Vanilla Bean Cassava Flour Crepes with Strawberry Chia Seed Jam
These cassava flour crepes are gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free and paleo-friendly. Add some strawberry chia seed jam and you’ve got a delicious breakfast!
Oh, time flies so fast. Last year on this date I was living in Chiang Mai, Thailand wondering what I would do all by myself on Valentine’s day. I had just come back from the most soul-awakening trip to Angor Wat, Cambodia (which was only meant to be a quick little visa run, but turned out to be so much more!)…and I figured I’d just chill out on Valentine’s Day. Maybe get a massage, grab some curry and go see a movie.
Well, as it happened, 50 Shades of Grey was opening that weekend and playing at the Maya Shopping Mall, a newer mall with a fab stadium seating movie theater. Now I’ll be honest, at first I was a little nervous to hit up the theater all by myself, especially to go see THAT movie. But then I thought, what the heck – who knows me in Chiang Mai?!
The movie was a flop (compared to the book, don’t you think?)…but those few moments: 1) where I was left thinking, “Hmmm, what am I gonna do on Valentine’s Day in Chiang Mai?” and 2) remembering the looks on all the Thai teenager’s faces when I entered the theater by myself (ha!), will always bring a smile to my face. Travel memories are the best.
So switching gears…did you know that some of the most popular blog posts and recipes on this website have to do with cassava flour? If you’re part of my rockstar Downshiftology community…odds are you found me via a Google search for cassava flour. So what’s all the hub-bub on cassava flour? It’s a wonderful gluten-free, grain-free flour and can be used to make tortillas, chips, cakes, pies and more. For more info on cassava flour, make sure to check out this post.
For a Valentine’s appropriate breakfast, I decided to whip up vanilla bean cassava flour crepes and fill them with sweet, sweet deliciousness – also known as strawberry chia jam. Instead of store bought jam, filled with processed sugar and other nasties, this jam is the real deal. Fresh, organic strawberries, a little lemon juice, maple syrup and Omega-3-packed chia seeds. The chia seeds do all the work of making the strawberry puree thick and jammy, while giving you heaps of nutritional value.
You can make the strawberry chia seed jam the day before if you’re looking for less work in the kitchen on Valentine’s morning. In fact, you could also macerate the strawberries and whip your coconut cream, both used for the topping, the day before as well. Just store in the fridge. Then, your only work on V-day is making the cassava flour crepes and assembling.
My standard cassava flour crepes recipe makes approx 12 crepes, so assuming two crepes per person this breakfast serves 6. To keep all components aligned, I’ve doubled my normal chia jam recipe below to ensure enough for 12 crepes. But if you’re only 2 or 3 peeps, feel free to halve the entire recipe. Or, you could make it all and eat this breakfast again the following day. That’s what I recommend!
Enjoy – and happy Valentine’s Day!
xo
Update: I now have “how to” videos for both the chia seed jam and coconut whipped cream.
If you make this, I’d love to see! Tag your photo with #downshiftology on Instagram.
Vanilla Bean Cassava Crepes with Strawberry Chia Jam
Ingredients
Strawberry Chia Jam
- 2 lbs strawberries,, stems removed and quartered
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup chia seeds
- 2 tsp lemon juice
Macerated Strawberries
- 1 lb strawberries,, stems removed and halved
- 2 tbsp coconut sugar or maple syrup
Coconut Whipped Cream
- 13.5 oz full-fat coconut milk, chilled overnight
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- maple syrup, to taste
Crepes (makes approx 12 crepes)
- 1 cup cassava flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup full-fat coconut milk
- 1 cup water
- 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 2 vanilla beans, scraped or 1/2 tsp vanilla bean powder
- pinch of salt
Extra Topping
- sliced almonds
Instructions
- To make the chia jam, add the strawberries, maple syrup and lemon juice to a pot on medium heat. Cook for 5-7 minutes, smashing the strawberries as they cook to help break them down. Once the fruit has started to liquify and is boiling, turn off the heat, add the chia seeds and stir for another minute. Transfer to a high-powered blender and blend for one minute.
- Pour the chia jam into a container and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. The jam will continue to thicken as it cools.
- To macerate the strawberries, sprinkle the sugar on the strawberries and stir. Let sit for 30 minutes, then stir again. Refrigerate until needed.
- To make the coconut whipped cream, scoop out the hardened cream (leaving the water behind) from the coconut milk can and place in bowl. Add the vanilla extract and use a hand mixer to beat until light and fluffy. Refrigerate until needed.
- To make the crepes, place all crepe ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Use a hand mixer to mix for 1 minute. The consistency should be that of a very thin batter. If it's too thick, add more water. Cover the batter and refrigerate for 30 minutes, to let the bubbles settle.
