connected very deeply with a number of truly inspiring people, many of whom I have met because of this blog. One person in particular whom I feel so lucky to have crossed paths with, is the beautiful Elenore of Earthsprout fame. If you read back in the archives you’ll see the story of how we met and how it was all very meant-to-be. Over the past 12 months it’s become so clear why we were brought together, going far beyond a love of healthy food and geenylicious goodness. Here we are, just over a year later, both mamas-to-be. We really manifested that one! Pretty miraculous stuff I tell ya.
Since the recipe for our Ecstatic Raw Chocolate was such a hit last year, we figured a joint post should become a tradition…and also because we really, really love playing in the kitchen together. Elenore is fortunate enough to live very near to a pick-your-own organic strawberry patch (guh), so it was pretty obvious where we would be spending our afternoon! After eating until our bellies were quite literally bursting with berries (and babies), we went home to make a treat worthy of our July jewels. Elenore was of course feeling green, and I was on a hemp kick, so with our powers combined we came up with these super delicious, Miraculous Summer Crêpes with Vanilla Hemp Sauce to celebrate the miracles that seem to sparkle all around us all the time, and to feed our gorgeous growing sprouts. We garnished them with our stunning strawberries and a shower of flower petals because we love beautiful (and really tasty!) things. You can read all about the benefits of edible flowers over at Earthsprout.
The crepes are gluten-free with a base of buckwheat and brown rice flour blended up with spinach, and basil. Although we took a sweet route with the version I’m presenting to you here, Elenore and I actually ate the remaining ones for dinner and piled the pancakes high with grilled mushrooms, broccoli, avocado, sprouts, and salad greens. They were so delicious! So you can go either way depending on your mood and what needs to be eaten up in the fridge – a great base for leftovers. You can even roll them up like a tortilla and use them in place of a traditional wrap.
The sauce we created for these amazing crepes, is a vanilla-infused hemp heart masterpiece that is creamy and dreamy drizzled over just about anything! We scraped the blender clean with our fingers not wanting to waste a single drop of its glory. But why hemp? Well, it’s one of our favourite foods, and not just during pregnancy, but especially so because of its perfect balance of Omega fats.
A Fine Balance: Hemp Hearts
It’s true that hemp is high in protein, fibre and phytonutrients, but it’s also a remarkable food due to its perfect balance of Omega fatty acids. We’ve all heard about Omega-3s and how important they are for the health of our entire body, helping to prevent cancer asthma, depression, obesity, diabetes and so on. But! There is another star on the block, Omega-6, which seems to be less talked about due to the fact that many of us get enough (or in some cases, too much) of this essential fatty acid.
Omega-3 and Omega-6 fasts are essential, meaning that our bodies don’t produce them and we need to obtain them from the foods we eat. Sources of Omega-3 fats include flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, chia, dark leafy greens, some sea vegetables and cold-water fish. Omega-6 sources include canola, corn, peanut, safflower, sunflower, and sesame. You can see from this list that most people in the Western world at least, are getting their fair share of Omega-6 fats, and lacking in Omega-3s. In fact, in North America it is estimated that the population consumes 10 to 20 times as much Omega-6 as Omega-3 (the ratio landing somewhere between 10:1 and 20:1). Although the correct ratio of these fats is still a matter of debate,researchers in this field agree that this ratio is far too high. We should be aiming for a ratio of 2:1 to 4:1. In other words, a diet that provides at least twice the amount of Omega-6s as Omega-3s, but no more than four times as much is preferred.
So why is the balance so important? Because the ratio of Omega-6s to Omega-3s helps determine the flexibility of our cell membranes, meaning that ALL communication throughout the body depends on at least in part on this balance being correct. Coronary heart disease, chronic inflammation, obesity, and healthy genetic processes have all been linked to the delicate equilibrium of essential fatty acids.
How can we improve the situation then? Just by making simple, small changes to our diets will greatly improve the balance of fats in our bodies. Swapping foods high in Omega-6s like peanut butter, with foods high in Omega-3s like tahini (sesame butter) or pumpkin seed butter, and for the non-vegetarians replacing chicken, beef and pork with cold-water fish.
