Buckwheat, unrelated to wheat (it’s in the smartweed/knotweed family) is called a pseudo-grain, because its not actually a grass (unlike corn, wheat, rye, barley, oats…). It’s strange almost pyramid shaped seed is most commonly used in Soba, a Japanese buckwheat noodle, and as an additive to pancakes. I have a love/hate relationship with this grain. I love it in baked goods, hate it in noodles, and think its unappealing as a “groat” or boiled whole grain cereal.

But buckwheat is grown locally by Joel’s Organics, and in a fit of “support local” I bought a bag some time back. Because buckwheat contains no gluten, its a good fit for gluten free baking. But because it contains no gluten, its also tricky to use in baked goods that need gluten to hold them together. (Soba noodles, by the way, always also contain wheat flour – so they are not a gluten free noodle).

So mostly, because I don’t eat a lot of gluten, (it causes mild inflammation in my joints) my bag of beautiful local organic buckwheat was barely used. And then I saw a recipe from Cooks Illustrated for Buckwheat Crepes with Ham, Egg and Cheese (Galettes Complètes, from Brittany France). The recipe was too fussy for my taste (making a mote out of the folded crepe and baking an egg into it) but the ratio of about 3 parts buckwheat to 1 part all purpose flour seemed reasonable. Crepes, with the right fruit or savory filling, aren’t quite the carb/sugar bomb that a traditional pancake can be.

So we started making these a couple of times a month. The blender, which makes fast work of the batter, is an idea I stole from a different more conventional crepe recipe I’ve used for years.

We’ve really enjoyed this grain’s nutty earthy flavor. Yesterday, we had them for breakfast with a savory filling of sauteed green garlic, shallot, asparagus, collard greens and a bit of cream cheese. This morning, we ate the rest stuffed with ripe mango and a touch of coconut cream. The possibilities are endless.

Buckwheat Crepes

  • Servings: 8-10
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Modified from a recipe in Cooks Illustrated

Ingredients

  • 2 cups dairy or non dairy milk of choice (I use 2%)
  • 3 large eggs
  • ¾ cup buckwheat flour
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon table salt
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted (the Cooks recipe used 4 tbsp, but this seemed overkill).
  • Vegetable oil

Directions

  1. Layer all ingredients except vegetable oil into a blender in order (it’s easier to mix in the flours if they aren’t on the bottom). Blend until well mixed.
  2. Heat 12″ non-stick skillet over medium heat. Coat with a light coating of vegetable oil.
  3. Pour from 1/3 to 1/2 cup of batter into skillet (batter will be thin – because – crepe), and swirl to evenly cover the bottom. When edges start to dry and pull away from the pan, flip (I use my fingers). Cook on the second side until it starts to brown in spots.
  4. Remove, stack and keep warm in a preheated oven or toaster oven set at 170 degrees.
  5. Fill with fruit, jam, or other filling of your choice. Roll and serve.

Like the first pancake, I never quite get the temperature right on the first crepe and have to adjust as I go. But they are still good, even so.

Nutrition

Calories: about 118 per crepe if you make 10.

© 2021 Miles Away Farm, where we’re miles away from using up all of our buckwheat, but are grateful to have another option for breakfast or dinner.

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