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Simon is the crêpe maker in this household, as he is great at making the thinnest pancakes. This recipe contains buckwheat (no relation to wheat), and is primarily for savory crêpes, as made in Brittany, France. But we’ve found that these go quite nicely with sweet fillings, such as chocolate, jam, or sugar with a squeeze of lemon.

It’s best to let the batter rest for at least an hour, so I typically make it earlier in the day, ready for dinner in the evening. It’s also fine to keep this batter in the fridge overnight—in fact, it has lasted for up to a couple days. Also note that first crêpe might end up rather pale and soggy—we call this the “sacrificial pancake” because there always seems to be too much grease for the first one—but subsequent ones should be fine, and occasional, additional oil (or butter) does not seem to result in similar “sacrifices.” 😉

Ingredients

• 1 7/8 ounces (55 grams) buckwheat flour
• 2 ounces (60 grams) whole wheat (or white) pastry flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups milk, and maybe a bit more
• (optional) a dash of cream, if using lowfat milk
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• oil or butter, for cooking the crêpes

Method

1. Place both flours and the salt in a mixing bowl, and make a well in the flour.
2. Add both eggs to the well, and start whisking to break them.
3. Slowly pour in the the milk (with optional cream) while whisking. There might be some tiny lumps of flour remaining, but that’s okay—they should disappear while the batter rests.
4. Allow the batter to rest in the fridge for at least an hour before cooking. Before cooking, give the batter another whisk. It should be thickish, but thinner than waffle or American pancake batter, so add more milk if needed.
5. Heat a wide, non-stick frying pan to high (or medium high, depending on your stovetop’s power). Add a little bit of oil or butter to the pan, wiping away any excess with a paper towel.
6. With a ladle, pour in about 1/3 cup of batter onto the hot pan, tipping the pan so that the batter spreads thinly and evenly.
7. When the crêpe starts to form bubbles in the middle and becomes brown and crisp at the edges (lifting up from the pan), it’s time to flip it over. This takes 2 or 3 minutes. Once flipped, you can add fillings, like cheese, leftover cooked vegetables or protein, chocolate, jam, etc.
8. Cook for another minute or so, until the bottom is lightly browned—most of the cooking was accomplished during the first side, anyhow!
9. Serve immediately. Or, if unfilled, allow to cool to room temperature before storing in the freezer or fridge.