But the most ideal food to choose when trying to achieve that perfect balance of these fats then, is hemp! Hemp’s Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio is a healthy 3.75:1. You can find hemp in many forms these days: un-hulled and hulled seeds (also known as hemp hearts), hemp oil, hemp flour, hemp protein powder, hemp milk, and hemp seed butter. Remember that choosing hemp in its most natural form (the un-hulled or hulled hemp seeds) is your best bet to ensure a high-quality, whole food product.
I like to sprinkle hemp seeds on just about everything, from my breakfast porridge to my salads and sandwiches. They add an amazing creaminess to smoothies, raw custards and cheesecakes. You can even make your own milk from hemp and you don’t even need to soak the seeds first! Simply blend 1 part hulled hemp seeds to four parts water, and a sweetener, like dates or honey, if you so desire, strain and enjoy. Simple and delicious.
Miraculous Summer Crêpes
Makes 8-10 crêpes
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1 cup brown rice flour
1 1/2 cup water
2 cups fresh spinach
1 handful fresh basil leaves
2 tbsp virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp Himalayan salt / Celtic sea salt or other mineral rich, good quality salt
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp coconut oil, for frying
1. Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Blend water, spinach, basil, olive oil and apple cider vinegar using a high speed blender or an immersion blender until smooth. Pour over the bowl of flour and salt.
3. Combine the dry and wet ingredients thoroughly using a spatula or a wooden spoon.
4. Fry the crêpes over medium heat and use a teensy amount of coconut oil before you pour batter into the frying pan. Use a spatula to make a thin round crêpe.
5. Fry and flip each crêpe until they have a bit of color on each of the sides, stack crêpes on a plate and cover with a clean tea towel while you continue frying.
Hemp & Vanilla Sauce
1/2 cup (75 g) hemp hearts
3/4 cup water
5 large Medjool dates, pitted
1 vanilla bean, scraped
a pinch of salt
1. Rinse hemp hearts well and add them to a high speed blender along with dates, salt and water. Blend until smooth and creamy. (If you do not have a high speed blender, soaking hemp seeds for 30-60 minutes prior will help soften them)
2. Open the vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds using a sharp knife. Add the seeds to the sauce in the blender and blend again.
Filling
Strawberries
Apricots
Edible flowers
Basil leaves
Hemp & Vanilla sauce
Arrange
Slice the fruit and berries and put onto a crêpe, drizzle over the vanilla sauce using a spoon or a spritzer and add flowers and basil leaves. Remember that it does not have to be a dessert though! These crêpes would for example make a perfect and easy savoury picnic wrap.
I hope you are all enjoying this glorious summer so far! I am heading to Canada tomorrow morning to see my family and friends, and for them to meet the little babe bouncing around in this belly of mine. If posting is a little light it’s because I’m taking some time away from the computer, but I’ll still be around on Instagram so you can follow my adventures there.
All love from Sarah B and Elenore + our little ones
WOW these look really great and delicious! Awesome recipe and great, aesthetic photos. Nice job
Heaven! And the hennep sauce is to die for!!
And I love the fact that it’s an easy way to incorporate extra greens into your diet – great alternative to my salad routine! Thanks Sarah (and Elenore) xoxo
these were so good! i, too, had to add a lot more water — i just added until it was a crepe-batter consistency that i could work with. i also “cheated” and just added the dry ingredients to my high-speed blender… i know that you’re supposed to let “regular” crepe batter sit so that there aren’t bubbles, but i am lazy about dishwashing. 😉 i thought about adding eggs, but didn’t have to. a neat way to incorporate spinach, and a fun use for basil! 🙂
Also, I couldn’t find hemp hearts and I used equivalent of raw oats. Delish!
Had some trouble with the thickness of the batter and I see I’m not the only one. I did thin it down…. Like, by 2/3 cup of water worth. Spoon 1/4 to a 1/3 cup of batter into the pan. It’ll will be a glob in the center, but use the back of your spoon to spread it out. Just like they do in France! Quite nice after I figured this out.
