Cottage Cheese Blintzes

Celebrate Shavuot with homemade cheese blintzes! Filled with creamy farmer’s cheese and topped with a tangy blueberry sauce for that perfect balance of flavor.

Jump to:

• A Little Creativity, A Little Cheese
• Cheesy Traditions, Same Heart
• Ingredients
• How to Make Cheese Blintzes Recipe 
• Storage
• Top Tips
• Recipe

In our home, Shavuot smells like butter hitting a hot pan and sounds like the hush that falls just before the first bite of something soft and creamy. It’s a quiet holiday, no flashy rituals, just dairy, abundance, and time together. For me, it has always meant blintzes.

It wasn't the fancy kind, just my grandmother's Russian blintzes: golden, whisper-thin pancakes wrapped around sweetened farmer’s cheese and topped with a tart sour cherry sauce. That old recipe is still one I return to every year, unchanged and comforting. You’ll find it on the blog exactly as she made it, traditional Russian blintzes, soft and warm like memory itself.

But this year, something new slipped in. And, as these things often do, it started at brunch.

We were gathered around a table littered with pancakes and toys, coffee gone lukewarm as we tried to finish a sentence between toddler negotiations. Midway through breakfast, one of the kids looked up from his syrupy plate and asked with complete seriousness, “Can I have cottage cheese on my pancake?”

We all laughed. It was one of those wonderfully weird things kids say, like asking if the moon has snacks. But for some reason, it stuck with me. Cottage cheese on a pancake? Ridiculous… but also, oddly perfect?

A Little Creativity, A Little Cheese

Later that day, with Shavuot on my mind, I stood in the kitchen staring at a bowl of farmer’s cheese. The idea just wouldn’t leave me. I had the crepes. I had the cheese. Why not?

So I got to work. I kept the base exactly as it’s always been, those same soft Russian blintzes my hands know how to flip without thinking. But in the absence of Russian farmer's cheese, I adjusted the filling, adding a touch more richness. Something silkier, smooth and just a little sweet, sturdy enough to stand on its own.

Then came the fun part: pairing it with a new topping. I wanted something tangy and bright to cut through the richness, something that would balance the creamy filling and echo the season. A blueberry sauce started simmering on the stove, filling the kitchen with the smell of summer.

That first batch of cheesy blintzes disappeared in minutes. My kids couldn’t get enough. F asked if this was “just for holidays” or if we could start making them on weekends, too. And I? I felt like I’d just made something that collided two worlds—my childhood and my motherhood, my mother’s table and my own.

Cheesy Traditions, Same Heart

These cheese blintzes are now a part of our Shavuot table, not instead of the traditional version, but alongside them. One is memory; the other is invention. One carries the taste of the home I grew up in, the other holds the laughter of a brunch table with sticky fingers and bright ideas.

When I serve them with that tangy blueberry sauce, it feels like a celebration not just of dairy, but of creativity, of listening to those odd little moments that stick in your brain and turn into something real. Shavuot has always been about dairy, about comfort, about sweetness. But it’s also about renewal—about Torah, about learning, about receiving something new.

Every year, as I roll up those pancakes and warm them in the pan, I think of that kid’s voice asking for cheese on his pancake. And I think, yeah, why not?

Tradition has room for play. And food, at its best, always leaves space for joy.

Ingredients

• Liquid (Milk, Water, or a Milk-Water Combination) – The liquid serves to thin out the batter, making it easy to pour and spread into a thin, even layer in the pan. I love using a combination of milk and water because it creates a perfect balance of richness from the milk and lightness from the water. If I’m in a pinch, I’ll use just water, but the milk adds a creaminess that I prefer for my blintzes.
• Flour – I use all-purpose flour for the blintz batter. It’s essential for creating a smooth, soft texture that crisps up perfectly when frying. I start with two cups and adjust as needed. If I’m using only water in the batter, I’ll often need a little more flour to help it thicken. The flour helps create a thin, flexible pancake-like layer that holds the cheese filling.
• Oil– A little oil in the batter helps to make the blintzes more pliable, especially when they cook. It gives the pancakes a subtle richness without making them greasy. I use a neutral oil like vegetable oil, but you could also use a light olive oil if that’s what you have on hand.

