Brown Butter Apple & Ricotta Crepes with Caramel Sauce

Ingredients

For the Vanilla Crepe Batter:

• 
  
  1 egg
  
• 3/4
  
  cup (6 ounces) milk
  
• 
  
  1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise & seeds scraped
  
• 1/2
  
  cup (70 grams) flour
  
• 1/4
  
  teaspoon sea salt
  
• 2
  
  tablespoons melted butter, divided
  

For the Filling:

• 
  
  2 medium apples (about 1 pound), peeled & sliced ¼-inch thick
  
• 2
  
  tablespoons (1 ounce) butter
  
• 1/4
  
  cup (2 ounces) sugar
  
• 1/4
  
  teaspoon (2 grams) sea salt
  
• 1
  
  tablespoon flour
  
• 
  
  Juice and freshly grated zest from ½ a lemon
  
• 1/4
  
  cup good-quality caramel sauce
  
• 1/2
  
  cup fresh ricotta cheese, at room temperature
  

Directions

1. To make the crepes, add the egg, milk, vanilla bean seeds, flour, salt and 1 tablespoon of melted butter to the bowl of a blender. Blend until smooth, and there are no visible lumps. Heat an 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium flame. Using a heatproof silicon brush, use tiny a bit of the remaining melted butter to coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Pour enough batter into the skillet to thinly coat the bottom, a very scant ¼ cup. Once edges are crisp and air bubbles appear on top, flip and cook for 30 more seconds on the other side. Transfer to a plate and continue making crepes with the rest of the batter (you should have 8 to 10).

2. To prepare the filling, melt butter over moderately high heat in a medium heavy bottomed skillet. Cook until it begins to brown, but not burn; it will smell nutty and fragrant. Add the apples, sugar and salt; reduce heat to medium. Saute until the apple begin to soften. Stir in the flour, and add the lemon zest and juice. Cook until bubbly and liquids thicken into a “sauce”, about one minute. Reduce heat to low and cook for one more minute.
3. To assemble the crepes, spread an even amount of ricotta onto each crepe. Top with an even amount of the sautéed apples. Fold crepe in half, and then in half again to make an offset triangle. Drizzle caramel sauce on the top. Repeat with remaining crepes and filling.