Warm Apple and Hazelnut Crêpes

For the crêpes, blend all ingredients with a hand blender (or in a food processor) and let batter rest for 20 minutes. If you are whisking by hand, strain the batter before resting.

To make the crêpes, heat a large non-stick pan over medium heat. Spray with food release, or lightly coat with oil (repeat only as needed while you cook crêpes). Pour ¼ cup of the batter into the center of the pan and lift the pan off the heat, swirling the batter around to coat the pan evenly. Return the pan to heat and cook the crêpes for 3 minutes, until edges turn light brown. Gently loosen edges of crêpe with a spatula and flip crêpe over in pan (they are fragile). If this presents a challenge, simply turn burner down to medium low heat and cook crêpe longer on one side, until crêpe is completely dry looking (crêpe will cook without flipping). Loosen edges of crêpe and slide onto a plate to cool. Repeat this with the remaining batter. (After crêpes have cooled, be sure to wrap well until ready to sauté. Do not store in fridge – if not using right away, freeze and thaw when ready to fill.)

For serving, fold crêpes into quarters and set aside. Melt butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and add the hazelnuts and salt. Stir until the hazelnuts are lightly toasted. Stir in the brown sugar and maple syrup and cook, stirring often until the sauce is bubbling. Add the folded crepes (2 per person) and coat with sugar mixture. Turn off heat and remove the pan from burner. Pour in hazelnut liqueur (be cautious – even with the heat off, there is a small risk of flames). Return the pan to heat and stir in cinnamon. Remove the crêpes from the pan and place onto serving plates or platter. Return the pan to medium-high heat and stir in the apples. Simmer, stirring often until the apples are tender, about 4 minutes. Spoon the apples over the crepes and serve with vanilla ice cream if you wish.