Hi Sarah, I had a go at making your lovely looking crepes but they didn’t turn out very well – the batter was very thick and my crepes were stodgy and very un-crepe like! I substituted the rice flour for wholewheat flour as I didn’t have any – do you think that this would have made a difference? Otherwise, I’m stumped as to what went wrong!
I too found the batter way too thick. What is the secret please? I added more water, a little more EVO and three eggs and I was able to make them. The taste was wonderful but wondered if there was an ingredient missing or if the proportions were incorrect.
More water and a bit more oil didn’t help unfortunalety, the crepes still became a crumble.. So now I put two eggs and much more oil in the batter, which does the trick. But that was not really what I wanted : S
I’m making them right now, and my batter is also very thick. The crepes don’t really hold. Checking and dubbelchecking the ingredients list, I totally sticked to that… What’s the secret? : )
Thanks!
my batter was too thick and i couldn’t get them to work in the pan…then i added more water but I didn’t seem to get the consistency right. Suggestions on ratios? What’s your secret?
Noora – I had the same problem.
Sarah – I made your crepes on Sunday (served with a savoury filling) and I had to add almost 3 cups of extra water to thin the batter. I would love to make them again and try different fillings, but before I do can you / anyone please confirm that the flour qty is correct??
Thank you so much for the inspiration xx
Hello!
So excited to find such a divine crepe recipe! Your spelt crepes are in regular rotation at our house as they are among my son’s favorites. He’s quite the breakfast connoisseur so he’s sure to devour these too. BTW, such a beautiful photo of you and your friend!
Hi Sarah! I made these crepes today, or tried to make.. I don’t know what went wrong but I ended up having reeeeally thick batter and also super thick crepes 🙁
You two are so beautiful and inspiring! This article filled my heart with joy and sunshine 🙂 Love you two.
I was so excited to see these this morning, I’ve been yearning for some vegan gluten-free crepes. I had to try them right away! Made them for brunch, sweet with coconut oil and coconut milk, agave syrup, cinnamon and vanilla. Absolutely delicious and nourishing. We enjoyed them with all kinds of spreads and fillings (strawberry cream, melted dark chocolate, fresh fruit, cherry jam, maple syrup…), YUM!
Your blog (and recipes!) and overflowing with beauty!
I love your article. Thank you for sharing.
Fruits and veges are really good for the body.
Beautiful photos and such gorgeous colours!
I’ve loved your blog for a very long time, it always hits the right notes for me, but this post is just sublime! Can’t wait to make the recipe!
Thank you both for such an amazing entry and all the best in this special time in your lives.
Hi there!
Congratulations for this recipe. I tried it a few days ago along with the beetroot hummus and it resulted in an interesting mix of colors and flavors (although I’m still a noob)!
I was just wondering the size of a cup. I know that in the US one cup equals approximately 2 dl, and I used that scale in this recipe, but I just want to make sure.
Otherwise, big congratulations for this blog. The day I found it I started to try the recipes and it’s just marvelous. Keep going with the great work and all the best with the coming child!
This recipe sounds delicious and I love the last photo. You’re both very beautiful ladies 🙂 xx
Dearest Sarah and Elenore! You both just shine so bright! Thank you for another dashing recipe. I made it for myself to celebrate my 26th birthday. It was so delightful, and visually gorgeous! As some have mentioned, I also had trouble with the consistancy of the crepes at first, but then I just accepted a pancake-thickness. Scrumptsh.
Sorry if this has already been noted, but you list sesame seeds as a good source of omega 6 at first (along with peanuts), and then go on to suggest swapping peanut butter for tahini (in order to consume less omega 6, and more omega 3)?
Great recipe, though, I’ll certainly try it out. Thank you.
Wow! I agree with the above comments, this is priceless! The story, both of your blogs, you two…it really additionally confirms my own belief that this life is a miracle. Well, you’ve even said it yourselves, in the title 🙂 All the best! To everyone 🙂
You are both radiant and look so happy! How wonderful to meet a kindred spirit and get to make such beautiful memories together. 🙂
High-five! I just suggested we try making this in the office kitchen =)
that photo is PRICELESS. 2 gorgeous women sharing their gifts with all of us:) oh, those babies will be so well fed!!!! blessings from Canada xo
These look so good- I love, love, love crepes. The photo at the end with you and Elenore is absolutely adorable, too!