For the Cheese Filling

• Tworog (Farmer’s Cheese) or Thick Cottage Cheese – This is the heart of the cheese filling. Tworog, a traditional Eastern European cheese, is a soft, crumbly cheese that works wonderfully for blintzes. If you can't find Tworog, thick cottage cheese will work well, though you’ll need to drain it overnight to remove excess moisture. If using cottage cheese, you'll need to adjust the egg quantities - please see full recipe below.
• Raisins (Optional)– Raisins add a burst of sweetness and a chewy texture to the cheese filling. I always include them in my recipe, but you can skip them if you prefer a simpler filling. If I have extra time, I’ll soak the raisins in warm water for a few minutes to make them extra plump and juicy.

See the recipe card for full list and exact quantities.

How to Make Cheese Blintzes Recipe 

These golden, crispy cheese blintzes are creamy on the inside and perfect for Shavuot or a weekend brunch. Filled with sweet cottage cheese and finished with a tangy blueberry sauce, they’re comfort food wrapped up in tradition. Here's how to make this blintz recipe:

Bring the Eggs to Room Temperature

Before starting, let your eggs sit at room temperature for 15–20 minutes. This helps the batter come together more smoothly.

Make the Cheese Filling

In a medium bowl, mix all the filling ingredients until fully combined. Start with 1 egg only, and add another one only if needed. The filling shouldn't be runny but rather thick and gloopy. You want a thick consistency that’s easy to scoop and not runny. Set aside.

Make the Blintz Batter

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and your liquid base until well blended. Add oil, sugar, and salt, whisking until smooth. Gradually add the flour in small portions—up to one cup—whisking between each addition. The batter should have the texture of low-fat sour cream: smooth, pourable, but not watery.

Butter the Holding Plate

Rub a bit of butter over the bottom of a large plate. This is where you’ll stack your cooked blintzes. The butter prevents sticking and keeps the stack tender.

Cook the Blintzes

Heat a nonstick pan over medium-high. When it’s hot enough to sizzle with a drop of oil, add a teaspoon of oil and pour in about ¼ cup of batter. Immediately tilt the pan in a circular motion to spread the batter thinly and evenly. Cook until the edges begin to curl and the top looks set—about 1–2 minutes. Do not flip.

Stack and Butter the Blintzes

Use a thin spatula to gently lift the blintz from the pan and place it on your buttered plate. Add a small dab of butter on top. Repeat until all the batter is used.

Note: The first blintz rarely turns out perfectly. Use it to taste and adjust sugar, salt, or flour as needed. If your batter feels too thin, add a tablespoon of flour at a time until you reach the right consistency.

Fill and Fold

Lay each cooked blintz cooked-side up on a flat surface. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of the cheese filling into the center. Fold the sides inward like a burrito, then roll from the bottom up to form a sealed envelope.

Fry the Blintzes

Preheat your pan again over medium heat. Add a bit of oil or butter. Place the filled blintzes seam-side down and fry for about 2 minutes per side, until golden and lightly crisped.

Serve with Sauce

Serve your blintzes warm, topped with a spoonful of sour cream or blueberry sauce. They’re just the right balance of creamy, sweet, and tangy.

Storage

If you find yourself with leftover blintzes, place them in a single layer in an airtight container, separating layers with parchment or wax paper to prevent sticking. They’ll keep in the fridge for up to 4 days.

When you're ready to reheat, I recommend warming them gently in a skillet with just a touch of butter. The outsides get beautifully crisp again, and the cheese filling turns warm and silky, almost better than fresh. You can also reheat them in the oven at 325°F (160°C) for about 10 minutes if you're feeding a crowd or just want to avoid dishes.

For longer storage, wrap unfried, filled blintzes in plastic and freeze for up to a month. Cook straight from frozen or thaw overnight before frying. I always keep a few tucked away for those mornings when only a warm, cheesy blintz will do.

Recipe