Photo by Annie Shannon
I was so excited to get a review copy of Mastering the Art of Vegan Cooking. I love The Shannons blog and always enjoy their recipes.
They do interesting recipes and make the steps simple and easy to understand, so that all cooks can give them a try.
I love the way they dive into old ways that people cooked vegan, like depression cakes when home cooks had no dairy or eggs available to them to make cakes. There is also a price per serving on the recipes which is a great way to do menu planning on a budget.
The first thing I made was a tofu goldenrod. My mother made a non-vegan version with scrambled eggs and it’s served over toast then smothered in gravy. The Shannon’s version was perfect and we will be having it often as a last minute meal.
I’m sharing the blintz recipe with you today and they are rich and delicious. If you shy away from premade vegan cream cheese feel free to substitute a homemade cashew cream cheese or a plain version of my avocado cashew cream cheese.
I had my first blintz when I lived in New York and lived in kosher dairy restaurants. It was before I was vegan, but it was a vegetarian’s dream. I could order anything off them menu so I tried everything.
A blintz is basically a crepe with a creamy filling and usually topped with fruit. You couldn’t want anything more for a brunch and I suggest that you invite a few friends over to share these with. Add in some fresh squeezed orange juice and you have a restaurant quality meal on your deck.
Fresh Blueberry Blintzes from Mastering the Art of Vegan Cooking
Blintzes are a New York institution, like the Empire State Building and Yellow Cabs. A blintz is basically a crepe filled with slightly sweet and lemony ricotta filling (in our case, vegan cream cheese and tofu in place of ricotta) and often topped with a fruit compote. We decided to use fresh blueberries to make it a little healthier. ($1.54 PER SERVING)
Ingredients
Filling
- 1/2 8-ounce package vegan cream cheese
- 1/2 16-ounce package extra-firm tofu
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Zest of 1 lemon
Crêpes
- 1 1/2 cups white flour
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups soy milk
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegan margarine, plus more for cooking
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons applesauce
To Assemble
- Olive oil cooking spray
- 1/4 cup vegan margarine, melted
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups fresh blueberries
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Make the filling:In a food processor, combine the vegan cream cheese, tofu, powdered sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest and blend until creamy.
- Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Make the crêpes:In a large bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, and soy milk and beat together with an electric handheld mixer. Once the batter is completely blended, add 2 tablespoons of the vegan margarine, the vanilla, and the applesauce.
- Blend for 2 to 3 minutes with the bowl tilted so the batter gets light and creamy.
- Heat your deepest cast-iron skillet over medium heat and lightly coat it with vegan margarine. (You’ll have to coat the skillet between each crêpe, so keep the margarine out.) Once the margarine begins to bubble, you’re ready to make crêpes.
- Using a ladle, pour ⅓ cup of the crêpe batter into the skillet. Immediately rotate the skillet by rolling your wrist while holding the handle until a thin layer of batter covers the bottom. If your skillet is heavy, use a potholder to hold the other side of the skillet and use both hands to rotate the skillet.
- Cook until the edges of the crêpe begin to turn light brown. Run a wide spatula along the edge to loosen the crêpe, then flip it and cook the other side until light brown. Transfer the crêpe to a plate, top with a piece of waxed paper, and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Repeat until you have used all the crêpe batter.
- Assemble the blintzes: Preheat the oven to
- 400 ºF. Coat a baking dish with olive oil cooking spray.
- Place one crêpe on a flat surface and spoon 3 tablespoons of the filling into the center in a straight line. Fold one edge of the crêpe over the filling and gently press it into the filling, then fold the other sides over and tuck them underneath. Place the blintz on a plate with the seam side up. Repeat until you have filled all the crêpes.
- Brush the same skillet in which you cooked the crêpes with some of the melted vegan margarine and set it over medium heat. Once the skillet is hot, place the blintzes in the skillet, seam-side down, and brush with more melted margarine. You may need to work in batches.
- Cook the blintzes for about 30 seconds to seal them. Using a spatula, gently roll the blintzes in the skillet and cook them evenly until they are a golden brown and have lightly crispy edges. Try not to brown the blintzes for more than 2 minutes.
- Transfer the browned blintzes to the prepared baking dish. Bake the blintzes for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool in the dish for 5 minutes.
- Serve warm, topped with some blueberries and a pinch or two of powdered sugar.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Amount Per Serving Calories 542Saturated Fat 9gSodium 587mgCarbohydrates 50gFiber 4gSugar 19gProtein 11g
Be sure to go to their blog for more delicious recipes!
Photo by by Vanessa Rees
Nik says
7. ºF. Coat a baking dish with olive oil cooking spray.
Temp?
Kathy Hester says
Thanks for catching that. It copied weird from the word doc the publisher sent. It’s 400 degrees and I’ve updated the recipe too.
Mayya says
How many servings does this make??
Kathy Hester says
6 – 8
Jessica says
How do these compare to non vegan blintzes? I was just diagnosed with gallbladder issues the other day. This thanksgiving is going to be rough. I always make blintzes on the holidays. Your recipe sounds very similar to my non vegan version. I’m determined to make make my version but vegan. I just have to figure out the filing.
Kathy Hester says
I haven’t had non vegan ones so I’m not sure I could do a proper comparison.
vegan empress says
In shock. Vegan 35 years and missing blintzes. Never see any vegan. Made these and very impressed. Make sure pot is hot before you put in batter-keep it thin. Use LITTLE butter. Add what you like. These were VERY GOOD. Didn’t taste like tofu. Had some boysenberry syrup to top them off-great.