Savory Buckwheat Crepes With Guyere Food

BUCKWHEAT CREPES WITH HAM, GRUYERE AND CARAMELIZED ONIONS

Steps:

• For the caramelized onions: Melt the butter in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions and sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, over low heat until soft and caramelized, about 30 minutes. Stir in a few tablespoons of vinegar and cook for 1 minute longer. Add the thyme and season with salt and pepper. For the buckwheat crepes: Combine the milk, 3/4 cup water, the flours, oil, salt, pepper and eggs in a blender and blend until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours and up to 8 hours. The longer it sits, the more tender the crepes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Brush a crepe pan or 8- to 10-inch nonstick pan with some of the melted butter and heat over medium heat until it begins to sizzle. Lift the pan at a slight angle and pour 1/4 cup of the batter into the center, tilting the pan to spread the batter to the edges. Return the pan to the heat and cook until the crepe is golden underneath, 1 to 2 minutes. Using a spatula, flip the crepe over and cook until golden on the other side, 1 to 2 minutes more. Transfer to a plate and cover. Repeat with more butter as needed and the remaining batter. For assembling the crepes: Return a crepe to the warm pan. Spread some onions over the surface, scatter some grated cheese over the onions, and tear a ham slice and drop across the surface. Fold the crepe in half, then in half again to make a triangle, and heat through to melt the cheese. Serve.

BUCKWHEAT CREPES WITH ASPARAGUS, HAM AND GRUYèRE

Steps:

• Make the batter: Whisk together flours, eggs, buttermilk and salt until well combined. Put the batter in the fridge for at least 2 hours or, preferably, overnight. If necessary, thin batter with a little more buttermilk or water, to the consistency of heavy cream.
• Heat a crepe pan or well-seasoned cast iron skillet, about 8 inches in diameter, over medium-high heat. Use a piece of paper towel to rub a little butter in the pan, then quickly ladle in about 1/4 cup of batter. Swirl the pan to spread the batter all the way to the perimeter. Let crepe brown on one side for a minute or so, until crisp. Flip it over with a spatula (or carefully with your fingers) and cook one minute more. Don't worry about browning the second side. Adjust heat if crepe browns too quickly; the pan needn't be scorching hot. Remove from heat if crepe is cooking too quickly.
• Remove the crepe from the pan and set it aside while you continue to make 5 more. Stack crepes on top of each other as they are finished. (Crepes may be made in advance.)
• Bring a medium pot of generously salted water to a boil. Cook the asparagus for 2 minutes, or just until it is firm-tender, then drain and spread on a clean kitchen towel to cool.
• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Fill the crepes by laying each one top-side down, place a slice of ham on top, sprinkle generously with cheese, and lay 3 asparagus spears on top, off to one side. Fold over to make a half-moon.
• Put the filled crepes in one layer on a baking sheet. Drizzle with a little melted butter, then bake until they are crisp and the cheese is melted, about 5 to 7 minutes. Serve immediately.

BUCKWHEAT CREPES WITH HAM, GRUYERE AND FRIED EGG

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and lightly grease 2 baking sheets with butter.
• Add the milk, granulated sugar, 2 of the eggs and 1/4 teaspoon salt to a blender and blend until smooth. Add the all-purpose flour, buckwheat flour and 2 tablespoons of the butter and blend until smooth, about 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. (See Cook's Note.)
• Heat a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Brush with butter, add 1/2 cup of the batter and tilt the skillet to swirl the batter evenly over the skillet. Cook until the bottom of the crepe is firm and the edges lift from the skillet, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook until the other side is firm, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate and cover with a paper towel. Repeat with the remaining batter, brushing the skillet with butter each time. Wipe out the skillet after the last crepe and reserve for later use.
• Transfer a crepe to a work surface and top with 1/2 cup of the cheese, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border all the way around. Top with 2 slices of ham. Fold the top and bottom borders in toward the center, pressing the crepe into the ham so that it sticks. Repeat with the right and left borders to create a square. Transfer the crepe to one of the prepared baking sheets using a spatula. Repeat with remaining crepes, cheese, and ham. Bake until the crepes are warm and the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining butter in the reserved skillet over medium heat. Crack the remaining 6 eggs into the skillet. Cook until the whites are set but the yolks are still runny, about 4 minutes.
• Top each crepe with a fried egg. Sprinkle with chives before serving, or sprinkle with confectioners' sugar and serve with red currant jelly.

SAVORY FRENCH CREPES

Steps:

• Combine eggs, milk, and 2 tablespoons butter in a blender. Add buckwheat flour, all-purpose flour, and a pinch of salt; puree until smooth. Allow batter to rest in the refrigerator overnight.
• Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in cremini mushrooms and cook until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and spinach; cook and stir until wilted, 3 to 4 minutes. Set the filling aside.
• Melt 1 teaspoon butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Pour about 1/4 cup batter per crepe (depending on the size of your pan) into the hot skillet and immediately tilt and swirl the pan to evenly distribute batter along the bottom. Cook until the center is set and edges begin to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Sprinkle 1/4 of the filling in the middle of each crepe and sprinkle each with 3 tablespoons Gruyere cheese. Reserve remaining cheese. Fold the crepes in thirds over the filling, forming triangle shapes. Serve crepes with remaining Gruyere sprinkled on top.