Egg White Crepes offer a low-calorie wrapper for many fillings, from fruit to peanut butter to tuna salad

Sometime in the late ’70s, I convinced my meat-no-potatoes-no-casseroles-no-sauces dad to buy my mother a crepe maker as a gift.

I remember her plugging it in once.

I’ve since learned you don’t need to possess a love of French food or a specialty appliance (a skillet will do) to develop a genuine fondness for the classic little pancakes.

The Star’s Egg White Crepes provide a healthy, low-calorie wrapper for a variety of fillings. For a main dish, fill with a low-fat chicken or tuna salad. For a healthy snack, spread a prepared crepe with peanut butter, then fill with sliced bananas or apples. For dessert, fill with nonfat frozen yogurt and top with fruit and toasted, chopped walnuts.

We zeroed in on breakfast, filling crepes with 2 to 3 tablespoons nonfat, protein-packed Greek yogurt and fresh berries or sliced fruit to create Strawberry Yogurt Breakfast Crepes.

To quickly and easily ladle the batter into the skillet, use a 1/4-cup measuring cup and fill about 3/4 full.

For a gluten-free meal, substitute 3/4 cup buckwheat flour for the white whole-wheat flour.

This story was originally published January 21, 2014 at 4:03 PM with the headline "Egg White Crepes offer a low-calorie wrapper for many fillings, from fruit to peanut butter to tuna salad."