Polish crepes, naleśniki, are soft, fluffy and made using a sweetened cottage cheese filling with a hint of vanilla. They are quick and simple to make and absolutely delicious!
You might also like buckwheat crepes!
What are Polish Crêpes
Polish crepes, called naleśniki (pronounced 'na-lesh-NEE-ky'), are a lot like French crepes - thin, soft and delicious! They can be made with both sweet and savoury fillings. However, the most commonly used, traditional filling for naleśniki is sweetened Polish cottage cheese, twarόg (pronounced 'TPHA-ruk'). These crepes can be either rolled or folded.
Crepes in Poland are not strictly breakfast food. Even though this is a 'sweet' recipe naleśniki are often served for lunch or supper, in addition to breakfast, snack or dessert. Another 'sweet' you might like is strawberry pasta.
Cheese for naleśniki
Twarόg has a similar, tangy flavour to cottage cheese but has a crumbly rather than creamy texture. (This is the same cheese that's also used to make Polish pierogi ruskie, sweet cheese pierogi, Polish cheesecake and lazy pierogi). All Polish stores sell twarόg, however, if you can't get it you can use ordinary cottage cheese (the creamy kind), cream cheese, quark or fromage frais (fromage blanc).
The best way of preparing twarόg for this naleśniki recipe is to puree it in a food processor to give it a creamier consistency (see Instructions below).
Naleśniki batter ingredients
- Flour: all-purpose/plain.
- Milk.
- Egg.
- Oil: helps make crepes soft and fluffy. You can use melted butter instead if desired.
- Confectioner's/icing sugar: omit if using a savoury filling.
- Salt.
Naleśniki filling ingredients
- Twarόg: use either reduced-fat ('pόł-tłusty' in Polish) or full-fat twarόg ('tłusty').
- Yogurt/sour cream: adjust the amount according to taste. If you use creamy alternatives for the twarόg omit the yogurt. You can also combine the yogurt with a splash of cream (light/single cream) for added sweetness. Alternatively use vanilla flavoured yogurt and omit the vanilla extract.
- Vanilla extract.
- Confectioner's/icing sugar: to taste.
Top tip
For a lighter version of this naleśniki recipe use reduced-fat twarόg, yogurt rather than sour cream, omit the cream and use a moderate amount of sugar.
Step-by-step recipe instructions
1. Make naleśniki batter: To a large bowl add the flour, sugar and salt and stir thoroughly using a whisk. Add the egg and oil then gradually and slowly pour in the milk whisking (quite vigorously) all the time until smooth.
2. Rest batter. The batter should be smooth and creamy and quite runny. Set it aside for 15 minutes (it will thicken a little).
3. Puree cheese: Puree the twarόg in a food processor for a creamier consistency (this should take seconds).
4. Make filling: Transfer the cheese to a bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and stir thoroughly.
5. Make crepes: Give the batter a good stir. Heat up about 2 teaspoons of oil spreading evenly in the pan then ladle the batter swirling it around to make sure it spreads over the entire surface of the pan.
Don't be afraid to make these naleśniki crepes quite thin, they won't tear easily. They need about 2 minutes on one side (medium heat) and a minute on the other (cooked over a medium heat).
6. Assemble: Spread a thin layer of the cheese filling over each crepe (2-3 tablespoons) and fold both sides over the filling (alternatively roll the crepes). Dust with a little powdered sugar (optional) and enjoy!
How to serve Polish crepes
Polish naleśniki are usually served on their own or with icing/powdered sugar. They are also delicious with fresh berries, homemade blackberry sauce, fruit compote, orange pancake sauce or chocolate raspberry sauce. Serve either cold or warm.
You can also fry the naleśniki briefly in a little butter before serving if desired.
Variations
- Add fresh fruit or jam into the filling and serve for breakfast or dessert.
- Serve as a casserole: grease your casserole dish then arrange rolled naleśniki in a single layer (either make smaller crepes or double the ingredients to make a bigger batch for this). Pour 2-3 tablespoons of melted butter or cream over the crepes and bake in a preheated oven (180C/350F) for 10-15 minutes or until piping hot and golden. Serve hot!
- Make savoury naleśniki: omit the sugar in the batter and serve with spinach filling. You can also turn these crepes into another popular Polish dish, krokiety (with mushrooms) by rolling the naleśniki then dipping in egg and breadcrumbs and frying in oil before serving.
Top tips
- You can make Polish crepes large or small, depending on how big your pan is.
- Once you've made the crepes batter set it aside for 15 minutes. This is a good time to make the filling.
- Adjust the amounts of sugar and yogurt/sour cream in the filling mixture according to taste. If using creamy substitutes for twarόg (such as cottage cheese or cream cheese) omit the yogurt.
