Syrniki Is The Slavic Sweet Pancake You Can Recreate With Cottage Cheese

If your favorite brunch treat is a stack of light, airy pancakes covered in sweet syrup, you're not alone. In fact, it seems like almost every culture worldwide has its own version of a flat, griddled cake covered in sticky, buttery sweetness. In the U.S., we indulge in buttermilk pancakes, the French delight in crepes, and diners in the Netherlands dig into Dutch babies. However, Eastern Europe may hold the secret to making the fluffiest, most delicious pancakes of all — cheese.

Cheese isn't necessarily a strange ingredient to find in your flapjacks, especially since most brunch places these days seem to have tangy lemon ricotta pancakes on the menu. What may be surprising is that this cheesy trend isn't new, as Ukrainians have been making syrniki for hundreds of years. These fried farmer's cheese pancakes are golden and crisp on the outside and tender on the inside, allowing them to become fully saturated with butter and syrup. 

Traditionally speaking, syrniki are made with tvorog, a style of farmer's cheese common in Russia and Ukraine. It's a mild, young cheese similar to ricotta or cottage cheese, but with a dry, crumbly texture. This type of farmer's cheese can be difficult to find in the United States, so if you want to try making syrniki, you can swap it out for good old-fashioned cottage cheese. The key is to first drain the cottage cheese to keep your syrniki from becoming oversaturated and dense.

Whether you're looking to reconnect to your ancestry or want to make brunch more exciting, syrniki offer an easy, accessible way to add a little cultural diversity to your diet. Cottage cheese is also packed with protein and vitamins, so adding it to your morning short stack is a great way to make your pancakes more nutritious. Just be aware that syrniki are a little more delicate than classic buttermilk pancakes, so handle them with care when frying.

Since traditional farmer's cheese is dryer than cottage cheese, you'll need to squeeze out as much excess moisture as possible to make your syrniki batter. Line a colander with a cheese cloth, pour in the amount of cottage cheese you'll need, and press firmly until most of the moisture is gone. Then, the cheese is ready to blend into a batter with eggs, flour, baking powder, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Feel free to add vanilla, cinnamon, or any other delicious pancake upgrades you prefer.

Once combined, form the dough into 2-inch balls, dredge them in flour, and pat them into thick, round discs. Then, gently lay each syrniki in a pan with hot oil or butter to fry. Cook on medium-low heat, removing them from the pan when they're crisp and golden on both sides. Top with butter, syrup, fruit jam, or even a dollop of nut butter before digging in.