- Heat a crepe pan over medium heat. Once hot, lift the pan up, scoop 1/4 cup of the batter into the center of the pan and quickly swirl the pan to coat the bottom. Place the pan back on the heat and cook for 1-2 minutes. Once the top looks dry, flip it over and cook an additional 30-45 seconds.
- Place the cooked crepe on a paper towel and repeat the process until all crepes are made.
- To assemble the crepes, spoon a thin layer of strawberry chia jam (approximately 2 tablespoons) onto a crepe. Fold it in half, then half again. Top with coconut whipped cream, macerated strawberries and almond slices.
Nutrition
Other recipes you might like:
Red Fruit Salad with Honeyed Yogurt
This recipe looks delicious! I am allergic to coconut, can full-fat dairy milk and avocado oil be substituted?
Yes, no problem! Hope you enjoy it.
For some reason, I have been intimidated by crepes. I guess maybe it was needing a specific pan, or in my mind, the skill of a chef, that kept me from trying. Your recipe changed all of that. It could not have been easier and the end result tasted great!
I admit to using my trusty 11″ non-stick and was able to create authentic looking crepes. I made the batter the night before, filled them with blueberry chia jam (I didn’t have strawberries) and LF cream cheese. My husband and I are looking forward to the next batch, and possibly some savory options as well.
Happy to hear your crepes turned out great with this recipe Barbara!
These are Delicious!
I Made them for our family, for a Valentine’s day brunch today. We loved them! Thanks for the amazing recipe!
Happy to hear these crepes were a success Lori!
Hi Lisa,
These look just delicious but i am allergic to coconut, would I be able to sub your cashew milk or cashew cream instead do you think?
Thank you!
Hi Andee – yes, no problem! Hope you enjoy these crepes!
Loved them! I can finally have crepes again – it’s been 15 years!
I used my 10 inch and 8 inch non stick skillets and after the 1st crepe, it was smooth sailing. Takes only a little but of practice.
I used a teaspoon of liquid vanilla extract and they came out perfect. I can see how you can use either sweet or savory fillings.
So happy to hear your crepes turned out beautifully Lana! And yes, this will work for both sweet and savory fillings :)
Would love to make these! I don’t have vanilla powder – only the liquid kind. Would you use the same amount?
Hi Lana – yes, that’s fine. No problem!
OMG! Love these crepes. Made 3 adjustments:
1) 1/2 & 1/2 coconut milk & almond milk.
2) Had about 1/3 cup leftover fresh squeezed O.J., from last night’s dinner recipe, then added 2/3 cup apple juice I had in the fridge, as a substitute for the water.
3) 1 tsp orange zest
Topped them with homemade blueberry compote
So glad I finally tried the Otto cassava flour. What a difference.
So glad you enjoyed these crepes with the few adjustments you made :)
Hi Lisa thank you for the recipe ! I tried it with tapioca starch instead because I could not find cassava flour, they were delicious! They made 12 as well . I’would like to learn the difference between cassava and tapioca flour. Thank you 😊!
Hi Magdalena- Glad this turned out great with tapioca starch! You can read more about cassava flour on my website as I have a post!
Hey Lisa, these crepes look like the real deal! Could I use an enamelled cast iron pan to cook them in?
Hi Mila – you could certainly try! It would really depend on how well seasoned it is, to prevent them from sticking.
I have been looking for the perfect coconut cream recipe. This is amazing. Thank you!
Oh how amazing and utterly delicious for a tasty breakfast.
It’s the perfect sweet and salt combination :)
This is such a lovely breakfast packed with good for you ingredients. The chia jam is the perfect topping.
Hi Sharon – The chia seed jam really makes the recipe!
This was so good! I made as a dessert for my family and they loved it! I loved that it was healthy and made with whole food ingredients!
Hi Alison – So glad to hear everyone enjoyed these crepes :)
I couldn’t agree more, travel memories are the best and I love hearing about other people’s travels too. I’m not super familiar with cassava flour so I’m excited to cook with a new ingredient.
Can you freeze the jam?
Hi Gidget- Yes! You can freeze the jam. Just make sure it’s in a sealed container.
Can these be made vegan please?
Unfortunately, I haven’t tried this recipes with an egg replacer. But you could certainly give it a go!
I’m allergic to chia seeds is there a substitute I can use?
You can use regular jam without chia seeds. :)
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Oh yes, the movie was DEFINITELY a flop compared to the books (and just in general, haha – I was not happy with the cast and the choppiness of the “plot”). Love this crepe recipe! Wonderful mix of flavors and the cassava flour – you use that ingredient best, out of ANY recipes I’ve seen elsewhere!
I know, such a disappointment, right? And yep, I’m kinda the cassava girl. Haha. So glad you’re loving these recipes! :) x