{"id":174,"date":"2023-10-03T15:37:59","date_gmt":"2023-10-03T19:37:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.usnh.edu\/frenchculture\/?page_id=174"},"modified":"2024-01-26T15:22:08","modified_gmt":"2024-01-26T20:22:08","slug":"french-identity-through-the-crepe","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.usnh.edu\/frenchculture\/older-pages\/french-identity-through-the-crepe\/","title":{"rendered":"French Identity Through the Cr\u00eape"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\t

Michaela Harrington, Jessica Murray, and Cate Wardinski<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\nIntroduction<\/strong>\n\"\"<\/a>National identity is one of the more difficult cultural elements to pinpoint within a country. One must consider what\u00a0exactly\u00a0constitutes a national identity. Is it the athletic pastimes, the cuisine consumed, or the moral beliefs that each citizen holds? Rather, it’s a combination of all of the aforementioned items. The average Joe associates France with baguettes, berets, and brie among other stereotypical ‘French’ symbols. However, French identity goes beyond superficial observations;\u00a0it’s not about the food they eat, it’s about the beliefs that they hold along with the food that truly shapes who they are as a people<\/a>\u00a0(Parker, 2015).\u00a0Nevertheless certain foods create more of a sense of national identity than others. This paper will discuss the effect the cr\u00eape has had on France’s national identity. The cr\u00eape not only creates a sense of national identity due to its widespread consumption and its connection to the beliefs French citizens hold about their food, it also cements the regional identities that are established through the concept of terroir.\n

An Overview of French National Identity and Cr\u00eapes<\/strong><\/p>\n

So what makes the French “French”? For starters, their dedication to food is unmatched by any other country in the world. Consequently, most of their common national beliefs center around their perception of food. First and foremost, the French believe that food should be carefully crafted at a leisurely pace. Rather they don’t rush through the preparation of their meals instead, they set aside time in their day to consume their food without\u00a0any\u00a0distractions. In addition, the French believe that food should bring people together. This belief is evident in the\u00a0gastronomic meal<\/a>; a time when family and friends gather to share a meal in a similar manner as American Thanksgiving. Lastly, the French believe that food should be crafted to the highest possible caliber. Meaning that food should not only be created with time and care, but also that the highest quality ingredients available should be used. This means going above and beyond in finding the perfect ingredients for each dish, which brings us to the concept of terroir. Terroir will be covered at length later in this essay, but to summarize terroir revolves around the idea that food tastes different depending on where it was grown. For example, certain areas have the best soil for particular food products (i.e, champagne is only to a be produced in the Champagne region of France) thus creating regional specialties (Parker, 2015).<\/p>\n

Cr\u00eapes are known worldwide but they have been adopted by so many cultures that it is difficult to recognize a proper French cr\u00eape.\u00a0Cr\u00eapes are made out of pancake-like batter and are cooked thin over a flat top grill<\/a>. The batter generally consists of eggs, sugar, and some sort of wheat product (Brittany Cr\u00eapes and Galettes).\u00a0It is cooked until the edges are slightly brown and then it is flipped and cooked on the other side. However, the wheat product chosen for the batter as well as the fillings are what distinguish one cr\u00eape from another. Fillings can either be placed inside a cr\u00eape or on top of it. French cr\u00eapes are typically sold in Cr\u00eaperies; sit-down restaurants where cr\u00eapes are eaten using utensils.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\nHistory of Cr\u00eapes<\/strong>\nThe cr\u00eape originated in Brittany, the northwest corner of France. Traditionally, not much was able to grow on Breton moors as the landscape was too harsh for most agricultural products. However, buckwheat was introduced in the 12th century and immediately took to the rocky soil.\u00a0The Bretons made use of this fiber-rich, high-protein grain by grinding it down and combining it with water and salt to make a batter. They would then cook the batter on a hot surface with some butter and add whatever fresh food they had lying around to complete the meal. At the time of their invention cr\u00eapes were considered peasant food, but their societal ranking changed drastically in 1895 when Henri Charpentier brought them into the world of high cuisine (or “haute cuisine”) with the creation of cr\u00eapes Suzette (King, 2018).\nSweet vs Savory<\/strong>\nCr\u00eapes can be either sweet or savory depending on the meal at which they are being served. They can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or dessert. Sweet cr\u00eapes are usually eaten for dessert. They are traditionally made with wheat flour and topped with lemon and sugar. Common fillings include fruits, chocolate, nutella, and whipped cream. Savory cr\u00eapes are usually eaten for lunch or dinner and are made with buckwheat flour. Fillings traditionally include ham, cheese, and egg. Breakfast cr\u00eapes can be sweet or savory depending upon the tastes of the person making them (Crepes | The Real French Foods, 2018).\n\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/a>\nFamous Cr\u00eapes<\/strong>\nDespite the abundant varieties of French cr\u00eapes, the following are the most well-known: cr\u00eapes Suzette, la \u00ab cr\u00eape du chat, \u00bb la cr\u00eape Gigi, and la cr\u00eape bretonne (Le top 4 des cr\u00eapes les plus c\u00e9l\u00e8bres, 2018).\nAs previously mentioned, cr\u00eapes Suzette was invented in 1895 by Henri Charpentier when he was working for Caf\u00e9 de Paris in Monaco. According legend, the Prince of Wales had been dining at said restaurant and requested a luxurious cr\u00eape dessert. In a moment of inspiration, Charpentier threw some orange and brandy onto a cr\u00eape and lit the entire concoction on fire. Thus the iconic cr\u00eape Suzette was born, and appropriately named after the Prince’s dinner guest that historic evening (Le top 4 des cr\u00eapes les plus c\u00e9l\u00e8bres, 2018).\n

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La \u00ab cr\u00eape du chat \u00bb is the most recent buckwheat flour cr\u00eape to have been created. It can be distinguished from other buckwheat varieties as it is much smaller in size due to a lack of dough\u00a0(Le top 4 des cr\u00eapes les plus c\u00e9l\u00e8bres, 2018).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\nLa cr\u00eape Gigi is actually a fictitious cr\u00eape. However, it was mentioned in the popular French comedy from the 1970’s\u00a0French Fried Vacation 2<\/a>\u00a0(French title:\u00a0Les bronz\u00e9s font du ski) so it has maintained its relevance in French culture (Le top 4 des cr\u00eapes les plus c\u00e9l\u00e8bres, 2018).\nThe dialogue:\n