Traditional Romanian Pancakes “Ana Lugojana”

This post is also available in: Română

• This recipe is a traditional Romanian recipe that consists in pancakes filled with a delicious cheese cream and covered with a beautiful sweet meringue. This dessert was part of a Pub Ana Lugojana menu. The Pub is not so famous anymore but this recipe is very famous in Romania.
• Recipe: traditional
• Difficulty: high
• Serves: 8 pancakes

Ingredients:

Pancakes	Cheese filling	Egg yolk cream	Meringue
300 g all-purpose flour	200 g fresh cow cheese	4 egg yolks	6 egg whites
4 eggs	1 egg	4 tablespoons sugar	10 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons sugar	3 tablespoons sugar	vanilla essence	1 tablespoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon vanilla essence	3 drops of the essence of rum	250 g cream with over 20% fat	a pinch of salt
1 cup of milk	2 tablespoons cream (or cream cheese)		1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/2 cup sparkling water	raisins (optional)		juice from a half lemon
1 teaspoon butter

You need:

• non stick pan for pancakes preparation
• oven-safe dish or ramekins

Preparation:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C
• Pancakes 
  • Prepare the pancake composition by mixing all the ingredients until the composition becomes a thick cream.
  • Fry the pancakes one by one in a non stick pan, using a drop of oil for each pancake and then let them cool down a bit

• Cream cheese filling:
  • Mix fresh cow cheese with eggs, sugar, rum and sour cream + raisins
• Egg yolks cream 
  • Mix egg yolks with sugar and vanilla essence until thick and creamy.
  • Add the cream and mix again
• Meringue
  • Pour eggs whites into spotlessly-clean mixer bowl
  • Start the mixer to low speed and whip for 5 minutes
  • Add the pinch of salt
  • Whip for 5 more minutes
  • Slowly add the sugar (one tablespoon every 3 minutes) while the mixer is on.
  • After you added the sugar increase the spead and whip for 5 more minutes.
  • Add the lemon juice, cream of tartar and vanilla.
  • Whip to high speed for 15 minutes until they are glossy and smooth.
• Prepare the pancakes for the oven:
  • Lightly grease the oven-safe dish with butter
  • Fill each pancake with some cream filling, and place them in an oven pan, close one to another (Image)

• Add small pieces of butter on the top
• Pour the egg yolks cream over the pancakes
• Spread meringue on top
• Put them into the oven and bake until the meringue is crisp on the outside, and sound hollow when tapped on the top (2 hours)