Ah, Crêpes Suzette! Back in the halcyon days of the 1960's, they were considered to be the height of sophistication: flambéed at your table by suave waiters in maroon mess-jackets.
It's a great dish, and I have no time for saddos who think that Crêpes Suzette are beneath their contempt. It's exactly the same with German wine. The "BMW and Chardonnay" crowd has learnt to despise German wine- all those years of Blue Nun, and Golden Oktober (which always sounded to me like a band of East German Revolutionaries), I suppose; but what if I told you that the most revered and expensive wines in the Edwardian period were Mosels, and Hocks; and not Clarets or Burgundies? German wine may be out of fashion, but there are some wonderful wines out there, and they can be great value, too. So buy German! There, I've had my little rant. Now on with the Crêpes Suzette.
There's a nice legend about how Crêpes Suzette were invented. Henri Charpentier, an assistant waiter at Monte Carlo's cafe in Paris, claimed that he invented the Crêpes to cover up a mistake he made when preparing pancakes for the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII), and one of his numerous dollybirds, who just happened to be called Suzette. Well, it's a great story, even if I detect that Henri may have been a trifle economique with the actualite.
First, make a pancake batter. In your Magimix, blend the following ingredients together: 100g plain flour, a pinch of salt, an egg, an egg yolk, the grated rind of half an orange, 275ml of milk, and 50g melted butter. Let the batter stand for about half an hour.
To fry the pancakes, chuck a knob of butter into a sizzling hot pan, and then pour in enough batter to cover the bottom of pan. By the way, just like sex, the first one's always a mess, so don't worry if it goes wrong, throw it out, and the remaining batch will improve each time. Gently fold each pancake up on each side, put them to one side, and keep them warm.
To make the sauce, rub eight sugar lumps over the skin of an orange, and then drop the lumps into a pan once they have become saturated with the orange oils. Melt the sugar lumps in a pan very carefully over a gentle heat. They should caramelise. Next, pour in the juice of two large oranges, the juice of a lemon, and 50g of unsalted butter. Bring to the simmer, and reduce the sauce slowly. When it has thickened up, bring it to a fast boil, and add a further 50g of unsalted butter. You should get a glossy sauce. Add two tablespoons of Cointreau. Pour the sauce over the pancakes, and let the sauce soak in.
And last, but not least: the final touch. Pour some warmed Cognac over the Crepes Suzette, and apply a match. Your friends will be delighted and amazed!