You say “syrniki” I say “nalangate” – East European sweet cheese pancakes

Syniki with roast plum compote

Impossibly moreish light little pancakes made from whey cheese, known as “Syrniki” in Ukraine, Russia, Belarussia, Latvia, Lithuania , Slovenia and “Nalangate” in Romania and traditionally served with sour cream and jam. Olia Hercules in Mamushka goes for maple syrup with hers, me? I like an apricot or plum compote with mine.

It is worth being daring with just the smallest hint of flour for lighter fluffier pancakes result. And about that cheese….high quality full fat cheese with a high protein content will give you the best tasting pancakes with great mouth feel and texture. 

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Fresh Egg Pasta

So simple. So silky. So key to so many great meals.

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The recipe is also almost too simple to write down as a recipe, however do not be deceived.  Its all about being able to know how the dough should feel and adjust accordingly.

The basic ratio is 1 egg to 100g of strong high protein low gluten flour, preferably the “durum” wheat type which fulfils those criteria and hence makes very good pasta.  Eggs need to be the best you can find, organic fresh bright yellow yolked eggs make great pasta.

For two people 2 eggs and 200g of flour should suffice and so on.  However I generally make batches involving 4 eggs and 400g of flour because sometimes the eggs are a bit small and I need to add an extra egg…then the mixture is a teeny bit too sticky so I might then add say 20-30g more flour.  Thats more difficult to do when you only have 2 eggs as a starting point.

Ingredients

4 large organic eggs

400g durum wheat flour

How To

I learned to make pasta in Italy, with two sisters. One was in her seventies the other in her eighties. The next day I went to the pharmacy for something to calm my inflamed tendons (was it the inflammation from the kneading or being slapped on the wrists by the Mamas for my dodgy bread kneading technique deemed so totally wrong for pasta..anyhow…it hurt) and while it is fun and amazing to make pasta with mounds of flour on worktops, tipping the ingredients into a food processor yield great results and less mess too.

Tip all the ingredients into your food processor bowl or mixer (I use the dough hook) and process until it comes together.  Try and process as much as you can without burning the motor out.  It will be quite a stiff dough compared to bread dough yet should still be elastic.  It must be kneaded..and kneaded..and kneaded until it becomes silky.

Then wrap in cling film and keep chilled in the fridge or a damp towel if using  immediately.