The Charmed Kitchen

Pineapple Blintzes

I taught a class last night on cooking with tortillas. We made some traditional dishes, but we also had fun making these fruit filled blintzes. We used the  tortillas to replace the crepes. Everyone loved them.

I soaked the tortillas in milk. That is the secret to make this dish work. By soaking the tortillas in milk, they soften up and can be used like a crepe. It changes their texture completely. Soak them for at least 20 minutes, or up to an hour. I placed the tortillas in a shallow baking pan and made sure to drizzle each one with milk as I added them to the pan. They will stick together if softened too long, so you might want to put the tortillas on sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper to keep them separate as they soften. You could also soak them in almond or rice milk, or even fruit juice.

For the filling, I used a pineapple filling that I made from crushed pineapple, sweetened with sugar, a little vanilla and thickened with Clear Gel- a type of cornstarch.* Here is the recipe for the pineapple filling along with directions on how to assemble and prepare them.

Pineapple Blintzes

 Filling:

1 can ( 20 oz.) crushed pineapple, packed in juice, un-drained

½ c. sugar, or more to suit your taste

1 t. vanilla

¼ c. Clear Gel or cornstarch

2 T. cold water

Butter for frying

12 flour tortillas- 8-inch

Powdered sugar

In sauce pan, heat together pineapple, sugar and vanilla and bring to a boil. Combine Clear Gel with cold water and stir until smooth. Slowly drizzle this mixture into the pineapple, stirring constantly. Mixture will thicken quickly. You might not need to add all of the Clear Gel mixture. Once it thickens, remove from heat and cool down a little before making the blintzes. Makes about 3 cups, enough for about 12 blintzes.

To assemble the blintzes, place a softened tortilla on your work surface and spoon a little pineapple filling in the middle. You can do this with hot filling, but easier if the filling has cooled down or is even cold. Don’t over fill them or you won’t be able to fold them up. I used 8-inch tortillas and used about 1/4 cup of filling for each one. Fold the sides in until they almost meet in the middle and then roll the tortilla up to cover the filling. Place seam side down until ready to fry them.

Heat butter in a skillet, and brown the blintzes over medium heat until lightly toasted on both sides. They will be crispy on the outside, but tender in the middle. Put on a serving plate, sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve while warm.

Note: They can be assembled ahead of time, then kept in the fridge until ready to cook. You can also cook them up ahead of time, and just warm in the oven when ready to serve. If rewarming them, cover to keep them from drying out.

I have made these before and use different fruit fillings. I’ve also made a cheese filled version a few times. It seems I usually have a package of tortillas, so it is a go-to dessert for me in a pinch. Nice brunch or breakfast dish, too. For dessert, you can also top them with ice cream or whipped cream.

* Clear Gel is modified cornstarch. It is used in commercial pie fillings and in many frozen dinners. It looks just like regular cornstarch. The big difference between Clear Gel and traditional cornstarch is that Clear gel won’t get runny when reheated. If you have ever used cornstarch to thicken a stir fry, you know that the next day, if you reheat it, the sauce thins out. Clear Gel does not do that- it stays thick. Clear Gel is available at stores in Amish communities and on-line.