The strategic use of crêpes in Crêpes: 50 Savory and Sweet Recipes will urge you to rethink this easy and approachable pancake batter.

In Crêpes: 50 Savory and Sweet Recipes, Holmberg divides up the material into easy-to-follow chapters: “Introduction,” “The Basic Crêpe Recipes,” “Savory Dishes,”  and “Sweet Dishes.” An important strength of this trim, delightful book is the variety of crêpe batters, in addition to the author’s recipe for Versatile Crêpes (page 26, and following page)–the likes of Chickpea Flour Crêpes (page 34, and following page), Whole-Wheat Crêpes (page 36, and following page), and Buckwheat Crêpes (page 38, and following page) will enlarge your vision of this wrapper.

Taking Crêpes: 50 Savory and Sweet Recipes into the kitchen, I was enticed to make the savory Mediterranean Tuna Tapendade Crêpes (page 84)  and the Mixed Berry Crêpes with Ginger and Mascarpone (page 121). Once you have the crêpes made, it’s just a matter of putting together the tuna filling for the Mediterranean Tuna Tapenade Crêpes and, with a salad, turned into a nice weekend supper. Although not in the thick of berry season, I jumped into creating the Mixed Berry Crêpes with Ginger and Mascarpone with a sampling of what looked good at the market with lovely results. With crêpes, know that the working time is largely based on preparing the batter and creating the pancakes unless the filling or topping involves putting together a sauce.

With Crêpes: 50 Savory and Sweet Recipes on your cookbook shelf and a little advance planning, a main course or dessert is within reach for cooks of all levels.