Thank you for the lovely recipe. It will likely grace our table this evening, after a trip to the farmers market for some strawberries.
I’m also due in November and I’m so grateful that my appetite has returned in time to enjoy the plethora of summer produce here in British Columbia.
All the best to you and your sprout!
That makes my mouth pour with water
Awesome yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmy
That picture at the end – SO gorgeous 🙂 What a stunning recipe. I’m super keen to try hemp now. Lovely.
Heidi xo
These are so gorgeous! Awesome recipe! Also, LOVE the baby belly pic – too cute 🙂
Hooray. Made these last night for my young family, (19mnths, 5 and 7). We stuffed them like tacos. Shredded cabbage, beans, rice, goat cheese etc. They loved them. If it weren’t for the kids, I may have even experimented with throwing half a jalepeno in the blender, for some heat. Thank you for all your inspirational recipes!
gorgeous photos!! You are such a stunning mama to be, glowing!
I was just looking for a buckwheat crepe recipe recently. This is brilliant.
Sarah, you must have changed your URL recently. Your posts haven’t been updating on Feedly; I just thought you were busy. I’m excited to catch up but only follow a handful of blogs and use Feedly exclusively (to simplify & reduce my online time). I can’t find your new feed. Help??
beautiful 🙂
WOW! What a yummie-beautiful post! 🙂 Thank you! Would you tell me where you got the gorgeous dress from, Sarah?
I’m eating one of these crepes right now. It reminds me of the French crepes (with the buckwheat flour). Delicious! 🙂
I had to try these tonight! We had them with organic strawberries and local peaches. My little ones (nearly 5 and 2, respectively) were crazy about the sauce, actually drinking it off their plates. I could not for the life of me get the crepes right though. It all seemed so straight-forward until I got down the business of cooking the things. I couldn’t get them thin enough… What’s the secret?!
I wanted to try the sauce as a replacement for mayonnaise, so I used the hemp hearts with the water, then added lemon, ( juice from about 1/2), salt, pepper, about 1/2 tsp. dill, 1/2 tsp. mustard seed, a pinch of turmeric, & a pinch of onion powder, then with my vita-mix running drizzled in about 1 1/2 – 2 Tbsps. of olive oil. It turned out pretty good. I wouldn’t mind if it was thicker though, so may decrease the water and use more olive oil next time to see if I can change the consistency.
What a beautiful post, Sarah! 🙂 and truly lovely crepes as well!
You lovely ladies are too cute!!! Can’t wait to try this recipe with all the delicious summer fruit available. Happy and safe travels Sarah!! Much love to you both.
Great article, Andrew! My money’s on the Lithuanians, but I like the idea of the NCAA players representing USA again.
Such a beautiful recipe and pictures to share! Be well on your time away from the computer- I think it’s wise for all of us bloggers out there to do so every once in a while 🙂
Bonjour!!! I Love your picture, i felt the love and got goosebumps! For the crêpes is it the right mesurements because i’m making them at the moment and i’m having a hard time!! Lol 😉 the battre is very thick 😉 thank you
the last pic is absolutely+insanely adorable& full with so much POWER (you two rock)! would try the pancakes soon as there is currently so yummy thai basil&dill growing on the balcony, yumyum! enjoy Canada+have a great time:-))
PS: an ingredient-question, do you buy the rice flour from the organic supermarket (I have never seen it here) or do you make it yourself at home? I remember you mentioning in one of your Amsterdam-workshops 2012 that all flours are best to be fresh/within 72 h (ground+sitting month in a bag is not that good) ;
Absolutely stunning post. Love the crepe recipe and I hope I look as fantastic as you and Elenore when I’m pregnant someday!
You two are so inspiring (and gorgeous)! I look forward to many more delicious collaborations!
I haven’t seen hemp hearts in Germany before, but I’m guessing that I could substitute soaked cashews instead?
Enjoy the Ontario summer! There are certainly few things better in life than Ontario peaches and lakes.
