Thursday, August 9, 2007

Canadian Childhood Memories (and another Breakfast!) with Fred

Most Canadians who are at least 14 years old will know who I'm talking about when I mention the name Fred Penner. For those of you who don't know this wonderful icon from my childhood, Fred Penner is a children's entertainer who is known for performing on his Canadian children's television show Fred Penner's Place. He has made 12 Children’s Music Albums and performs countless energetically packed live shows. I myself have been to two of his performances and own ALL his albums, mostly on tape (remember those days? You know, the ones without CDs where you had to flip the tape over and God help you if it got tangled?). My favourite song is called The Gooey Duck Song and is in fact about digging for the giant clams (spelled Geoduck), although I didn't know it at the time. My sister was even named after one of his songs: Teagan's Lullaby. One of my best friends, Heather, will tell you that Fred Penner is "the guy who crawled magically out of that hollow log on TV" for 12 seasons. To see what I'm talking about, take a look here.

The reason I bring up this iconic figure from my childhood is that one week's TV Guide featured a recipe by him that became one of my family's favourite weekend breakfasts. It was our first introduction to French cuisine as kids and a great way for my parents to get some sort of fruit into us (by way of the filling). It's an easy recipe and process, and every time I think crepes, I think of him and the Gooey Duck Song.


Fred Penner's Crepes
Makes 16
1 cup flour
1 1/2 cups skim milk
2 eggs
1 tbsp oil
pinch salt
  1. Combine all ingredients until completely blended and slightly thin.
  2. Heat a crepe pan (or very small frypan) over medium, spray with non-stick spray.
  3. Spoon about 3 tbsp of batter into the pan, swirl pan to cover as large an area as possible.
  4. Cook until the surface turns bubbly and dull.
  5. Remove to a warm plate, repeat with remaining batter.

1 comment :

  1. My daughter loves to make crepes. I saw Fred Penner in concert in Oshawa, I think, or maybe that was the folks from The Elephant show (another Canadian childrens group icon). No.. in Oshawa we saw Polk-a-Roo from Polka Dot Door and Mr. Dressup. My daughter dancxed on stage and in the aisles. You will remember all of these shows I'm sure!!!!Maybe we went to TO for Fred Penner. I can't remember what happened yesterday let alone 12 years ago.....
    Anyway.. thanks for the tried and true crepe recipe!!!! Great with any kind of seasonal fruit or just sprinkled with sugar and lemon. Yumm-O!!!

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for the feedback!