Russian Apple & Cottage Cheese Blini
Golden Russian crepes filled with a mixture of smooth cottage cheese and caramelized apples — the apples are sautéed in butter with cinnamon until they soften and turn slightly translucent, then folded into the sweetened cheese filling. Each stuffed blini is pan-fried a second time until crisp on both sides. The contrast between the warm, spiced apple and the cool, creamy cheese is what makes these disappear from the plate before you’ve finished stacking them.
Ingredients
- 800 mlwhole milk, warm
- 350 gplain flour
- 3 eggs
- 3 tbspsugar
- 0.5 tspsalt
- 3 tbspsunflower oil
- 150 mlboiling water
- 400 gtvorog (farmer's cheese), 5–9% fat
- 3 apples, medium, firm
- 1 egg
- 3 tbspsugar
- 1 tspcinnamon
- 1 tspvanilla extract
- 2 tbspbutter, for apples
- 2 tbspbutter, for frying
- 1 tbsplemon juice
Method
- Make the batter: whisk together the eggs, sugar, and salt until lightly frothy. Pour in the warm milk and sunflower oil. Sift in the flour gradually, whisking constantly to keep the batter smooth and free of lumps — it should feel like thin pouring cream. Let the batter rest for 20–30 minutes so the gluten relaxes and the crepes turn out pliable rather than rubbery.
- Just before cooking, pour in the boiling water in a thin stream while whisking vigorously — the batter will thin out and look almost too liquid, which is exactly right. Heat a 20–22 cm skillet over medium-high heat. Brush with oil only for the very first crepe. Pour in just enough batter to coat the pan in one thin sweep, swirling immediately. Cook 30–60 seconds until the edges lift and the surface looks dry, flip and cook another 20 seconds. Stack on a plate.
- Prepare the apples: peel and core the apples, then cut into small 5–7 mm dice. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the diced apples, 1 tablespoon of sugar (taken from the filling sugar), lemon juice, and half the cinnamon. Sauté for 5–7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apples are soft and slightly caramelized but still hold their shape. Transfer to a plate and let cool completely — hot apples will make the filling runny.
- Make the filling: push the cottage cheese through a fine sieve or blend until completely smooth. Add the egg, remaining sugar, vanilla extract, and the rest of the cinnamon. Mix until uniform. Fold in the cooled apples gently — you want distinct apple pieces throughout, not a purée.
- Assemble and fry: place 2 tablespoons of filling on the lower third of each crepe. Fold the bottom edge over the filling, fold in both sides, then roll into a neat rectangular parcel. Melt butter in a clean skillet over medium heat. Fry the stuffed blini seam-side down for 2–3 minutes until golden and crisp, then flip and fry the other side. Serve hot with sour cream, honey, or a dusting of powdered sugar.
FAQ
Leaking happens for three reasons: the cottage cheese is too wet, the apples released liquid, or the crepes have holes. First, always drain cottage cheese in a sieve for 20–30 minutes if it feels loose. Second, cool the sautéed apples completely on a plate — residual heat creates steam inside the parcel and pushes filling out. Third, make sure the batter rested long enough (20–30 minutes) so the crepes are pliable and tear-free. When wrapping, tuck the sides in tightly before rolling — open ends are the main escape route.
Tart, firm apples are the only right choice. Granny Smith, Antonovka, or Braeburn hold their shape during sautéing and provide a contrast to the sweet cottage cheese filling. Soft varieties like Red Delicious or Fuji turn to mush in the pan and make the filling watery. Cut the apples into 5–7 mm dice — larger pieces create lumps that tear the crepe, smaller ones disappear. The lemon juice in the recipe is not for flavor alone — it slows browning and keeps the texture firm.
Yes, they reheat well. After the second fry, let them cool completely, then store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for 2–3 minutes per side — this restores the crisp exterior. You can also reheat in a 180°C oven for 8–10 minutes on a baking sheet. Avoid the microwave: it makes the crepes rubbery and the filling soggy. The unfilled crepes themselves freeze beautifully for up to a month — stack with parchment between them.
For egg-free crepes, replace each egg with 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed mixed with 3 tablespoons of warm water — let it sit for 5 minutes until it gels. The crepes will be slightly more fragile but still workable. For the filling, skip the egg entirely and add 1 tablespoon of semolina or cornstarch instead — it binds the cottage cheese just as well. Let the filling rest 10 minutes before using so the starch absorbs moisture. The apple component stays the same. Note: this makes the recipe fully egg-free, not vegan, since cottage cheese remains.
They share a family resemblance but differ in three important ways. Russian blini use boiling water poured into the batter, which creates a lighter, more elastic crepe that can hold a heavier filling without tearing. French crêpes skip this step and rely on butter in the batter for richness. Second, Russian blini are stuffed, folded into parcels, and fried a second time — giving them a crispy exterior. French crêpes are typically folded or rolled around the filling and served as-is. Third, the Russian filling blends cottage cheese (tvorog) with the apples, while French versions usually use just apples with crème pâtissière or nothing at all.
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Comments (1)
Ingredient temperature matters enormously for russian apple & cottage cheese blini. Unless the recipe says otherwise, everything should be at room temperature. Cold whole milk doesn't cream properly, and the texture suffers throughout.