At one time, my fondness for crêpes almost led me to open a crêperie. Friends prevailed and I opened a restaurant instead, but crêpes are still one of my favorite desserts—especially made with buckwheat flour. The batter is best made a day in advance.
Recipe information
Yield
makes about 4 cups batter, enough for 30 crepes
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Warm in a small saucepan: 2 cups milk, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon sugar, 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter.
Step 2
When the butter has melted, remove from the heat and let cool. Measure into a bowl and stir together: 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup buckwheat flour.
Step 3
Make a well in the flour and stir in: 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, 3 eggs.
Step 4
Stir until the batter is stiff and free of lumps. Add the milk mixture, bit by bit, whisking until smooth after each addition. If the batter is lumpy, pour through a strainer. Whisk in: 1/2 cup beer.
Step 5
Cover and refrigerate overnight. Take the batter out of the refrigerator 1 hour before frying the crêpes.
Step 6
Heat a crêpe pan (a 6-inch steel pan with shallow sloping sides) over medium heat. Moisten a folded paper towel with oil and grease the hot pan lightly. Using a small ladle or large spoon, pour in about 2 tablespoons batter. Tilt and rotate the pan to cover it evenly with the batter. Cook until brown, about a minute or two, and with the aid of a butter knife, lift up an edge and use your fingers to grasp it and flip it over. The crêpe will be very thin and hard to turn with a spatula; using your hands is really the best way and with a little practice, it’s easy to do. Cook briefly on the other side, no more than a minute, and turn the crêpe out onto a plate. (As with pancakes, consider the first crêpe or two a test.) Serve the crêpes right away, hot from the pan, or continue to cook crêpes, stacking them one atop the next. The crêpes can sit at room temperature for several hours and be reheated before serving. Spread them with flavored butter; fold them into triangles, like little handkerchiefs, on a baking sheet; sprinkle with sugar; and reheat them in a hot oven for a few minutes. Or reheat them in a frying pan (folded or not). Cooked crêpes (and any unused batter) can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for 2 days.
Variations
Step 7
Buckwheat crêpes are very good with a compound butter made with citrus juice and zest and sugar. Or spread them with fruit preserves or marmalade.
Step 8
Drizzle buttered crêpes with warm honey.
Step 9
Crêpes can also be taken in a savory direction, with grated Gruyère cheese and ham, for example.
