For many of us, buckwheat flour is one of the ingredients in a pancake mix. Growing up, there were usually only three flours in my parents’ pantry: all purpose, whole wheat, and pastry. Occasionally rye flour would make an appearance, if someone had gone on a bread-baking spree.

Now, after a decade of living with someone who has celiac disease, my definition of pantry staples has shifted. In fact, there is a whole shelf devoted to gluten-free flours. Quinoa? Right there. Coconut? Two jars down. Oat? Let me grind a little for you. Garfava? It’s sitting there, a little unloved, at the end of the row.

So, sourcing buckwheat flour wasn’t the most challenging part of this week’s assignment for me.

Surprisingly, neither was making the crêpes. I put together the batter last night, but wasn’t able to start cooking until this evening. The batter held up well. My pan is only eight inches wide, so mine were a little small, but they were lacy, golden brown, light, but resilient. Nearly perfect.

My woes began with the egg. My stove is ever so slightly a-tilt. Something I forget until carefully placed food starts sliding to one side. On my first attempt, the egg skated over the surface of the crêpe, settling against the side of the pan. I managed to move it back a few times, but then it burst. The crêpe was a little too Pollock to photograph, but it was delicious.

On my second attempt, I built a little wall of grated cheese around the centre of the crêpe and trapped the yolk inside. This time, my problem was folding the sides of the crêpe – I’d been a little too enthusiastic in my wall-building and the crêpe was over-filled with cheese.

As you can see, it prevented me from making a perfect square, which was probably not helped by the fact that my crêpes were a little smaller than they should have been. But, again, it was delicious and there was nothing to regret about the extra cheese.

My next attempt at this recipe will involve the purchase of a proper crêpe pan. In the name of science, of course.

You can read through everyone’s posts here. And consider joining this community of wonderful cooks and lovely people, as we work our way through David Lebovitz‘ My Paris Kitchen.