Hey Sasha, I first thought the same, that we don´t have the shelled ones here in Germany (I did find unshelled in our local Health Food store but that was it) but then I found shelled hemp seeds online from a German Demeter source in biodynamic quality. I buy them in bulk and so far love it, here is the link:
http://www.demeterhof-schwab.de/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&view=productdetails&virtuemart_category_id=&virtuemart_product_id=153
Hope this helps 🙂 Love my daily hemp!
Looks amazing! i love the sound of a vanilla-hemp sauce, very intrigued! The edible flowers look gorgeous and perfect for a fancy breakfast/brunch option. Have a great time in Canada!
Made these crepes for dinner tonight… stuffed with more spinach, mushrooms and cheese… so delicious! These crepes fry like a dream – the perfect consistency to flip (no ripping crepes :)) Love them. Next time I’ll do them sweet and try the sauce too!
You two look absolutely radiant! Thank you for another beautiful and inspiring post <3
just a note to say how much i LOVE your recipes, your website, and the photos. please, please write a book someday!!! your recipes have completely changed my life, and i’ll always be grateful.
I am so happy to see another collab between you and Elenore. I adore both blogs seperately but when you get together it is just purely and simply magic! Cannot wait to try this recipe, I bet I love it as much as the chocolate!
This post is just too stinkin’ cute! Good friends are the best, aren’t they?
I’m crazy about the sound of the vanilla hemp sauce. Hemp is usually not my first go-to for creamy sauces, but that’s about to change. Thanks for this gorgeous recipe, and congratulations to both of you, hot mamas!
Absolutely love this recipe – will have to try it straight away! And you two look gorgeous in that strawberry field:-)
What a beautiful looking dish! Seriously amazing. I can’t wait for summer to roll around here in the southern hemisphere so I can try these!
I have never seen hemp hearts. Is there a close replacement for them?
your recipes are always so inspirational, but this one especially! have a great summer with your family, you look glowing on the photo!
the picture at the bottom of the post is so. beautiful.
would you tell us where your dress is from?
xxx
ce.leb
You guys are too cute 🙂
I love reading this post about your lovely friendship with Elenore! You both look beautiful in the strawberry field. I am so happy for both of you to share that special time in your lives together! Have a radiant journey into Motherhood! Thanks for your healthy version of crêpes, they look splendid and I will have to try them soon now. I like reading about the nutritional information as always. Safe travel Sarah, enjoy your vacation with your family I am sure everyone is super excited to give a belly rub to your baby-to-be. XO
Love this post! Can’t wait to try this recipe! =)
You are both so gorgeous!!! Loved reading this post and can’t wait to try the recipe. Thanks!
You guys look glowing and gorgeous!!! Your little ones are so lucky to be feasting on your food 🙂
That statistic about North Americans is crazy!! But I totally believe it. Recently heard that the fats ratio in grain-fed beef is about 24:1 – YIKES! While grass-fed is 3:1. And most people probably think it doesn’t make a difference… sad. Thanks for the great recipe!
you two are BEAUTIFUL! congratulations mini root mama! all crazy wonderful! blueberries are in season here. my babe and i are picking about a pint per day of juicy deep purple orbs. amazing how radiant just picked fruits are. i can feel the energy immediately in my body.
thank you for another beautiful recipe! xo
Reply
Aww lovely post, thank you x
Wow, that a phenomenal photo! And an wonderful part of life that you get to experience together. Many blessings to both of you.
I Love those connections, where you meet someone that you were just meant be lifelong soul-siblings with! You two are amazing and I am so happy for you mummas-to-be! Beautiful recipe, pictures and story as always. Happy summer travels. Love to your blooming belly bump! xx
What a beautiful blog – it truly lifted my spirit.
The crepes look amazing and I adore the final photo of you, Elenore and babies-to-be 🙂 x
You guys are the sweetest! Looking forward to trying this gorgeous recipe… xo
You two are geniuses! I’ve had a recipe in mind with crepes so I’ll have to use this! Can’t wait! Thank you for what you do!
Wow wow wow! Beautiful post, beautiful ladies, beautiful vibes. Your friendship makes me smile right down to my belly. These crepes sound and look amazing. I am so happy for you both and thankful for sharing your love.
xxxx
My heart. Your heart. Forever. I love you a bit too much honey jar <3