In Brittany, crêpes ”galettes”are usually folded into a rough square around your filling of choice. Gruyere and ham are definitely crowd pleasers, especially when an egg is cooked in the center of the dish. I prefer roasted root vegetables, with garlic and caramelized shallots on a bed of wilted kale and Gruyère cheese. Finished with a sunny-side up egg, it’s a cold weather meal that’s hard to beat in terms of color, flavor, and satisfaction.
3/4 C. buckwheat flour
1/4 C. all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 3/4 C. milk, split
4 tsp. melted unsalted butter, divided
One recipe roasted root vegetables (below)
In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients. In a medium-sized bowl, combine eggs, 1 1/2 C. milk, and 2 tsp. melted butter. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until the mixture is uniform. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour and up to overnight. Before making the crêpes, whisk in the remaining 1/4 C. milk and have 2 tsp. melted butter standing by. If the batter seems too thick—doesn’t seem “pourable”—add a little bit of water. Heat an 8-inch non-stick sauté pan and brush with the remaining melted butter. When the butter is hot enough to sizzle, add a scant 1/4 C. crêpe batter. Tilt the pan around quickly to spread the batter. When the edges are slightly browned and the center of the crêpe is bubbling (about 3 minutes over high heat), flip the crêpe using your fingertips, tongs, or spatula. Cook for another 10-15 seconds, then slide onto a plate. Repeat until all the batter is used. Note: you can omit the all-purpose flour to make the dish entirely gluten-free. Just mix the batter a little bit longer to stretch the starches within the buckwheat.
Roasted Root Vegetables
4 medium-sized beets, trimmed and rinsed (save the greens)
8 cloves of garlic, unpeeled
2 large garnet sweet potatoes, rinsed and cubed
1/2 C. olive oil, divided
Salt and pepper to taste
2 large shallots, sliced into rings
1 bunch purple kale, stripped from stems and chopped
1/2 C. white wine
1 C. shredded Gruyère cheese
1 tsp. butter
6 eggs
1/2 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
Preheat oven to 375°F. Rub the beets with oil and season them with salt and pepper. Wrap them, along with the garlic cloves, in foil, and roast for an hour. Toss the sweet potatoes in olive oil and salt and pepper. Spread evenly on a cookie sheet and roast in the same oven for 35 minutes, turning with a spatula halfway through. Remove the beets from the oven and carefully open the foil. After they’ve cooled to handling temperature, rub them with a cloth to remove their skins (or you can leave on). Chop them into 3/4 inch cubes and set aside. Peel the garlic and set the cloves with the beets. Remove the sweet potatoes from the oven, stir once with a spatula and set aside. When the crepes are ready, heat a large sauté pan with 2 tsp. olive oil over high heat. When the oil begins to shimmer on the surface, add the shallots and immediately lower the heat. When the shallots begin to caramelize, after about seven minutes, raise the heat again. Carefully add the kale and the reserved beet greens to the oil. It will want to spatter. Stir once or twice, and deglaze with white wine. Cover the pan, lower the heat once again, and let the greens wilt and the wine cook down, about three minutes. Remove the lid and add the roots and roasted garlic. Toss all together and taste. Add more salt and pepper if you like. Set aside.
On a cookie sheet or in a baking dish, assemble the crêpes: Sprinkle 1/4 C. Gruyère cheese over the bottom of the crêpe. Pile 1/4 C. the vegetable mixture on top of the cheese. Fold in the edges to form a packet. Hold in a 275°F oven until you are ready to plate. In a large sauté pan over medium flame, heat 1 tsp. butter. Crack six eggs into the pan and cook them until the whites are firm but the yolks are still runny, about seven minutes (this step can occur while you are assembling the crêpes). Place a filled crêpe on a plate. Top with an egg. Garnish with freshly ground black pepper, coarse sea salt, and a sprinkle of chopped thyme.
