Nalysnyky (Ukrainian Crepes with Cheese and Dill)

Nalysnyky are Ukrainian crepes, in this case, filled with cottage cheese and dill. They are a great comfort food, and perfect to add to a holiday meal.

I grew up eating traditional Ukrainian food at most major holidays. My grandma always made well-known Ukrainian dishes like perogies and cabbage rolls, plus others like perishke and these Nalysnyky.

I made sure that my grandma taught me how to make perogies many years ago, before I moved to the US. But she never got a chance to teach me how to make some of the other dishes. I did have some of her old recipes, so with the help of my aunt, I used those and learned how to make Nalysnyky.

How to make Nalysnyky:

I like to start making nalysnyky by making the filling for them first. This way, it's ready to go, and you can start filling and rolling some of the crepes while you're still cooking them.

Making the filling is easy, and basically just involves stirring the filling ingredients together. If you want your filling to be smooth, you can use a food processor. I did use a food processor when I made the filling seen in these photos, but in subsequent batches, it didn't, and it was still fine. I'm fairly sure my grandma would NOT have used a food processor.

If you're not going to make the crepes right away, put the filling in the fridge for later. Making the crepe batter is also easy. Simply whisk (or use a stand or hand mixer) the eggs and egg whites together. Whisk in the milk, water, flour, and salt, and keep whisking until no lumps remain. Note that the batter will be thin. It will be similar to the consistency of cream.

Because the batter is so thin, to make them round, you basically need to cover the whole bottom of the skillet. You will need to make sure your skillet is non-stick. I used an 8-inch skillet, and I used about 2-3 Tablespoons of batter for each crepe. Using an even smaller skillet (6-inch) would be great too if you happen to have one.

Cook the crepes on medium-low to medium heat (adjust the heat as needed) while cooking them, and cook until the bottoms are browned and the tops are fully set. Don't flip the crepes.

To save time, you can start filling and rolling the nalysnyky while you're still cooking the crepes. Or, if you'd prefer not to multitask, you can cook all of the crepes before starting to fill and roll. Whichever way you choose, make sure to put the browned side of the crepe on the outside (put the browned side down on the work surface when you're ready to roll).

I tried both putting the filling in a line and rolling the crepes like a burrito, and spreading the filling over the crepe and rolling it like a cinnamon bun, and I vastly preferred spreading the filling over the whole crepe (see the photo in the recipe below for an idea of what that looks like). Roll the crepe up from the bottom, and carefully cut the crepe in half.

Stack the rolled crepes in a buttered casserole dish, and put a little more butter between the layers of crepes to prevent sticking. When you're ready to bake the crepes, pour on a little heavy cream, cover the casserole dish and bake for an hour.

Nalysnyky Ingredients:

• Dry cottage cheese: depending on where you live, this is sometimes available in tubs by the regular cottage cheese. It might also be available as a pressed block in the cheese aisle. If you can't find it, see the tips below for substitution ideas.
• Large eggs
• Heavy cream: also known as whipping cream. You could substitute half and half (10%) or coffee cream (18%) if needed.
• Fresh dill
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Milk: Use whatever milk fat percentage you like.
• Water: Whichever water you normally drink - tap water is fine.
• All-purpose flour: or substitute a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend to make this recipe gluten-free
• Butter

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Nalysnyky Nutrition Notes:

Note that this recipe makes approximately 15 whole crepes, which I recommend cutting into 30 halves. I suggest a portion size of 4 halves per serving, which means this recipe serves approximately 8. These are the numbers I based the nutrition information calculations on.

To make these Ukrainian crepes gluten-free, simply replace the all-purpose flour with a gluten-free 1:1 flour blend.

Nalyskyky (Ukrainian Crepes with Cheese and Dill)

Carissa Serink

Nalysnyky are Ukrainian crepes, in this case, filled with cottage cheese and dill. They are a great comfort food, and perfect to add to a holiday meal.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 50 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Ukrainian

Servings 8

Calories 244 kcal

Equipment

• Small non-stick skillet (6-8")
• Food Processor optional
• Stand Mixer or hand mixer or whisk
• Large (2.3L or 2.5 quart) casserole dish or 9x9" baking dish

Ingredients

  

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Cheese Filling

• ▢ 2 cups dry cottage cheese see note
• ▢ 2 large egg yolks (save the whites for the crepes, below)
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons heavy cream
• ▢ 1 teaspoon minced fresh dill
• ▢ ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt see note
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Crepes

