Spicy Beef Picadillo Crêpes with Chipotle Crema
Green olives, raisins, and a mix of warm spices give this beef filling an addictive sweet-sour-salty appeal, while the chipotle crema adds a luscious note. It adds up to sort of a sophisticated Sloppy Joe. The filling freezes nicely if you want to make just a half recipe of the crêpes. Serve this with a simple slaw of finely shredded green cabbage tossed with lime juice and a pinch of sugar and salt. Makes 8 filled crêpes; serves 4 as a main course.
Ingredients
| 1 tbsp | 15 ml | extra-virgin olive oil |
| 1 | medium onion, finely chopped | |
| 4–5 clove | medium cloves garlic, minced | |
| 1 tbsp | 15 ml | ground cumin |
| to taste | kosher salt | |
| 1 tsp | 5 ml | chopped fresh thyme (or ½ tsp dried whole thyme leaves) |
| 1 tsp | 5 ml | chopped fresh oregano (or ½ tsp dried whole oregano leaves) |
| 1 tsp | 5 ml | Aleppo pepper (or ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes) |
| ½ tsp | 2.5 ml | ground cinnamon |
| 1 lb | 455 g | ground beef (preferably 80% lean) |
| 1 | can whole tomatoes, chopped, with their juices (14 oz/400 g) | |
| ½ cup | 120 ml | coarsely chopped raisins |
| ½ cup | 120 ml | chopped pimiento-stuffed olives |
| ¾ cup | 180 ml | sour cream (for the chipotle crema) |
| 1 | small chipotle chile (from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce) | |
| 1 tsp | 5 ml | fresh lime or lemon juice |
| ¼ tsp | 1.3 ml | ground cumin (for the crema) |
| 8 | Versatile Crêpes or your choice |
Instructions
MAKE THE BEEF PICADILLO
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until the onion is soft and fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic, stir for 1 minute, and then stir in the cumin, 2 tsp salt, the thyme, oregano, Aleppo pepper, and cinnamon. Cook, stirring so the spices don't burn, until everything is fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Add the beef and cook it, breaking it into small chunks with a wooden spoon, until most of the pink color is gone, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and their juices, increase the heat to medium-high, and cook, stirring and continuing to break up the meat into crumbles, until the mixture has come together and thickened slightly, about 5 minutes more. Stir in the raisins and olives, and then season with more salt and spices, if necessary.
MAKE THE CHIPOTLE CREMA 3. Combine the sour cream, chipotle chile, lime juice, ½ tsp salt, and the cumin in a food processor or blender and purée until well combined and smooth. Thin out the crema with 2 to 3 tbsp of water until it reaches a consistency that is easy to drizzle but still has some body. Season with more salt, if necessary.
ASSEMBLE 4. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 300°F/150°C/gas 2. Put the crêpes on a large plate and cover it with foil. Heat the crêpes in the oven until they're hot, about 10 minutes. 5. Lay the crêpes presentation-side down on a clean work surface. Spoon a scant ½ cup/120 ml of the picadillo filling in a thick horizontal line across the center of each one. Roll the crêpes into fat cylinders and transfer them seam-side down to large dinner plates, giving each person two crêpes. Drizzle the crêpes with the chipotle crema and serve right away.