PALANCHINA (CROATIAN CREPES)

My husband has childhood memories of this treat — his favorite dessert. Dubi made a batch (fantastic) for our arrival in Croatia, and she gave me a beautiful cookbook, “Croatia At Table,” which has the recipe. I also found a recipe on the web. What follows is a bit of both. It calls for cottage cheese, which unfortunately does not exist in France. I must find a substitute. This recipe serves four to six.

250 g. or 9 oz. flour

3 eggs

250 ml. or 8 oz. milk

250 ml. or 8 oz. mineral water (fizzy),

Pinch of salt.

FILLING

400 g or 14 oz. cottage cheese

3 eggs

4 oz. sugar

300 ml. or 1/2 pint of sour cream

Lemon Zest to taste

Mix eggs with a pinch of salt in a deep bowl. Add milk and mineral water gradually. Add and mix in flour. Spread 1/4 cup battter in a hot well-greased pan. Tip pan to get a very thin pancake. Brown lightly.

For the filling, mix egg yolks and sugar until fluffy, then add grated lemon zest and strained cottage cheese. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form, then fold into above mixture.

Cover crepes with filling on one side, then roll up jelly roll style. Arrange in a buttered heat-resistant pan and bake in oven (about 350 degrees F) until hot. Can serve hot or cold.