Fluffy Lemon-Blueberry Cottage Cheese Pancakes

The basic pancake recipe is from a cookbook any breakfast lover ought to own: A Real American Breakfast by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison. The Jamisons – who, incidentally, are New Mexico residents – are wonderful cookbook authors with a strong emphasis on regional American food, and this is my favorite of their books. The pages are rumpled and spotted from getting wet, the mark of a beloved cookbook.

I adjusted the recipe for “Creamy Silver Dollar Cheese Cakes” by adding a little sugar, lemon, and (of course) blueberries; I also increased the flour to help them hold together. If you’d like a truly ethereal pancake, halve the flour, keep the cakes small, make sure the heat is fairly low – if they sizzle too much they break apart – and handle very gently.

Even with the additional flour, these little cakes are like clouds. (And they’re beautiful too, with a delicate lacework of browning.) I love their delicate texture and tangy flavor. Some brands of cottage cheese are tangier than others; I used SuperNatural, which is off the charts. If yours is sweeter, you can increase the lemon a little. Don’t worry too much about it, though, because you’ll be serving them with lemon wedges so each diner can make them as lemony as they want.

Actually, you don’t have to serve them with lemon wedges – I stole that idea from the classic accompaniments to Dutch Baby pancakes. The Jamisons serve these with applesauce, which would be nice; so would jam, preserves, or fruit compote; and a simple drizzle of maple syrup would be lovely too. Feel free to swap the blueberries out for another berry (sliced or halved if large). I would love to try these with blackberries!

If you’re serving just two people, the recipe halves beautifully.

More breakfast recipes: Pennsylvania Dutch Baked Oatmeal, Overnight Brown-Sugar French Toast, Peanut Butter and Jelly French Toast, Butterscotch Pears with Breakfast Couscous

Fluffy Lemon-Blueberry Cottage Cheese Pancakes
Serves: 4     Time: 25-30 minutes, all hands-on

1 cup cottage cheese, drained in a sieve if very wet
2/3 cup thick Greek yogurt (or, if you’re feeling decadent, sour cream)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest, optional
5 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon sugar
Pinch salt
Vegetable oil for the griddle
1 cup blueberries
Powdered sugar, blueberries, and lemon wedges, for serving (for other options, see above)

Heat a griddle or large heavy skillet to a temperature just slightly lower than you usually use for pancakes – for instance, set an electric griddle to 325 instead of the usual 350. Set the oven to 200 to keep the first batch of pancakes warm, unless you’re serving straight off the griddle. (I like to use my griddle right on the breakfast table.)

Whisk together the cottage cheese, yogurt, and eggs in a medium-large bowl. Add the butter, lemon juice and zest, flour, sugar, and salt, and stir until well combined.

When the griddle is hot, brush with oil. Spoon the batter on in circles about 2 inches across (a heaping tablespoon or so). Adorn each cake with 3 or 4 blueberries.

Cook the cakes for about 3 minutes, until their undersides are nicely golden brown. Flip gently and cook another 2-3 minutes, until the second side is golden. Serve warm, with powdered sugar and blueberries tumbled on top, and lemon wedges on the side.
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