Braised Beef Crêpes with Savory Pumpkin Gravy

Recipe By: Joel Schaefer and Mary Schaefer

Pumpkin puree adds amazing depth to the not-so-classic beef gravy and gluten-free crêpes. Photo: Andrew Grinton

Makes: 8 crêpes
Free of: gluten and all top allergens

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Ingredients

Braised Beef

2 1/2 lbs boneless beef chuck roast
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 tbsp canola oil
1 cup diced yellow onion
3/4 cup tomato sauce
1 cup dry red wine
2 cups allergy-friendly beef broth
2 bay leaves

Crêpes

2 cups chickpea flour
2 cups water
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Vegetables

12 oz cremini or button mushrooms, quartered
4 tsp olive oil, divided
1/4 tsp salt, divided
1/4 tsp black pepper, divided
1 cup carrots, peeled and chopped into ½-inch pieces
1 cup parsnips, peeled and chopped into ½-inch pieces
5 oz baby spinach leaves

Pumpkin Gravy

Reserved beef pan juices
Allergy-friendly beef broth, as needed
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin puree
1 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions

For braised beef, preheat oven to 325° F. Evenly rub all sides of beef with chili powder and oregano.
Heat oil in a 3-quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add beef and brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer beef to a pan.
Decrease heat to medium. Add onion and sauté until golden brown, 4-6 minutes. Add tomato sauce and cook for 1 minute. Pour in wine and stir to deglaze pan. Cook for 5 minutes or until wine is reduced by half.
Add beef with juices, broth and bay leaves. Bring just to a boil. Cover and transfer pot to oven. Bake until beef is fork-tender, about 3 hours, turning meat periodically.
For crêpe batter, put chickpea flour, water, oil, salt and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth. Let rest for 2 hours at room temperature.
Transfer cooked beef to another pan, moisten with some pan juices and cover. Strain remaining pan juices into a glass measuring cup for pumpkin gravy; discard bay leaves and onion.
For roasted vegetables, increase oven temperature to 425° F. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
Place mushrooms on one baking sheet and toss with 2 teaspoons oil, 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Place carrots and parsnips on second baking sheet and toss with remaining 2 teaspoons oil, 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Spread all vegetables into a single layer and roast for 20 minutes. Remove mushrooms. Stir carrots and parsnips and roast 5 minutes more, or until fork-tender.
Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add spinach and gently stir until wilted, about 1 minute.
For pumpkin gravy, add enough broth to pan juices to equal 2 cups and pour into a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until the liquid reduces to 1 1/2 cups. Whisk in pumpkin puree, maple syrup, cinnamon, salt and pepper and bring just to a boil. Thin with additional broth, if needed, and keep warm.
Shred beef with two forks.
Heat oil in a crêpe pan or medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Pour in 1/3 cup crêpe batter and gently tilt to spread evenly. Cook until edges are dry and underside is lightly golden, 1-1½ minutes. Gently flip crêpe and cook for 1 minute. Slide crêpe onto a plate and cover to keep warm while cooking remaining crêpes.
Plate a crêpe and top half with 1/3 cup shredded beef, 1/4 cup roasted vegetables and sautéed spinach. Fold crêpe over filling. Ladle 1/2 cup pumpkin gravy over crêpe. Repeat with remaining crêpes.

Joel Schaefer and Mary Schaefer are the husband-and-wife culinary team behind https://www.yourallergychefs.com/. Chef Joel is the former Special Dietary Manager at Walt Disney World who developed the food allergy program used across the Disney properties and cruise line.