Buckwheat Crêpes
Serves 4
“JT, why are you giving me a recipe with wheat in the title? You are supposed to be giving me gluten-free recipes!” I assure you, gentle reader, I’ve not gone (too far) off the deep end. Despite its name, buckwheat is gluten-free! It’s not a derivative of grain; actually, it’s related to rhubarb, and its seeds are ground finely to make buckwheat flour, with which you can make these delicious, nutty crêpes. So it’s not a typo, unlike the month we added flour to the Rice Krispy treats . . . ahem.
Ingredients
2 cups coconut milk
¾ cup buckwheat flour
3 large eggs, at room temperature
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Fat for greasing the pan (butter, vegetable oil, coconut oil, etc.)
Directions
Add the first five ingredients to a blender, and blend until smooth. (If you’re worried about the batter being too thin, add one cup of milk to the blender at a time. But keep in mind, crêpe batter is supposed to be pretty thin!)
Pour the batter into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and chill. For best results, chill the batter overnight.
The next morning (or when you decide to make the crêpes), remove the batter from the refrigerator. Let it sit on the counter and come to room temperature, about 45 minutes.
Stir up the batter. It should have the consistency of heavy cream or well‐stirred coconut milk. If the batter is thicker than this at room temperature, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of milk.
Set a large nonstick pan over medium‐high heat. When the pan has come to heat, add a tiny amount of fat—less than a teaspoon—to the pan and wipe it over the entire surface of the pan.
Pour about ¼ cup of the batter into the middle of the pan, then lift the pan off the heat to swirl the batter around to cover the entire surface of the pan. You should have just enough time to coat the pan evenly with batter before it starts cooking
Let the crêpe cook for 1 minute, then lift up an edge with a rubber spatula. Flip the crêpe with the spatula. Cook for 30 seconds on the other side.
Slide the crêpe off the pan and repeat the process with the remaining crêpe batter until they are all cooked. Serve the crêpes immediately.
We like to fill ours with Gruyère and a little prosciutto. You might like sauerkraut and some scrambled egg, or even jam and peanut butter. Really, a crêpe is the perfect container for your favorite food. If you want sweet crêpes, add a couple of teaspoons of honey to the batter before you set it in the refrigerator.