Vegan Spinach Crepes with Pesto Mushrooms (Gluten-Free)
These easy to make vegan spinach crepes filled with cashew cream and pesto mushrooms are perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch or even dinner!
They’re gluten-free, but the taste and texture aren’t compromised compared to their wheat-based counterparts.
The colour is so lovely and vibrant that it almost looks like you’ve used food colouring. It is a great way to hide veggies in the batter for kids who don’t like their greens! Little do they know…
Vegan spinach crepes that are versatile
If you don’t have spinach on hand, you can swap it out for any other leafy greens like kale (minus the stalks), arugula/rocket, or even silverbeet.
As long as the greens you use can be blended into a smooth consistency in the batter, give it a go! A great way to use up those greens that may be on their last legs in the fridge.
We’ve paired these crepes with sauteed mushrooms that have been tossed in our easy walnut pesto and laid on a generous amount of savoury cashew cream.
You can, of course, fill it with whatever you like!
Lightly pan-fried cherry tomatoes, asparagus, bell peppers, zucchini, peas, or roasted potatoes would be great additions.
Any fresh herbs you have on hand will also add plenty of flavour. You can try our garlic parsley sauce in place of the pesto.
Alternatively, try our beetroot and ginger dip or green goddess dressing (with less liquid to make it thicker) in place of the cashew cream.
If you’re enjoying the crepes cold, you could add guacamole with some vegan feta.
The options are endless!
Some tips to make this spinach crepes recipe
- You can freeze these crepes for later. Layer the crepes between sheets of parchment paper to prevent them sticking together and store them for up to 1 month. To reheat, you can thaw them out first and then warm up on the stove or the microwave.
- The batter can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 24 hours. Just give it a stir before use.
- The crepes can also be stored for a few days in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- The buckwheat flour that we used is white buckwheat flour. We haven’t tried it with the dark unhulled (wholemeal) variety, so we’re not sure how it would perform as there’s more fibre in it and isn’t as fine as the white one. Let us know how it goes if you give it a try!
- It’s important for this crepe recipe to use a good quality non-stick pan. A well seasoned cast iron pan may also be okay to use, however, it’s harder to work with as it’s heavier to lift and manuvour around to get the even and thin crepe consistency.
- The other important component to the perfect crepes is getting the right heat in the pan before adding the crepe batter. Medium heat is ideal and can take a few minutes for the pan to warm up for the first crepe.
- The first crepe may not turn out the best, so don’t be discouraged. It’s normal.
- You can make your own buckwheat flour from buckwheat groats. Blend them in your blender or food processor until you reach a fine powder and then pass it through a sieve to catch any larger chunks.
- You can use other leafy greens in the batter, just make sure whichever one you use, it blends to a smooth consistency.
The flours used in these spinach crepes
A perfect high-protein gluten-free meal option as the crepes are made using buckwheat and chickpea flour.
These flours are accessible in your well-stocked supermarkets and can be used in other recipes like our chickpea pancakes.
The batter might smell a little odd because of the chickpea flour, but you won’t taste or smell it at all when they’re cooked. So please don’t think that there’s something wrong with it or that it will taste that way.
Ingredients used for the crepes
There’s not much to this recipe. A few pantry staples along with fresh baby spinach is all you need. Here’s precisely what’s in the crepes-
- White buckwheat flour
- Chickpea flour (aka gram or garbanzo)
- Bicarb soda
- Oil
- Nutritional yeast
- Spinach
- Plant milk
- Salt
- Pepper
This spinach crepes recipe looks fancy, but it’s super easy to make. It certainly has that wow factor. If you want to impress someone, give this recipe a try!
As I mentioned earlier, they’re an excellent base for whatever filling you like. Make it your own and experiment with different veggies when they’re in season.
Other delicious recipes you’ll love:
- Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus Toast with Asparagus
- Coffee Chia Pudding Breakfast Parfait (Vegan)
- Tofu Scramble with Spinach and Mushrooms
- Vegan Chickpea Pancakes With a Creamy Pesto Dressing (Gluten-Free)
- Crispy Baked Vegan Hash Browns
- Vegan Spinach Pie with ‘Ricotta’
If you try this recipe, let me know! We’d love for you to leave a comment and rating below. If you want to go that extra mile, tag us on Instagram or share your photo of the recipe on Pinterest.
