Scrippelle ’mbusse

Scrippelle are very thin crêpes made with eggs, flour and water (sometimes a little milk) and some parsley. Cooked one by one in a greased pan, they are sprinkled with grated pecorino, rolled up and arranged in the plates.

Boiling chicken broth is poured over them, «soaking» them (’mbusse) and melting the cheese. The same scrippelle are also used to make timballo teramano.

For the scrippelle

• 4 eggs
• 120 g plain flour
• 250 ml water (or half water, half milk)
• Chopped parsley
• A pinch of salt
• Lard or oil for the pan

To serve

• 1.5 litres well-skimmed chicken broth
• 120 g grated pecorino

1. Make the chicken broth in advance, with a hen, celery, carrot and onion, simmered gently for at least two and a half hours; strain and skim it.
2. Beat the eggs with the salt, add the sifted flour and the water little by little, whisking to a smooth, runny batter; add the parsley and let it rest for 30 minutes.
3. Lightly grease a small pan, pour in a little batter and swirl it: the scrippella must be very thin. Cook for a minute on each side.
4. Sprinkle each scrippella with plenty of pecorino and roll it up tightly.
5. Put 4 scrippelle in each bowl, add more pecorino and cover with boiling broth. Serve at once.

• The broth must be boiling: it heats the scrippelle and melts the pecorino.
• You can make the scrippelle a few hours ahead and keep them stacked under a tea towel.
• Stir the batter before each scrippella: the flour tends to settle.

Photo 1: a plate of scrippelle ’mbusse. Credits: Franco aq (public domain), via Wikimedia Commons, resized; the menu icon is also made from it.

Scrippelle are one of the symbolic dishes of Teramo cooking. The name probably comes from the French «crêpe»; according to a local story, they were invented by chance by a cook serving French officers in Teramo in the 19th century.

Scrippelle ’mbusse are made on feast days, above all at Christmas, when chicken broth is made at home.