Not-so Blintzy Blintzes

For me, "Will you come over for brunch" is code for "I want to see you while at the same time working on perfecting my sub-standard crepe-making skills." So, when I invited the girls over for brunch yesterday, it was a given that I was going to subject them to some less-than-round crepes. It wasn't too much of a leap to reach the decision that I should start off my Rebar challenge by serving sweet cheese blintz with summer berry compote (p. 80). In terms of a tasty meal that was enjoyed by all and looked good on the fine china (using the china more is a bit of a new year's resolution), it was a success. In terms of completely emulating what the recipe was supposed to produce, my achievement was, perhaps, a bit more qualified ....



As I alluded to above, I am lacking some serious crepe-pouring skills - they never come out round. I looked into some internet tutorials, and I think I know what to try for next time, though - I was always pouring at one edge of the pan, but perhaps I have to pour into the centre? Any tips from more successful crepe bakers would be appreciated. I also never seem to get the crepes nearly as thin as the recipes suggest they should be but, once again, maybe that will be improved by my pouring techniques (looks like I'll have to host another brunch before I forget all this ....). Nevertheless, the crepes, which I cooked on Friday night, worked out fine (despite not being particularly elegant looking).

The next step was the fruit compote. I used frozen strawberries and blueberries, and it worked out really well. I did add more maple syrup than the recipe called for, because it seemed a bit tart, but I think that was because I was too vigorous in juicing my lemon. Happily for me, there are leftovers to enjoy in my yogourt this week!

The final stage was the sweet cheese filling, and this is where things went somewhat awry. I hadn't had time to go on a special cheese-buying mission, so I substituted ricotta for the dry curd farmer's cheese in the recipe. I think it would have been ok, except that I made the mistake of taking the hand blender to it to try to work in some of the cream cheese that was stubbornly remaining in lumps. The cream cheese got well worked-in, but the whole thing turned quite runny. At this point, I abandoned any hope of making secure little packages and frying them up like blintzes. So, I stuck the crepes in the oven to warm them up, and just served them with some of the runny cheese in the middle and the fruit on top. The cheese filling still tasted good, though, and I am sure that our arteries will thank us for refraining from stuffing something with cheese and then frying it in butter. There was plenty of filling left, so it's gone into the freezer for the next time I do a more "free for all" crepe meal.