Friday, July 19, 2013

Mom's Blintzes with Creamy Tofu Filling

Mom's Blintzes with Creamy Tofu Filling

The idea of veganizing my mom’s blintzes recipe has been buzzing around my head for a while. It finally landed last week, but not successfully. I tried using flax eggs instead of you know, and the blintzes came out a gelatinous mess. I threw out the batter and tried again, and ughhh...same mess. I cried myself to sleep that day (not really). Instead, I screamed, and Dewey (my feline friend) freaked out. I said to myself: “Matylda, you can’t cook angry. Try again later when in better mood.” Guess what? My mood has since improved.

The directions are long, but I promise you that the recipe is super easy.

Cheers!

These are my favorite pictures of my mom. 

Mom’s Blintzes with Creamy Tofu Filling (Servings: 8 medium sized blintzes)

Blintz Ingredients 
½ cup unflavored almond milk (I used Almond Breeze Original)
½ cup water, plus additional 2 tablespoons if necessary
10 tablespoons of unbleached all-purpose flour
¼ cup vegan butter, melted

Filling
1 16-oz package firm organic tofu (do not press the tofu)
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon almond extract
3 tablespoons organic powdered sugar (use less or more depending on sweetness preference)
Dash of salt

Directions
Melt the vegan butter in a microwave for about 10-15 seconds. There will be some lumps left, but that’s ok. Mix the vegan butter until all the lumps are gone.

In a large bowl, combine ½ cup water, almond milk, and flour. Add vegan butter and whisk until there are no lumps left. The blintz batter should be thinner than pudding, but thicker than broth. If the blintz batter is too thick, add 2 tablespoons of water gradually.

Preheat a 6-inch non-stick pan over medium heat and coat with non-stick cooking spray. Add 2-3 tablespoons of batter and spread it evenly. Wiggle the pan back and forth in a circular motion until the batter spreads in a thin layer. Cook until the blintz is dry and golden for about 2-3 minutes. Gently flip over with spatula and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Slide over to a large plate and continue making blintzes until all the batter is used. Set aside.

While the blintzes are cooling, make the filling. In a food processor or high-speed blender, add the tofu, lemon zest, almond extract, organic powdered sugar and a dash of salt. Blend until very smooth, for about 4 minutes. Taste the filling to make sure it is sweet enough, if not, add more sugar.

To assemble each blintz, place 2-3 tablespoons of the filling in a line in the center of the blintz. Fold the two opposite sides of the blintz in a shape of cigar. Heat the non-stick skillet used to make the blintzes, and coat it with a non-stick cooking spray. Place two to three blintzes seam-down and fry on each side until crispy for about 4-5 minutes.

Serve hot with favorite fruit preserves, maple syrup, agave syrup or powdered sugar. I made a quick strawberry sauce as depicted (recipe below). 

Mom's Blintzes with Creamy Tofu Filling

Quick Strawberry Sauce

Ingredients 
1 cup frozen strawberries, defrosted, lightly mashed with a fork
¾ cups of water
2 teaspoons vegan sugar

Directions
In a medium saucepan, combine the strawberries, water and sugar. Bring to a boil, lower the heat to medium and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add 1tablespoon of cornstarch to thicken if needed.

3 comments:

  1. Going to make these and try to live up to my Jewish mama's standards! Haha. We've both been craving them and I haven't had them since I went vegan over a year and a half ago.

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