Banana crepes are decadent, rich, and sure to wow adults and kids alike. These silky-smooth, vanilla-y crepes are filled with chocolate ganache, sliced banana, and salted peanuts. Delicious complimentary flavors and complex textures… you will want more than one!
Crepes may seem challenging to make, but once you master the crepe-making technique, you will make this recipe over and over.
A dessert-for-breakfast recipe, banana crepes are also easy to assemble. The crepes cook quickly and can immediately be filled and enjoyed.
Banana crepes are delicious with a creamy, rich drink, like a glass of whole milk, a mocha-latte, or a frothy cappuccino.
Serve this dish next time you have house guests, be it a slumber party for your kids or old friends staying for the weekend.
Making crepes is easier than it seems. When you are frying the batter, know that the first few crepes probably won’t look perfect, but will still taste delicious. Once you get the technique and rhythm down, all the crepes will be done before you know it.
I like to use a chocolate ganache with this recipe rather than a chocolate sauce because it is thicker, richer, and extremely versatile. You can spread, pipe, or whip ganache to fill and decorate your crepes however you want. I use a 1:2 chocolate-to-cream ratio that produces a pourable ganache, but you can use other ratios to produce thicker results.
What You Need to Make Banana Crepes
You will need mostly pantry staples for this recipe, plus a few specialty foods: all-purpose flour, butter, eggs, milk, sugar, salt, vanilla, bananas, salted peanuts, semi-sweet chocolate, and heavy cream.
If possible, use a good quality bar chocolate, chopped finely rather than chocolate chips. Chocolate chips do not melt as consistently as bar chocolate and may produce a grainier result.
Ingredients:
- All-purpose flour
- Large eggs
- Milk
- Kosher salt
- Vanilla extract
- Granulated sugar
- Semi-sweet chocolate
- Heavy cream
- Ripe bananas
Tools:
Banana crepes require a small 6-inch frying pan, a spatula, a blender or food processor, a small saucepan, a heatproof bowl, a whisk, a sharp knife, and a cutting board.
How To Make Banana Crepes
Make the batter: Place the milk, eggs, melted butter, sugar, salt, vanilla extract, and all-purpose flour in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth, 5-10 seconds. Refrigerate the batter for 30 minutes or up to 2 days.
Make the ganache: Finely chop chocolate and place in a heat-proof bowl. Place the heavy whipping cream in a saucepan and heat until hot and starting to steam. Do not allow the cream to boil. Pour the cream over the chocolate. Let the chocolate and cream sit for 1-2 minutes, allowing the chocolate to soften, then gently stir until smooth, making sure to pull the chocolate up from the bottom of the bowl. Allow the ganache to cool.
Make the crepes: Heat a small non-stick skillet on medium-high heat. Coat the skillet lightly with butter. You can peel back part of the paper on a stick of butter and rub it on like a marker or piece of chalk.
Using a ¼ cup measuring cup, put a scant amount of batter in the center of the pan. Lift the pan and quickly turn it with your wrist to swirl the batter around and coat the bottom. Return to the heat and allow to cook for 20-30 seconds.
Run a thin spatula around the edges to release the crepe and flip it. I like to flip the crepe with my fingers, but you can also use the spatula.
Cook for an additional 20-30 seconds and remove it from the pan. Recoat the frying pan with butter and repeat with the remaining batter until all the batter is used.
Assemble the crepes: Slice 3-4 ripe bananas into wheels. Place a crepe on a plate, and on one half spread a layer of chocolate ganache. Add sliced bananas and salted peanuts.
Fold the unfilled half crepe over the filled half. This should create a half-circle.
Decorate with more ganache and bananas. Repeat with remaining crepes and serve immediately.
What can I do with leftover crepes?
Leftover crepes can be wrapped and stored in the refrigerator for 5 days. You can eat them cold or reheat them very quickly in a skillet.
What can I do if my crepes tear?
If your crepes tear, you might not have rested your batter for long enough. Try leaving your batter in the fridge longer to hydrate the flour more. But for your already ripped crepes, eat them! They still taste delicious.
What should I do if my batter is thick and doesn’t swirl around the pan fast enough to coat it?
Crepe batter is very thin, so a thick batter should be thinned by adding more milk to the batter.
I want a different consistency for my ganache. What should I do?
This recipe uses a 1:2 chocolate to heavy cream ratio for a pourable ganache. For a more spreadable ganache, use a 1:1 ratio. A 2:1 ratio will produce something closer to chocolate fudge or truffles, which is too thick to use here. You may want to play around until you find the consistency you like best.
What can I do with leftover ganache?
So many things! Ganache can be piped, whipped, and slightly warmed and spread or even poured, making it a great topping for cupcakes, glazes for cakes, or filling for sandwich cookies.
Banana Crepes
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
- 1 ¼ cup milk 1%, 2%, or whole
- pinch of kosher salt
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp melted unsalted butter plus more for frying
- 4 oz semi-sweet chocolate chopped
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 3 to 4 bananas sliced
- 1 cup peanuts
Instructions
- Place 1 ¼ cup milk, 3 eggs, 3 tablespoons melted butter, 2 teaspoons sugar, a pinch of salt, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, and 1 cup all-purpose flour in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth, 5-10 seconds.
- Refrigerate the batter for 30 minutes or up to 2 days.
- Finely chop the chocolate and place it in a heat-proof bowl.
- Place 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream in a saucepan and heat until hot.
- Pour the hot cream over the chocolate.
- Allow the cream chocolate mixture to sit for 1-2 minutes, then gently stir a few times until the chocolate has all melted. Allow the ganache to cool.
- Heat a small non-stick skillet on medium-high heat and coat lightly with butter.
- Using a ¼ cup measuring cup, put a scant amount of batter in the center of the pan. Swirl the batter around, coating the bottom of the pan, and cook for 20-30 seconds.
- Flip the crepe and cook for an additional 20-30 seconds.
- Recoat the frying pan with butter and repeat with the remaining batter until all batter is used.
- Slice the bananas into wheels.
- Place a crepe on a plate, and spread ganache on one half.
- Add sliced bananas and salted peanuts.
- Fold the unfilled half of the crepe over the filled half. Decorate with more ganache and bananas.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Here are a few other recipes you might enjoy!
- Banana Waffles
- Gluten-Free Crepes
- Almond Flour Banana Muffins
- Banana Foster Pancakes
- 3-Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Pancakes
- Banana & Cream Oatmeal
- Brunch Dessert Ideas
Arielle is a food and drink photographer based in Washington, D.C. She was previously a social science researcher before she fell in love with photography.