Breads, Cakes and Custards
Ostaria Istriana

Palacinche - Palačinke
(Sweet Pancakes - Crepes)

These delicate pancakes are enjoyed not only in Friuli and Istria, but also in neighboring Austria, Hungary, and Romania. The best way to enjoy them is filled with slightly sweetened ricotta, chocolate syrup, or the traditional Istrian way: with the finest fruit preserves or fresh fruit.

You can usually make the crepes and stack crepes between sheets of waxed paper and chill. Cover and refrigerate filling. Assemble and reheat just before serving. To find the correct skillet, measure it across the bottom, not the top.

Crepes can be blended with a fork, the Istrian way, but a hand blender or stand blender alternative is recommended since it is nearly impossible to whisk the batter enough by hand to remove all of the lumps. Also be sure to use a non-stick crepe pan for your Palacinche – they should be whisper-thin and lacy.

Recipes:

• Nina's palacinche (English)

• Palacinche carsoline (Italiano)

• Palacinche furlane (Italiano)

• Palacinche - Palatschinken (Italiano)
• Palacinche with apple filling (English)
• Pancakes with walnut & wine chadeau (Palačinke s orasima i vinskim šatoom) (English)

Related recipe:

• Crepes suzette

Ingredients:

• 2 whole eggs, well beaten
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon rum
• 1 cup (or more) milk
• salt to taste (pinch)
• oil to coat frying pan

Yield:  About 10-12 pancakes

Beat all ingredients well and let stand a few minutes.  Grease the frying pan lightly with olive oil. Pour just enough batter to cover the pan so that the batter spreads thinly. Tilt the pan while pouring the batter in to make it spread evenly into a round shape. Fry for a few seconds until you see bubbles start to form, then flip with a spatula and cook the other side.  ontinue until all batter is used up, occasionally replacing the absorbed oil.

On each pancake, spread several tablespoons of your favorite syrup (ex: chocolate), jam, jelly or even fresh fruit slices (strawberries are my favorite) with whipped cream. Roll the crepe and serve.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup flour
• Salt
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 5 tablespoons butter, melted, plus extra for pan
• Plum or apricot jam
• 3 tablespoons rum

Step 1
Sift the flour with a pinch of salt into a bowl. Pour the milk in slowly, mixing constantly so that no lumps form. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each one, and 3 tablespoons of the melted butter. Cover and let rest for 1 hour.

Step 2
Heat a little butter in a 5-inch frying pan. Remove any excess with a wad of paper towelling. Pour 2 tablespoons of batter into the pan. Tilt the pan so that the batter covers the bottom. Pour off any excess batter. When the crepe is cooked on one side, turn it over. Set it aside, and make eleven more, buttering the pan if necessary with the wad of paper towelling.

Step 3
Preheat the oven to 425°F. Butter a baking dish lightly. Spread a thin layer of jam on each crepe and roll it up. Arrange the crepes side by side in the baking dish, sprinkle them with the remaining melted butter, pour the rum on top, and bake them for 5 minutes. Serve very hot.

• Preparation time: 20 minutes plus resting time
• Cooking time: 30 minutes
• Difficulty: Medium
• Makes: 12 crepes
• Suggested wines: Fortified wine or dessert wine. Recommended: Picolit; Sagrantino Passito di Montefalco.

Source:

• http://www.italydaily.it/Italian_life/Food_wine/ricette_regioni/friuli_ricetta1.shtml

Ingredienti (per 5 palacinche):

• un uovo
• mezza tazza di farina
• mezzo cucchiaio di zucchero
• mezzo cucchiaio di rum
• un pizzico di sale
• mezza tazza di latte
• un po' d'olio o di burro per evitare che le palacinche si attacchino alla padella

Dopo aver sbattuto per bene l'uovo, unite tutti gli ingredienti e lasciate riposare la pastella formatasi per un paio di minuti. Ungete quindi la padella, in modo che il fondo sia completamente coperto da uno strato leggero d'olio o di burro. Versate un pò del composto nella padella, in modo da creare una frittatina molto sottile. Friggete per alcuni secondi, quindi girate velocemente con una spatola e friggete l'altro lato. Fate così fino ad esaurimento della pastella e aggiungere olio in caso la padella non risultasse abbastanza unta. Riempite quindi la palacinca con una composta di noci e servitela piegata a triangolo.

