Cheese Blintzes

Blintzes make a perfect weekend brunch.  Imagine this…it’s Saturday morning, you’re slowly waking up to the sunlight streaming in your window and the birds chirping…you get up and brew your coffee (what’s better than the smell of coffee brewing in the morning?) and your stomach starts to growl, leaving you wondering what to eat.  Since it’s a little too late for breakfast (it is Saturday, you’re entitled to sleep in!) and too early for lunch you decide to have brunch.  Luckily, this recipe only takes about 15 minutes to make.

Cheese Blintzes

(Yield:  Serves 2:  makes 4 blintzes total, 2 per serving)

4 crêpes (store bought or homemade if you’ve got the time)

1 tsp butter (to butter the casserole dish)

Filling:

¾ c low-fat cottage cheese (strain out the whey if it’s there’s a lot of liquid; you can see how to do that here)

1 oz Neufchatel cheese

1 egg white

1 tsp honey

½ tsp vanilla

Pinch salt

Topping:

1 ½ c frozen berries of your choice

1 TB honey

1 tsp cornstarch (mixed with splash of cold water)

Preheat oven to 425F.  Mix all ingredients for the filling.  If you like your cheese very smooth you can process it in a blender or food processor (I didn’t bother doing this step).  Divide the filling evenly between the four crêpes and roll up each one (burrito-style).  Butter a casserole dish and place the crêpes seam-side down in the dish; bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden on top. 

Put the berries and honey in a covered pot and heat on medium for ~8 minutes, stirring occasionally (don’t cook the berries down too much, it’s nice to have a few whole berries).  Add the cornstarch and boil for ~2 minutes, stirring constantly.  Turn off the heat and allow the berry sauce to cool slightly. 

Top the blintzes with the berry sauce and serve.

Note on the Topping:  If you prefer, instead of making your own berry topping you can use your favorite preserves.