Baked Pancakes with Cottage Cheese are crepes stuffed with cottage or ricotta cheese + lemon zest filling and sour cream topping = Croatian Palachinka.
Croatian pancakes (palachinke) are stuffed and rolled crepes.
Sparkling mineral water is used instead of butter or oil to make very light crepe batter.
Stuffing can be simple, like apricot or rosehip jam, grated chocolate or ground walnuts.
One of the most popular desserts in Croatia is Baked Pancakes with Cottage Cheese where crepes are stuffed with cottage cheese (or ricotta cheese) filling with lemon zest, topped with sour cream topping and then baked in the oven.
Traditionally, cottage cheese and sour cream are used in this recipe. I’ve tried it with ricotta cheese and whipping cream, too. There is not much difference whether you use cottage cheese or ricotta, but whipping cream does make this recipe a bit sweeter then sour cream. Anyway you go, you can’t be wrong.
If you have never tried anything similar, I recommend Baked Pancakes with Cottage Cheese with all of my heart.
Lemon zest and vanilla will fill your home with aroma that you won’t be able to resist.
Note: pictures show half batch pancakes recipe
Baked Pancakes with Cottage Cheese are crepes stuffed with cottage or ricotta cheese + lemon zest filling and sour cream topping = Croatian Palachinka.
- Ingredients:
- BATTER:
- 250 g (0.5 lb; 2 cups) flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1 1/2 cup sparkling mineral water
- 1 tsp salt
- FILLING:
- 500 g (1 lb) cottage cheese, or ricotta cheese
- 4 eggs
- 150 g (12 Tbsp; 5 oz.) sugar
- grated rind of 1 lemon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- TOPPING:
- 1 3/4 cups sour cream or whipping cream, not whipped
- 1 egg
- 2 Tbsp sugar
-
BATTER: Mix eggs with salt. Gradually add flour, milk and mineral water. Mix until smooth. Let stand 30 minutes before cooking.
-
Heat a lightly oiled frying pan over medium high heat. Pour approximately 3 tablespoons of batter into the pan, swirling to coat the bottom of the pan evenly. Cook each side until the golden brown (about 2 minutes each side).
-
FILLING: In a bowl, mix eggs and sugar until foamy. Add cottage cheese, lemon rind and vanilla extract.
-
ASSEMBLE: Add 2 tablespoons of cheese mixture down the center to each crepe and roll up as you would an egg roll. Place them seam side down in an oiled 9 x 9 inch casserole dish. Continue doing that till the dish is full.
-
Mix cream with egg and sugar and pour over pancakes till they are all covered. Bake Croatian pancakes in 175 C (350 F) oven for about 25 minutes or until golden. Serve warm or cold.
This recipe was first published on: January 24, 2015
These were voted delicious at a ‘Croatian’ themed evening we held recently in Somerset. However, I did pre-cook the filling slowly in the microwave until just set and easy to handle. When cool, I stuffed and cooked them as in the recipe but with not nearly so much cream. Try them!!!
This is a delicious recipe. Thank you. I found that 4 eggs made my cheese filling too runny. In order to keep the filling from running out I had to fold the sides in, then fold the top and bottom over. I would suggest using half the number of eggs in the filling or maybe use just the egg yolks. Aside from this, the recipe is very tasty.
Hello there I am so thrilled I found your site, I really found you by accident, while I was researching on Askjeeve for something else, Anyhow I am here now and would just like to say cheers for a fantastic post and a all round exciting blog (I also love the theme/design), I don
OMG these look exactly like the crepes I had at a restaurant when I was a little girl living in Romania. I’ve been bugging my husband for the longest time that I’d love to find a recipe to make them, all I remember is that they were smothered in this milky sauce and inside they had lots of cheese and were sweet and delicious. Definitely going to have to give this a try and see how they compare. Thanks for the recipe!
First, I apologize for not answering sooner. For a reason unknown to me a lot of comments are suddenly being sent to spam folder.
This type of Baked Crepes with Cottage Cheese are made all over Central and South-Eastern Europe, so I’m pretty sure this is what you tried in Romania. I guess the origin is Austrian or Hungarian and it spread to other countries. I’ve been eating them all my life and I’m still crazy about them.
Let me know when you try them 😉
So delicate,fluffy and sweet.
My mother came from Croatia 1939. She made these wonderful cottage cheese filled palacinka for us until the day she passed away. They are scrumptiously declicous, and I was addicted to them. I am in heaven having found your site with the recipe. Thank you
You are very welcome, Mary! I’m sure you will enjoy palacinkas with cottage cheese.
Crepes filled with cheese then rolled and baked have been a Ukrainian and Polish delicacy for HUNDREDS of years ! I don’t understand why people always feel Eastern Europe never offered anything to the culinary table of the world . It is most certainly NOT Austria which can lay claim to this elegant yet simple dish . PLEASE give Eastern Europe credit for introducing many delicacies to the rest of the world . THANKS!
Baked nalysnyky, palacinka,in addition to unbaked rolled nalysnyky or layered as prepared in a baked tort, have been served in Ukraine and other Eastern European countries since time immenorial. They are considered an “old-style” food in Ukraine because it was possible to prepare them as soon as flat cooking surfaces were created Princess Anna of Kyivian Rus (proto Ukraine) married King Henry I of France and brought her chefs with her from Kyiv to France,thus introducing nalysnyky (crepes) to France among other Ukrainian peasant favorites such as Kulebyak and syrnyk (a less delicate form of quiche). The concept of nalysnyky… Read more »
These look and sound amazing! My mouth is watering…
Thank you, Keri! 🙂
I don’t think I’ve ever come across baked crepes before, but i wish I was having them for breakfast right now!
Yes, they are great for breakfast or as a dessert. I like them both warm and cold.