December 17, 2018 Monica Yu

Blintzes Jubilee

Whether you're celebrating Hanukkah or Christmas, this blintz recipe will delight your families. Wake up to a special breakfast on Christmas morning or light the menorah with blintzes for dessert. There are so many ways to flavor and top your cheese blintzes, but for this recipe we've decided to use cherries jubilee as our inspiration. The pleasant kick of orange flavor brings a lot of seasonal taste and complexity to the filling.

Since making crepes can be tricky for a first timer, we recommend making a little extra batter since your first couple of tries may not be successful. Luckily, left over crepes can be frozen to use later. Even for the experienced crepe maker, we recommend using corn starch rather than flour to give the crepe more strength and flexibility. Since portions of this recipe can be made in advance, you can spend more time with your families or decorating the tree. Just because this can be breakfast doesn't mean you have to skip the wine. Pair at brunch time or late afternoon dessert hour with our lovely Je t'aime Sparkling Cremant de Limoux Rosé.

Crepe Ingredients: makes 6-8

2 large Eggs
1 cup of Milk
1/3 cup Water
1/4 tsp of Salt
2 tbsp of Melted Butter
1 cup of Corn Starch ( rather than flour, makes for a fluffier, stronger and lighter crepe)
1/8 tsp of Baking Soda

Filling Ingredients:

1 ½ Low Fat Cottage Cheese
½ cup or 4 oz of Cream Cheese (at room temp)
2 Egg Yokes
1 tbsp of packed Brown Sugar
1 tsp of Vanilla Extract
2 tbsp of Melted Unsalted Butter
¼ cup of Orange Juice
1 tbsp of Orange Zest
pinch of Salt

Cooking Instructions:

Make the crepe batter by putting all ingredients into a blender. Blend until smooth.
Pour the batter into a medium sized bowl and let sit in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, but preferably overnight.
When you are ready to make the crepes, remove the batter from the refrigerator and let it sit out until it gets to room temperature. Whisk it together. It will be thin, do not add anything to thicken it.
Using a small non stick fry pan (6diameter), sprayed with butter spray, scoop a ¼ cup of batter into the pan. Swirl the pan to evenly coat the bottom with batter.
Let the crepe cook for about 20 seconds. Once the edges are starting to get crispy, shake the pan to loosen the crepe on the bottom then flip.
Cook the flipped crepe for about 10 seconds till slightly brown.
Set aside the crepe on a plate. Repeat process with the remaining batter. The crepes can overlap on the plate as they come off the heat. *Crepes can be made in advance. Stack them with layers of wax paper in between once they have cooled. Place in a plastic bag and refrigerate.
When you're ready to assemble the blintzes, make the filling! Put all the ingredients into a food processor and gently pulse ingredients no more then 5 times to avoid soupiness. Or mix the filling by hand but take the time to dice the cream cheese into small pieces before mixing.
Take a cooled crepe and put 1-1 ½ tablespoons of filling towards the bottom 1/3 of the crepe. Fold the bottom over the filling, tuck the sides then roll. Repeat.
To bake: place the rolled blitzes on a foil lined baking sheet sprayed with butter spray, seam side down. Cooking in a preheated oven at 375ºF for 12-15 minutes. To fry: pan fry them for two minutes on each side with butter or oil.
When cooked, plate the blintzes and top with sour cream or crème frâiche. Also, top with fresh cherry preserves or your favorite jam.