Utterly Fabulous Blintzes
I know that I have a tendency toward hyperbole when it comes to food, but these really are the best blintzes I’ve ever had. (My apologies to Mother and Mother-in-Law, whose excellent recipes served as a starting point.) The blintz skins are from a French crepe recipe, which yields a more tender, creamy pancake than traditional blintz batter.
We use an 8-inch crepe pan, which makes fairly large blintzes. For a larger number of smaller blintzes, use a 6-inch or 5-inch pan. If you are inexperienced at making crepes, you may wish to make a bit of extra batter to allow for mistakes.
Crepes
Yield: about 10 8-inch crepes
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons butter (the real kind), melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
butter for frying
Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl or in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat with mixer or wire whisk until smooth. (Alternatively, use a blender or food processor.)
Stack a layer of paper towels and a layer of wax paper near the range top for depositing the crepes after frying.
Melt 1-2 tablespoons butter in an 8-inch crepe pan or skillet over medium heat. When butter begins to bubble, add a scant 1/4 cup batter and gently tilt the skillet back and forth until a thin layer of batter covers the bottom. Fry until the edges begin to brown, about 30 seconds. Flip the crepe onto the wax paper. Repeat until there is no longer space on the wax paper, then cover the crepes with an additional layer of paper towel topped with a layer of wax paper. Continue until the batter is used up.
Allow to cool to room temperature or chill in refrigerator before filling.
Cheese Filling
Yield: enough for about 10 large blintzes
1 pound farmer or ricotta cheese, or a combination
1 egg
2-6 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
zest of 1/2 lemon and/or sliced fresh fruit
Combine all ingredients. (Fruit can be combined with the cheese mixture at the outset or added to individual blintzes before they are wrapped.)
Potato Filling
Yield: enough for about 10 large blintzes
2 pounds Yukon gold or other boiling potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 tablespoons butter (yes, the real kind)
3 shallots, diced
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons sour cream
3/4 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
Place potatoes in a large saucepan or stock pot and add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 25-30 minutes, or until potatoes are soft.
While potatoes are boiling, melt 1 teaspoon butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and cook until golden. Remove from heat.
When potatoes are ready, remove them from heat and drain. Whip with an electric mixer until smooth. Add shallots and remaining ingredients and mix well.
To Prepare Blintzes
Place one crepe on a large plate, brown side down. Spoon a few tablespoons of filling onto crepe about a quarter of the way from the left or right edge, creating a vertical row ending about 1 1/2 inches away from the top and bottom. Fold top and bottom of crepe over filling. Fold the nearer side over the filling and roll the blintz up. [UPDATE: pics here.] Repeat until all the crepes are used.
Place the blintzes in a single layer in a rectangular baking pan. (Do not pack cheese blintzes too tightly, as they will expand in the oven.) Bake cheese blintzes 10 minutes at 350 degrees F. Potato blintzes need only be warmed before serving.
Blintzes can be frozen and reheated in a 325 degree oven for 20-30 minutes.
Serve with sour cream.
Am I the only one who thinks that blintzes need to be fried as a final step? Or does this recipe allow you to forgo that process?
I agree. Blintzes should be pan-fried.
The more frying the better, unless you want to swap the oil for a tasty egg batter and make blintz souffle… yum.
Strapped for time this past Shavuot, I made a Blintz Souffle using Mintz’s Blintzs (parve cheese blintzs made by Tofutti) as a base. All things considered, it turned out nicely and was well received (and certainly quicker than making it from scratch). I also realized that if one substituted Tofutti Sour Supreme for the sour cream in the custard, the dish could be made entirely parve.
Why would you make it pareve on Shavuous though?
I can’t speak for Rinaleh, but there are many under the mistaken impression that you can’t have a “proper” yom tov meal without meat ;)
Skai, DeisCane, and Jabbet: Most recipes do call for frying the blintzes as a final step, but we usually make quite a few, in addition to other dishes, so that seems like an awful lot of work. My mother always baked her blintzes (which seemed reasonable, since the crepes are fried already), and I followed suit. Maybe next year I’ll try frying a few to see if they’re actually better.
DeisCane my oldest daughter is allergic to dairy. We never want her to feel left out and want her to experience the holidays as the rest of us do in our family. Because of this, I need to make dairy free recipes even for Shavuot. Rinaleh, I did the same thing and it was very good.
Hi,I am new to cooking and following directions. You mentioned liquids in your recipe, but said nothing about when,or how to add them…..all at once,or one at a time????