
Lemon Cream Crepes – How to Love Cooking
Lemon Cream Crepes
Important question. Are you team crepes or team pancakes? As much as I love a healthy stack of flapjacks, I’m going to have to go with crepes on this one. Better yet, I’m going with these Lemon Cream Crepes.
“HOLY YUM.” – Me, eating these crepes.
The bold flavor and varied textures combining the decadent lemon butter, crunchy lemon sugar, heavenly lemon-vanilla whipped cream, and light, golden crepes make this dish SO DANG GOOD.
Much like hollandaise and béchamel, crepes fall into the “Intimidating to Make Because It’s French” category.
Not to make you even more nervous, but crepes are actually the national dish of France, or so I hear.
A big part of what gets me excited about cooking is learning the history and origins of a particular dish, and crepes, while simple, do have an interesting background.
According to an article by Gemma King from Epicure and Culture, Crepes most likely originated several centuries ago in the Brittany region in France. Originally, they were made with buckwheat flour as that was the type of wheat that could grow in the area. They were filled with a variety of ingredients depending on what was available. (Read more here!)
These days, crepes are typically made with all-purpose flour and can be made savory or sweet. If you want to fill these with veggies and cheese, just leave out the vanilla and sugar from the crepe recipe below.
The famous Crepes Suzette recipe (crepes with sugar, orange, and flambéed with liquor), was actually invented by a fourteen year old waiter – by accident. He thought he had ruined the dish when he flambéed the crepes. Instead, it created the perfect flavor and sauce. (Read the full story here!)

Lemon Cream Crepes – How to Love Cooking
So if a teenager can make a delicious crepe dish by pure chance, there’s no reason we can’t.
However, I’d be VERY careful flambéing a dish if you haven’t done it before or don’t have a lot of practice. I, too, have flambéed my food by accident, and it was terrifying.
Stick to this no fire involved recipe, at least until you get very skilled in the kitchen.
Crepes are even easier to make than pancakes. They have fewer ingredients and cook more quickly because of how thin they are.
Sure, learning how to swirl the crepe batter in the pan and finding that perfect cooking temperature will take a bit of practice. Don’t worry, you’ll get the hang of it soon enough.
This is a small batch crepe recipe. You know, for the days when you don’t need to make 43 crepes for breakfast.
I always get exactly six crepes from the batter using a 10 inch sauté pan and a 1/3 cup measure. It’s the perfect amount for a party of three, two, or a particularly ravenous one. (No comment.)
The crepes are absolutely delicious on their own, and please feel free to enjoy them in all of their delicate simplicity.
But why go home when you can go extra?

Lemon Cream Crepes – How to Love Cooking
I take the crepes to the next level by brushing them with a bit of lemon infused butter. Then, I sprinkle them with a crunchy lemon-sugar, and finally, I fill them with a light and bright lemon-vanilla whipped cream.
The lemon is not playing small in this recipe, so I hope you love the flavor. I know I do.
Know that the batter is quite thin in this recipe. A thin batter allows for us to put a small amount in the pan and swirl it around to get a nice, thin “pancake.” I love when crepes get those tiny little holes and nice crispy edges. The thinner you swirl it, the greater likelihood you’ll be able to achieve that tiny crater-like texture.
If you’ve never made crepes before, I invite you to try this recipe! The additional components in the dish really take it over the top and make it special. These would be perfect to make for a brunch, a birthday breakfast, Mother’s Day, or any other occasion where decadent breakfasts are warranted.
Bon Appetit!

Lemon Cream Crepes
Delicate crepes brushed with flavorful lemon butter, filled with decadent lemon-vanilla whipped cream, and sprinkled with crunchy lemon sugar - what could be bad about that?
Ingredients
For the Lemon-Vanilla Whipped Cream
- 1 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream (Make sure it's cold!)
- 2 TBS Granulated Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Fresh Lemon Zest
For the Lemon Sugar
- 2 TBS Granulated Sugar
- 1 Heaping tsp Lemon Zest
For the Lemon Butter
- 2 TBS Lemon Juice
- 2 TBS Melted Butter
For the Crepes
- 1/2 Cup All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 TBS Granulated Sugar
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1 Cup Milk
- 1 Egg
- 1/2 TBS Melted Butter
- 1/4 tsp Vanilla
- 1 TBS Melted Butter For frying the crepes
Instructions
For the Lemon-Vanilla Whipped Cream
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Add the cold heavy whipping cream into a mixing bowl. Using a whisk attachment, whip the cream on high for about 1 minute. Then add 2 TBS of granulated sugar. Continue mixing on high for a few more minutes until the cream is thick, fluffy, and holds firmly to the whisk. With a spatula, gently stir in the vanilla, salt, and fresh lemon zest. Place in the fridge until ready to serve.
For the Lemon Sugar
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Mix 2 TBS of granulated sugar and 1 heaping teaspoon (heaping = slightly more than the exact amount) of fresh lemon zest into a small bowl. Enjoy the aroma, and set aside.
For the Lemon Butter
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Add the melted butter and fresh lemon juice into a small bowl. Stir to combine. If the butter begins to set at room temperature, just pop it back in the microwave for 10-20 seconds until it's all melted again.
For the Crepes
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Add the flour, sugar, and salt into a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, add the milk, egg, 1/2 TBS of melted butter, vanilla, and mix to combine well. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients, and stir to combine. Mix well to ensure as few lumps as possible. (Don't worry if you have a few tiny ones.) Set aside.
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Add a little bit of butter to your pan (I used a 10-inch frying pan) and heat over medium high heat until the butter is sizzling slightly. ***I love using a silicone brush to coat my pan evenly with the butter. It's the perfect tool for the job.***
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Using a 1/3 cup measure, pour the crepe batter into the hot pan. Quickly and carefully swirl the batter around the pan to create a nice, thin crepe. Cook on one side for 2-3 minutes, until the edges become slightly golden and begin to pull away from the edge of the pan. Flip the crepe using a thin spatula, and cook for another minute or two. Repeat this process for all six crepes, remembering to brush the pan with a bit of butter in between each crepe. ***You may have to adjust the heat on your pan as you see fit. Medium-high is typically about right for me.***
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Once all the crepes have been cooked, brush each one with the lemon butter mixture. Then, sprinkle each with about a teaspoon of the lemon sugar mixture. Lastly, add a few healthy spoonfulls of the lemon-vanilla whipped cream down the center of each crepe. Roll them up like cigars (or however you like) and enjoy!
These look so light and delicious!
Thank you! I love having these for breakfast. Maybe a little too frequently! 😀