- Storing: Keep the naleśniki covered (it's best to wrap them in plastic to keep them from becoming dry), refrigerated for up to 3 days.
- Make ahead: The filling as well as the naleśniki batter can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 3 days.
- Reheating: either in the microwave or by frying in a little butter. You can also reheat the crepes as well as the filling separately then assemble and enjoy.
- Serving: hot or cold.
Freezing
You can freeze the naleśniki filling, covered, for up to 3 months. I do not recommend freezing the batter.
To freeze naleśniki place them in an airtight container (separated with parchment paper so they aren't touching one another) and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight. Reheat as above or serve cold.
Other Polish breakfast recipes to try
- Polish Pancakes with Yeast (Racuchy)
- Polish Rice with Apples (Ryz z Jablkami)
- Polish Style Apple Pancakes
You may also like these other delicious Polish recipes!
Keep in touch!
If you make this Polish crepes recipe I’d love to know how it turned out for you. Let me know in the comments below, thanks!
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Recipe
Polish Crepes with Cheese (Naleśniki z Serem)
Equipment
- Large non-stick crepes pan
- Large bowl and whisk
- Food processor
Ingredients
For the naleśniki
- 1⅓ cups (166 g) all-purpose/plain flour
- 1⅔ cups (400 ml) milk
- 3 tablespoons confectioner's/icing sugar
- ⅕ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil plus more for frying (1-2 tsp per crepe)
For the cheese filling
- 10.58 ounces (300 g) Polish twarόg cheese
- 4-6 tablespoons yogurt/sour cream or according to taste
- 6-7 tablespoons powdered/icing sugar or to taste
- 1⅓ teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make naleśniki batter: To a large bowl add the flour, sugar and salt and stir thoroughly using a whisk. Add the egg and oil then gradually and slowly pour in the milk whisking (quite vigorously) all the time until smooth.
- Rest batter: The batter should be smooth and creamy and quite runny. Set aside for 15 minutes.
- Puree cheese: Puree the twarόg in a food processor for a creamier consistency (this should take seconds).
- Make filling: Transfer the cheese to a bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and stir thoroughly.
- Fry crepes: Heat up about 2 teaspoons of oil spreading evenly in the pan then ladle the batter swirling it around to make sure it spreads over the entire surface of the pan.Don't be afraid to make these crepes quite thin, they won't tear easily. They need about 2 minutes on one side and a minute on the other (cooked on a medium heat).
- Assemble: Spread a thin layer of the cheese filling over each crepe (2-3 tablespoons) and fold both sides over the filling (alternatively roll the crepes). Dust with a little powdered sugar (optional) and enjoy your naleśniki!
Notes
- You can make these crepes large or small, depending on how big your pan is.
- Once you've made the crepes batter set is aside for 15 minutes. This is a good time to make the filling.
- Adjust the amounts of sugar and yogurt in the filling mixture according to taste. If using creamy substitutes for twarog (such as cottage cheese or quark) omit the yogurt.
- Twarog: use creamy cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark, fromage frais/fromage blanc instead.
- Storing: Keep the naleśniki covered (it's best to wrap them in plastic to keep them from becoming dry), refrigerated for up to 3 days.
- Make ahead: The filling as well as the naleśniki batter can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 3 days.
- Reheating: either in the microwave or by frying in a little butter. You can also reheat the crepes as well as the filling separately then assemble and enjoy.
- Serving: hot or cold.
- Freezing: Freeze the filling for up to 3 months. I do not recommend freezing the batter. To freeze naleśniki place in an airtight container (separated with parchment paper so they aren't touching one another) and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight. Reheat as above or serve cold.
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is automatically generated and should be considered as an estimate.
**A note about baking: If using a fan-assisted oven refer to your appliance's instructions and adjust the temperature accordingly.
Sheryl says
My grandma used to make an eggy pancake but over the years I lost the recipe. It had baking powder, flour and eggs and she put maple syrup on them. Any clue if this is similar to your crepes?
Monika says
Thanks for getting in touch Sheryl! The addition of the baking powder would produce a different kind of pancake to the one in the recipe. Your grandma's pancakes would be fluffy, not flat as crepes are, She also would have used some dairy product such as milk or buttermilk/kefir. These kind of pancakes are great with maple syrup.
Choclette says
Oh how lovely and they sound delicious too with that cheese filling. They sound pretty similar to English pancakes, which I make from time to time.
Monika says
Thank you! My kids adore these and so do I, actually, with or without the cheese filling.
Kat (The Baking Explorer) says
They look like perfect crepes and the cheese filling sounds delicious!
Monika says
Thank you!