PrintVegan Spinach Crepes with Pesto Mushrooms (Gluten-Free)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4
Description
Thin, soft gluten-free vegan spinach crepes filled with smooth cashew cream and pesto mushrooms. This will impress anyone! Easy to make and serve as breakfast, brunch, lunch or even dinner.
Ingredients
Crepes:
- ¾ cup + 1 tablespoon / 110g white buckwheat flour
- ¼ cup / 23g chickpea flour (aka garbanzo or gram)
- 1/8 teaspoon bicarb soda
- 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast (optional)
- 1¼ cup / 300ml unsweetened plant milk (we used an almond and coconut blend)
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil (plus more for frying crepes)
- 1 cup / 45g baby spinach (tightly packed)
- Pinch salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper (optional)
Toppings:
- Cashew cream (full amount in the recipe or cream of choice)
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil
- 14.10 ounces / 400g brown portabello mushrooms, sliced (or mushroom of choice)
- Walnut pesto (half of the recipe)
- Chives, or other herbs
Instructions
- For the crepes: Place all the crepe ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend until smooth.
- Warm up the frying pan on medium heat before adding oil to it. This is so the first pancake is evenly fried as well. When hot, add about 1 teaspoon of oil and swirl it around the pan to cover the whole surface.
- Use ½ cup per crepe, depending on the pan you’re using, adjust after the first one if needed. The pan’s surface should be covered in batter with a thin layer with one movement. That way, the crepes stay thin and even. You should also hear a sizzle when the batter hits the pan. If it doesn’t, the pan is not yet hot enough.
- Cook on the first side for about 2-3 minutes, or until lightly golden. The easiest way to flip the crepes is with a spatula once they have slightly separated from the edge of the pan. Do it in one swift motion to ensure that the crepe doesn’t break. These crepes being gluten-free, can be a little more fragile.
- Cook on the second side for 30 seconds and then remove from the heat by sliding it off the pan onto a plate.
- Continue the process until you have used up all the batter. The batter should make 4 crepes.
- For the toppings: While the crepes cook, you can make the savoury cashew cream and pesto mushrooms. Start with the cashew cream and set it aside in the fridge while you make the rest.
- To a skillet on medium-high heat, add the oil and mushrooms. Saute for a few minutes until they turn golden brown on each side. I like to have mine in single file to prevent them from going soggy. You’ll probably need to cook the mushrooms in two batches to prevent them from overcrowding the pan.
- Once they’re cooked, toss through the pesto.
- If you don’t like to multitask, make the cashew cream before the crepes and the pesto mushrooms after you’ve cooked the crepes.
- To serve for each crepe, spread a generous amount of cashew cream followed by ¼ of the pesto mushrooms and fold in half. Top with chives and serve.
Notes
Save for later? You can freeze these crepes for later. Layer the crepes between sheets of parchment paper to prevent them from sticking together and store them for up to 1 month. To reheat, you can thaw them out first and then warm up on the stove or the microwave. The batter can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 24 hours. Just stir it before use. The crepes can also be stored for a few days in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Buckwheat flour: The buckwheat flour that we used is white buckwheat flour. We haven’t tried it with the dark unhulled (wholemeal) variety, so we’re not sure how it would perform as there’s more fibre in it, and it isn’t as fine as the white one. Let us know how it goes if you give it a try!
Important notes: This crepe recipe must use a good quality non-stick pan. A well-seasoned cast iron pan may also be okay to use. However, it’s harder to work with as it’s heavier to lift and maneuver around to get the even and thin crepe consistency.
The other important component to the perfect crepes is getting the correct heat in the pan before adding the crepe batter. Medium heat is ideal and can take a few minutes for the pan to warm up for the first crepe.
The first crepe may not turn out the best, so don’t be discouraged. It’s normal.
- Diet: Vegan