Banana Caramel Chocolate Crepes

Caramel doodads, sauces galore ... Looks impressive, neh? This is the sort of treatment we get since making a name for ourselves in the rough-and-tumble, high-stakes business of food blogging. Baking pamphlets mysteriously appear in my mailfolder at school; friends and relatives serve us elaborate meals in the hopes of "making it big" on the website; local restaurants provide meals on the house and serve us mature wines from their cellars .... Well, that last one hasn't happened yet. But you never know. My mom told me about a traveller she met in Europe who had been touring for months without spending a dime; he wrote a small travel weblog, and promised hotel owners and restaurateurs favorable reviews in exchange for free meals and overnight stays. I can only dream that, someday, Carl and I will achieve a similar level of fame and/or fortune within the vast Philadelphia gourmet food blog community.

Where was I? Ah, doodads. While in Boston for Thanksgiving (perhaps an entry will magically appear), we visited Jeff, who made us doodads. In addition to hosting our website, throwing much-talked-about parties, and incorporating his own business, Jeff can cook. We were enticed by the promise of dessert to come over and play board games, and ended up satisfied in both regards. The board game was one we had never played before (Scruples), but that I determined must have been invented by someone just out of law school.

The dessert was banana caramel chocolate crepes, topped with -- have I mentioned? -- doodads. I'd like to try Jeff's crepe recipe, because his came out much nicer than mine ever have. Jeff uses the 1-2-3 method; I think that's 1 cup milk, 2 eggs, 1/3 cup flour, but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. My crepes always end up too thick, or too eggy, or have some other fatal flaw. I'm hesitant to blame this on the fact that I never use a recipe or measure out my ingredients, but am starting to realize that just might be my problem. Jeff also swears by his super-heavy cast iron crepe pan, whereas I ... well, let's not discuss what godforsaken pans I cook my crepes in. Needless to say, I need to improve my technique, and fast; however else will I be able to dazzle my guests?

The crepes were filled with bananas, which I belive may have been first sautéed with something boozy, as well as homemade caramel and chocolate sauces. They were topped with homemade liquid nitrogen ice cream and doodads, which gave the whole thing a festive and classy flair. Again, Jeff may have beaten me on doodads as well as crepes. I've tried to make doodads in the past, but my caramel has always seemed too gloppy when I try to drizzle it lovingly off of a spoon. While Jeff said he had the same problem, somehow his came out much better than mine ever have. They say the secret is to drizzle from way up high, but, knowing me, that would result in caramel all over the kitchen walls. Perhaps when I get one of those all-Teflon kitchens I can try again...