Source:

• Cucina Carsolina - http://www.marecarso.it/sapori_cucina.htm

Take a deep bowl and mix an egg and a pinch of salt, gradually adding flour and milk (or mineraI water) and mixing constantly. When the mixture is smooth, pour a smallladie of the batter mix in the centre of the pancake pan, ensuring that the batter spreads evenly around the pan. When the underneath is nicely brown, turn it with a spatula. When cooked, fin the pancake with a mixture of ground walnuts, sugaf, cinnamon and vanilla sugar. Arrange on a warmed plate, top with wine chadeau and serve immediately.

Wine chadeau
Beat 2 egg yolks and two eggs together in a bowl until they become frothy. Add the sugar and continue beating until the frothy mixture is pale in colour. Gradually add the wine, beating with an egg whisk all the while. PIace the bowl over a steamer (in which the water is not quite boiling) and continue whisking until the chadeau becomes a thick foam. Pour over the pancakes immediately and serve.

Suggestion: The pancake pan must be well heated and must maintain an oil coating while the pancakes cook.

Source:

• Croatian Cuisine, the Modern Way. Golden Marketing (Zagreb, 1995)

Ingredients:

• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• Grated zest of 1/2 lemon
• Pinch salt
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons raw sugar or light brown sugar

Filling:

• 6 large Granny Smith apples (2 1/2 pounds), peeled, cored and sliced

For filling:
Place apples in 9-by-9-inch microwave-safe dish. Cover with waxed paper. Microwave on medium (50 percent power), stirring often, until very soft and nearly pureed, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven and stir until smooth (a few lumps are fine).

For Palacinche:
Put all ingredients except butter and raw sugar in blender and whirl until smooth. Transfer to bowl and let stand 20 minutes, or cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Wipe a 5 1/2- to 6 1/2-inch nonstick skillet with paper towel moistened in olive oil. Heat over medium-low heat. Add 2 tablespoons palacinche, or crepe, batter and tilt to coat pan bottom evenly. Cook until just lightly browned and set on underside. With nylon spatula, loosen edge and turn. Cook a few seconds longer. Slide out onto dinner plate. Repeat, making about 12 Palacinche. Cover loosely with plastic wrap.

To serve:
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Coat 11-by-7-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon butter.

Smear about 1 tablespoon apple filling on a crepe. Fold in edges and roll it up from bottom. Place in prepared dish seam side down. Repeat with remaining crepes and filling.

Dot with remaining butter; sprinkle with raw or brown sugar. Bake until heated and bubbly, about 15 minutes. Serve warm; filling can get extremely hot.

You can make both the crepes and filling ahead. Stack the crepes between sheets of waxed paper and chill. Cover and refrigerate the filling. Assemble and reheat just before serving.

Makes 6 servings

Source:

• http://www.food-lists.com/lists/archives/restaurant-recipes/2003/10/1065121429.php (Adapted from Luca Plett, a chef from Friuli)

Stir together the flour, sugar and salt. Put in a mixing bowl the eggs, milk and brandy (or vanilla) and beat well. Stir in the flour mixture. Cover and let stand at least 1/2 hour. Cook the crepes as per above recipe.

Ingredienti:

• 125 gr. farina
• 1/4  l. di latte
• 2 uova
• 1 tuorlo
• 50 gr.  burro
• olio o burro

40 minuti

Preparare con gli ingredienti menzionati una pastella incorporandovi le uova intere e lasciarla riposare. Friggere le palacinche sottilissime, piegarle a quarti, spolverarle di zucchero e bagnarle con succo di arancia o rum. Si possono farcire con un ripieno di cacao o di biscotti e arrotolare.

Le palacinche classiche sono arrotolate e farcite di marmellata di albicocca o di susine e spruzzate di zucchero a velo.

Come friggerle:

Riscaldare in una padella di alluminio dal bordo basso l'olio necessario per velare il fondo, versarvi un mestolino di pastella e  farla scorrere per tutto il fondo inclinando la padella.

Friggere un pò sul fuoco moderato e quando la palacinca si staccherà voltarla con una paletta ( o con mossa lesta verso l'alto), rosolandola anche dall'altra faccia.

Source:

• Maria Stelvio, La Cucina triestina, Edizioni Italo Svevo (Trieste, 1990). Courtesy of Fulvio Percovich.

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Created: Wednesday, January 20, 1999. Last Updated: Wednesday, November 01, 2006
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