If Ukrainians ever voted on their favorite breakfast dish, syrnyky—little pancakes made with farmer cheese—would be the clear winner. Pretty much every Ukrainian, regardless of his or her skill in the kitchen, knows how to make this dish. Here’s my favorite tried-and-true recipe (which, I am proud to say, has become the go-to recipe in many Ukrainian households!).
Syrnyky are traditionally served with sour cream or jam, but feel free to experiment with other toppings, such as maple syrup, peanut butter, and fresh fruit. You can even drizzle the pancakes with a little caramel sauce!
When you make syrnyky, your choice of farmer cheese is of great importance. It should not be too dry—if it is, the syrnyky will not hold their shape well—but neither should it be too watery. If there is a lot of whey left in the cheese, you should strain it through a sieve with cheesecloth and let the liquid drain.
The recipe is completely scalable for any amount of tea or oil you have; I like to do an 8:1 ratio by volume. If you want it to be very concentrated, think like an enfleurage: infuse once, strain out the tea, and then infuse the oil a second time with new tea. And if you’re looking for avenues to experiment further, try some other oil you like the flavor of—perhaps a blend of grapeseed and sesame, some sweet and light olive oil, rich and dark-green pumpkin seed oil.
When I visited A Bolota, a lovely restaurant perched on the sweeping plains of the eastern Alentejo, this dip, called pate de azeitonas verdes, was brought to our table. As I nattered away with friends, I dipped, spread, and nibbled, until I realized I alone had eaten all of it. Later, when I became friendly with the cook, Ilda Vinagre, I watched her make it and was flummoxed when she whipped up its silky base: milk “mayonnaise”—whole milk whirred into a smooth consistency with the addition of vegetable oil. I serve this as a dip with a platter of crudites, alongside crackers or bread, or, sometimes, as a topping for grilled fish.—David Leite
Ingredients