• ▢ 3 large eggs
• ▢ 2 large egg whites (saved from making the filling, above)
• ▢ 1 cup milk (any fat percentage will work)
• ▢ ⅓ cup water
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1 cup all-purpose flour substitute a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend to make this recipe gluten-free

To Assemble

• ▢ 2 Tablespoons butter
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons heavy cream
• ▢ fresh dill minced (optional, for serving)

Instructions

 

Cheese Filling

• Add 2 cups dry cottage cheese to the bowl of a food processor and process until it reaches a uniform texture. Add 2 large egg yolks, 2 Tablespoons heavy cream, 1 teaspoon minced fresh dill, ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper and process until smooth. Set aside. (If you don't have a food processor, stir all of the ingredients together with a spatula in a large bowl. The filling won't be as smooth this way, but it will still work). Cover with plastic wrap or a lid, and refrigerate while you make the crepes.

Crepes

• Add 3 large eggs and 2 large egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl. Using the whisk attachment (or a hand mixer or whisk), beat the eggs and whites together until frothy and light yellow in color. Add 1 cup milk, ⅓ cup water, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 cup all-purpose flour. Turn the mixer on low speed, and once the flour has been incorporated into the liquid, increase the speed to medium-high and beat until no more lumps of flour remain. The batter will be thin, like buttermilk or heavy cream.
• Heat a small (6-8") non-stick skillet over medium heat (if you don't have a skillet this small, use the smallest one you have, and cut your crepes into smaller pieces later). Brush the skillet lightly with oil.
• Pour a small amount of batter (about 2-3 Tablespoons for an 8" skillet, less for a 6" skillet, more for a larger one) into the skillet. Working quickly, pick up the skillet and carefully tilt it so that the batter covers the bottom of the skillet, being careful not to get any up the sides. If you have any gaps or holes that didn't fill in before the batter solidified, pour a few more drops of batter to fill the holes. Cook the crepes until they are no longer wet on the top, and the bottoms are lightly browned. Transfer the crepe to a cutting board or plate to cool (you only cook the crepes on one side).
• Repeat with all of the remaining batter. If you notice the crepes starting to stick to the skillet, brush it with a little more oil (if you have a good non-stick skillet, you probably won't need it between each crepe).

To Assemble:

• Heat oven to 350°. Melt 2 Tablespoons butter and spread 1 Tablespoon of it all over the bottom of a large (2.5 quart or 2.3L) casserole dish or 9x9" baking dish. Set aside, and save the remaining butter for later.
• Starting at the side of the crepe closest to you, spread 2 tablespoon of filling on the un-browned side of the crepe, leaving approximately an inch at the top (the side furthest away from you) of the crepe bare.
  
• Roll up the crepe starting at the side closest to you. Gently cut the crepe in half. Place both halves in the prepared casserole dish. Repeat this process with the remaining crepes and filling, packing the crepes into the dish tightly.
  
• Once you have a single layer full of crepes, brush the tops of them with the remaining butter. Put the rest of the crepes in another layer perpendicular to the first later (don't add a third layer as the crepes will puff up while baking - if you have more crepes that won't fit, use a second, smaller dish to bake them).
• Pour 2 Tablespoons heavy cream evenly over the crepes. Cover with an oven-safe lid or aluminum foil and bake at 350°F for 1 hour. Serve with additional chopped dill if desired.

Notes

Dry cottage cheese (or it may be called dry curd cottage cheese) is sometimes available in plastic tubs near the regular cottage cheese in the dairy section of your supermarket. It might also be called "pressed cottage cheese" and be found in a vacuum-sealed block. If you can't find anything like this, try using farmer's cheese.

If you can't find any of these, you can buy regular cottage cheese. Place it in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse the cream off, then let it drain for 5-10 minutes before measuring it and adding it to the recipe.

Taste the cheese you are using before mixing it with the egg yolk. If it's quite salty, use only ¼ teaspoon of salt. Mine was not very salty, so I added ½ teaspoon.

Nutrition

Calories: 244kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 153mg | Sodium: 679mg | Potassium: 117mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 419IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 63mg | Iron: 1mg

Keyword breakfast for dinner, cheese, cottage cheese, crepes, dill, eggs, entree, Ukrainian, Ukrainian food

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