Savory crepes have long been a favorite of mine since the day my parents convinced me to order them in a restaurant once when I was a teenager. It basically blew my mind (it’s having breakfast for dinner except you get to have breakfast AND dinner…think about it). And with some leftover pancake mix from our brunch the previous day, some Lebanese-themed dinner crepes seemed the logical choice for supper.

I created one with eggplant and another with peaches, including a sauce for each.

Crepes a la Geitowi

Serves 2 to 4 (depending on how hungry you are…)

You will need:

A batch made from a basic crepe recipe (I recommend this one, courtesy of my grandma Alice). It’s best to make the mix first but make the crepes themselves last.

For the eggplants:

2 small eggplants or 1 large one, cut into thin medallions
A few ounces of a sharp crumbly cheese (I used our favorite Bulgarian sheep’s cheese, but a good goat’s cheese would work, too)
Half a cup of strained yogurt (plain lebneh or Greek-style yogurt, preferably not the low-fat kind)
Small handful of fresh mint leaves, chopped
Small handful of fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
Juice of one lemon
Several tablespoons of olive oil

Fry the eggplants in batches, flipping them after a few minutes. Pull them out just as they brown and let them drain on a paper towel.

For the sauce, mix together the yogurt, olive oil, herbs, and lemon juice.

Serve the eggplants topped with the cheese in the crepes and drizzle the sauce on top.

For the peaches:

1 peach, sliced thinly
6 thin slices of halloum (if you’re in Lebanon) or mozzarella or brie (if you’re not)
1/2 cup of cherry syrup (ok, yes, I know, this sounds a little random. Thing is, we had some leftover cherry juice/syrup from a can of cherries we’d served with the pancakes at brunch. As a substitute, I recommend some good honey or maple syrup and water)
A quarter cup of strained yogurt
1/2 teaspoon of powdered cinnamon and cardamom
Juice of half a lemon
Tablespoon of honey

Saute the peach slices gently in the cherry syrup (or whatever sweetness you have selected for them to bathe in)

For the sauce, blend the yogurt, spices, lemon juice, and honey.

At the very last minute – just before you’re about to eat – lightly grill or roast the cheese slices.

Serve the cheese and peaches in the crepes and drizzle with the sauce.

So here’s the thing: we’re not expert crepe flippers, and our non-non-stick ancient pan presented something of a challenge to us. You know how sometimes when you’re trying to cook an omelette, you end up with more of a scramble? That happened to us a little bit. So you will be very pleased to know, dear readers, that if your crepes are hopeless, it turns out that all the above ingredients go together pretty well if you just sandwich them together, bits and pieces, on your plate. It may not look like a fancy mind-blowing restaurant, but it was the makings of an awfully tasty dinner.