Creamy and savoury Ricotta Pancakes pair perfectly with fresh tomato and basil salsa. Give it a try for a weekend brunch!
Try pairing these pancakes with a salad like our Lentil Salad with Fava Beans and Feta.
Pancakes are a classic choice for a weekend brunch but every once in a while it’s great to make a change. These pancakes were born from an idea for a savoury pancake to replace our normal sweet treat.
Ricotta is brilliant in recipes like this one. It adds a lovely creaminess that meshes perfectly with the sharper flavour of the hard cheese.
Although I’ve called these pancakes they have quite a lot in common with a savoury fritter. The texture is very similar and the process for making them is the same.
Vegetarian cheese
Ricotta is almost always vegetarian because it uses traditional methods. These methods involve the use of heat and acid to coagulate the cheese, rather than rennet. Because animal rennet is often used in cheese production, it is much easier to choose cheese that doesn’t use rennet of any form when it is made.
Hard cheese, unfortunately, is often made with animal rennet. This includes traditional hard cheese such as Parmesan or Grana Padano.
The sharp taste of hard cheese is important for this recipe, so it is important not to skip in entirely. Just make sure you look carefully at the packaging to find one that uses only vegetarian ingredients.
Ricotta pancakes recipe tips
- Heat the oil before adding the pancake to give them a golden, crispy outside.
- If you don’t have ricotta, cottage cheese can be used instead, especially if lightly blended first. Choose a light and mild version.
- It’s important to serve the pancakes hot so the outside is still crispy, so make the tomato basil salsa in advance so it is ready to go.
- I think the tomato basil salsa is the perfect match for the ricotta pancakes, but other toppings will work well too. Mexican-style salsa or red chilli sauce would also work.
- Ricotta pancakes are ideal for brunch, but also work well for lunch or dinner.
Ricotta Pancakes with Tomato Basil Salsa
Creamy and savoury Ricotta Pancakes pair perfectly with fresh tomato and basil salsa.
Ingredients
- 200g / 7oz cherry tomatoes
- 6 basil leaves
- 1 garlic clove
- 3 tablespoon tbsp olive oil
- 500g / 2 cups ricotta cheese
- 2 eggs
- 130g / 1 cup flour
- 50g / 2oz vegetarian hard cheese
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- Make the tomato and basil salsa by cutting the cherry tomatoes in half and mixing with sliced basil leaves and minced garlic. Add salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon olive oil. In a medium bowl combine all ingredients and stir until well combined.
- Heat 2 tablespoon olive oil in a frying pan, test the oil is hot enough by sprinkling a pinch of flour. If the pan is hot enough it will sizzle.
- Drop approximately 2 tablespoon of the cheese mixture into hot oil and fry over medium heat for 2 minutes on each side. Remove on a kitchen paper lined platter to soak up extra oil.
- Serve fritters while hot with tomato basil salsa.
Notes
This recipe makes 12 pancakes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 319Total Fat: 18gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 97mgSodium: 307mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 16g
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