Say what? Banh xeo! These irresistable Vietnamese crepes, pronounced bunn SAY-oh, are a crispy thin pancake filled with flavor. Although no one in the cooking class had ever heard of them, banh xeo was the favorite recipe in our recent crepe class. This crepe is made without the traditional ingredients of eggs, milk, or flour, but tastes delicious, especially with stuffed with shrimp and dipped into a spicy lime sauce.

Vietnamese Banh Xeo Crepes with Shrimp
For the crepe batter:
¼ cup dried, peeled yellow split mung beans
1 cup coconut milk
3 tablespoons water
1 cup rice flour
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon salt

Place the mung beans in a bowl and cover with water and let sit for at least 30 minutes. Drain and rinse.
Place the beans in a food processor and puree with the coconut milk. (Mixture will look curdled.) Add the rice flour, sugar, turmeric, and salt and puree. Thin with water; the batter should be the consistency of heavy cream.

For the filling:
1/2 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined, and halved lengthwise
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1 cup bean sprouts
Chopped fresh cilantro or mint leaves for garnish
Leaf lettuce leaves for wrapping the crepe
Lime wedges for garnish

In a crepe pan, heat a spot of vegetable oil on medium heat. Pour in ¼ cup of the batter and swirl the pan to coat the bottom as thinly as possible. Top the batter with shrimp, bean sprouts, green onions, cilantro. Cook until the crepe browns and pulls away from the sides and is crisp on the bottom. Fold in half and serve with lettuce wraps, dipping sauce, and limes. 

For the dipping sauce:
¼ cup fish sauce
¼ cup lime juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1 Thai chile pepper, minced
2 tablespoons sugar
¼ cup water

Mix together all of the ingredients.