Bob's Blueberry Blintzes

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...When the Silver Fox and I first had children, we agreed not to call each other Mom or Dad. Father's Day was always a celebration planned and executed by the kids and that worked wonderfully well until we all scattered across the country. Now, while there are still telephone calls and silly cards, the celebration has become very low key. I've taken to preparing one or two of his favorite dishes to make the day a bit more special, but that is usually the extent of the celebration here. His request this year was for blueberry blintzes and Korean barbecue chicken. I want to share both recipes with you, but we'll only touch on one tonight. I'm not usually fond of my own recipes, but this one is special and it is an exception. I love it for lots of reasons. While it requires some effort to prepare, it is a great way to feed a crowd. The recipe can be doubled or tripled if you are so inclined, and it is a marvelous addition to a brunch buffet or special breakfast. There are three basic steps to the blintzes and they can be executed in stages that make the dish quite easy to prepare. The most difficult is the preparation of the crepes. If that is off-putting to you, buy crepes in the supermarket and carry on with the rest of the recipe. If you plan to make them, remember that your batter should be about as thick as heavy cream. Additional water or flour can be added to reach that consistency if needs be. If you want tender crepes, let the batter sit for at least two hours before cooking. The resting time allows the flour to absorb the liquid and the foam to dissipate. Cover and refrigerate the batter if it is to sit for longer than 1 hour. The filling and the blueberry sauce are really easy to do and you'll have no problem with either of them. The sauce used in this recipe is exceptional and it still makes my socks go up and down. I know those of you who try this recipe will be delighted with the result. Here's how the blintzes are made.

Blueberry Blintzes...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite
Ingredients:

Crepes

1-1/2 cups 2% milk
3 eggs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

Filling

1 cup (8 ounces) 4% cottage cheese
1 package (3 ounces) mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Blueberry Sauce

1 cup water
1/2 to 1 cup sugar
2 cups frozen unsweetened mixed berries
1/2 cup port wine or grape juice
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 cups fresh or frozen thawed blueberries

Directions:
1) To make crepes: Combine milk, eggs and butter in a small bowl. Combine flour and
salt and add to milk mixture. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. Heat a lightly greased 8-inch nonstick skillet. Pour 3 tablespoons of batter into center of skillet and lift and tilt pan to evenly coat bottom of pan. Cook until top appears dry; turn and cook 15-20 seconds longer. Remove to a wire rack. Repeat with remaining batter. When cool, stack crepes with waxed paper or paper towels in between. Wrap in plastic wrap or foil. Refrigerate.
2) To make filling: Process cottage cheese in a blender until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl and add mascarpone cheese. Beat until smooth. Beat in sugar, orange zest and vanilla.
3) To make sauce: Bring water and sugar to a boil. Add frozen berries and wine or juice; return to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer, uncovered for 5 minutes. Mash and strain berries, reserving juice. Return juice to pan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until mixture is reduced to 1 cup. Combine cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water and mix until smooth. Stir into blueberry sauce and bring to a boil. Cook and stir until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Fold in berries. Set aside.
4) To assemble and cook: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread about 1 rounded tablespoonful onto each crepe. Fold left side of crepe over filling. Fold bottom side up and top side down to encase filling. Finally, bring right side of crepe to center, forming a small package. Place seam side down in a greased 15 x 10 x 1-inch baking pan. Bake for about 10 minute, or until heated through.
5) To serve: Place 2 warm blintzes on each of 8 dessert plates. Top with warm blueberry sauce and serve. Yield: 8 servings.
 
This post is being  linked to Stone Gable's On the Menu Monday feature.







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Cottage Cheese Rolls

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I always tuck bread or rolls into my picnic hamper. I love the way the yeasty aroma permeates the basket and leaves no doubt that buried treasure lies within. I have a real weakness for good bread and can't imagine a proper picnic without a soft or crusty loaf as part of the meal. I first had these rolls at a block party when I was a child. They came from Hannie's German kitchen and they were still warm when she put them on the table. The rolls, obviously, created a taste memory that is not easily forgotten. I've since done some research, and learned that the rolls are much like those made in Central Europe in the days before World War II. I wanted to know why cottage cheese was used in the buns, and, unfortunately, came up with no good answers. While Hannie used cottage cheese to add protein to the bread, I was unable to discover why it was first used in those European kitchens. Chances are it was an afterthought, used to prevent the waste of cheese on the verge of spoiling. That is purely a guess on my part, but the history of the region suggests it is probably close to the mark. The cheese helps produces light rolls that have a vaguely sour taste. They are extremely good, but the dough, which rises quickly, is difficult to work with. It is very sticky. It will be hard to resist the temptation to add more flour than the recipe actually calls for. Resist with all your might. Some suggest using floured hands to knead the dough. I prefer to keep my hands wet. While, I know it seems counterintuitive, damp hands will do the trick and prevent too much flour from being added to the dough. Save for the stickiness, these rolls are easy to make. While, I think they are best from the oven, they keep well for several days if properly wrapped. The recipe can be doubled, and herbs such as dill or chives make a nice addition if you want to add additional flavor to the rolls. Here's the recipe.

Cottage Cheese Rolls... from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
2-1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (110° to 115°)
1 cup (8 ounces) 4% cottage cheese
1 large egg
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

Directions:
1) Combine yeast and water in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
2) Heat cottage cheese in a small saucepan set over medium heat until it registers a temperature of 110 to 115 degrees F.
3) Add cottage cheese, egg, sugar, salt, baking soda and 1 cup flour to yeast mixture. Beat until perfectly smooth. Stir in remaining flour to form a firm dough (dough will be sticky).
Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
4) Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 15 pieces. Shape each piece into a roll. Place 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.
5) Bake at 350 degrees F for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks. Yield: 15 rolls.








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Blue Cheese Dip

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is one of the chameleons of my kitchen. I use it as a dip, a spread and a salad dressing. It main ingredient is cottage cheese and that makes it figure friendly, as well as being versatile and easy to do. The downside to this recipe, if there is one, is that you'll need a food processor to break up and pulverize the cheese curds. Plan to make this a day before you plan to use it and use a really good blue cheese for best flavor. The original recipe was developed by Patricia Wells and she used a French Roquefort to make the dip. French Roquefort is made from sheep's milk and is naturally aged in caves to produce the blue streaks with which we are all familiar. The cheese must ripen for a period that ranges from three months to a year in order to produce its characteristic aroma and flavor. Other blue veined cheeses, domestic or imported, are made from cow's milk and are aged in humidity controlled environments rather than caves. I use Roquefort during the holiday season, but rely on good domestic varieties for the remainder of the year. The dip can be thinned with milk to produce a wonderful salad dressing. If you enjoy blue cheese I think you'll enjoy this dip. Here's the recipe.

Blue Cheese Dip...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, inspired by Patricia Wells

Ingredients:
2 cups cottage cheese
1/4 cup fresh snipped chives
1/2 to 3/4 cup coarsely crumbled Roquefort or blue cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Place cottage cheese in bowl of a food processor; pulse to break up curds. Add chives and blue cheese and process briefly just to blend. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pulse again to distribute seasonings. Transfer to a lidded container and store in refrigerator for at least 24 hours to ripen. Bring to room temperature to serve. Yield: 2 cups.

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