Skip to Content

Blintz Vs. Crepe: Main Differences, How To Tell Them Apart?

Blintz Vs. Crepe: Main Differences, How To Tell Them Apart?

Did you know that there is more than one type of pancake? While this is good news for those who love these sweet breakfast dishes, differentiating them is challenging. Let us now expound more on blintz vs. crepe pancakes.

A blintz is a thin blini pancake filled with sweet cheese, folded, and fried. It is usually served with sour cream, sweet sauce, or fruit. In contrast, a crepe is a round pancake-like pastry made with wheat. Both dishes are made from wheat and can be sweet or savory, depending on the ingredients.

Simply put, blintz and pancakes are types of pancakes, and their primary differences are mainly cosmetic. This post will help you discover the elements that set them apart.

focus men reading

Definitions Of Blintz And Crepe

Blintz and crepe are unfamiliar words to many. Even the few people familiar with these words do not know how to differentiate them. For these reasons, we kick off this article with the definitions of blintz and crepe.

Definition Of Blintz

A blintz is a thin, rolled pancake filled with cheese, folded, fried, or baked. Serve it with sour cream or sweet sauce. An example of this word is, “A cup of tea with a blintz is my idea of a perfect breakfast meal.”

A blintz is a popular traditional cigar-shaped blini filled with cottage cheese of Ashkenazi Jewish origin. It is similar to a crepe or Russian blin. It is an everyday treat in Russia and Ukraine and was traditionally known as “farmer’s cheese.” Here is an example sentence, “I cannot make blintz like my mother does because she refuses to share her recipe.”

Definition Of Crepe

A crepe is a round and flat pastry that looks like a pancake; it is made with wheat. It is stuffed with sweet and savory ingredients. The main difference between a pancake and a crepe is that baking powder is not an ingredient in the crepe recipe. Baking powder makes pancakes fluffy. However, crepes are round and flat, so they do not need baking powder. In a sentence: “A crepe should be thin and flat, unlike a pancake.”

Another definition of crepe is a soft crinkled tissue paper, also known as crepe paper. A crepe paper is a decorative paper resembling a pancake-like pastry. For example, in a sentence, “A crepe paper is the perfect decorative tool for parties.”

Another definition of a crepe is rubber or sheets used for making shoe soles. In a sentence, “The policemen wore shoes with crepe soles.”

In Ireland, a crepe is a bereavement poster. It is written on a white card with a background of black crepe paper or fabric. The notices are usually stuck on the doors for easy recognition. For example, in a sentence, “The businesses woke up to crepe notices on their doors yesterday morning.”

Crepe also refers to a soft, thin, and light fabric with a crinkled surface. In a sentence, “The vendors printed the notice on a crepe and hung it on the palace gates.”

As a verb, crepe means “to create a paper to make it look like a crepe paper.” For example, “My mum was so annoyed at the notice that she turned it to crepe as soon as she read it.”

How To Properly Use Blintz And Crepe In A Sentence

There isn’t a word in English that you cannot use as long as you know what it means. Therefore, now that you understand the definitions of “crepe” and “blintz,” start using the terms in sentences. Here are guidelines you should consider when using these words in sentences:

How To Use The Word Blintz

Use this word in a sentence as a noun when referring to a thin pancake filled with sweet cheese. The term is a countable noun. Therefore, its plural form is “blintzes.” In a sentence, “My mum makes blintzes every morning.”

How To Use The Word Crepe

Use this word as a noun when referring to a flat thin batter cake fried in a pan with oil or butter. For example, “A crepe is a thin version of a pancake.”

You can also use it as a noun in the following contexts:

  • To refer to a crepe paper
  • To refer to a soft, light fabric with a crinkled surface
  • To refer to rubber sheets for making shoe soles

You can use this word as a noun in its plural form (crepes). For example, “Crepes are incredible treats.” As a verb, use it to refer to the process of creating a paper to make it resemble a crepe paper or crepe pancake.”

When using this word as a verb, you can use other word forms, like:

  • Creped – past tense and past participle
  • Creping – present participle
  • Crepes – third-person singular simple present indicative form

In addition to noun and verb forms, use this word as an adjective when the context allows. For example, “The crepe paper is an incredible decoration.” In this sentence, the word “crepe” modifies the noun “paper.” It explains the state of the paper, which is “thin and crinkled.”

Other adjective forms of this word are:

  • Crepey
  • Crepe-like
  • Crepy

Blintz Vs. Crepe: Some Exciting Differences

The similarity between crepes and blintzes is that they are both prepared sweet or savory and made from wheat flour. More so, you can roll both of them with various ingredients like chocolate, fruits, cheese, or vegetables.

Interestingly, these words have more exciting differences. Here are the differences explained in detail:

History

Crepes have a Slavic history. They originated from Russia as “blinis” and took the name “crepe” from Europe.” The word also has links to the 1797 Old French term, “crespe,” meaning “ruff, ruffle, or frill.” In 1895, the inventors created the first crepe paper.

Blintz is a Yiddish word coined from Russian “blinyets,” meaning “pancake.” It also has Old Russian roots, from the word “blinu,” meaning “to crush or grind.”

Nature

While both dishes resemble thin pancakes, a blintz features sweet cheese fillings, while crapes can be plain with fruit or savory treats.

Preparation

Another difference is that crepes only need cooking once, but blintz needs to be cooked two times. The second time comes after the filling; it’s when you add butter. That means a blintz takes longer to prepare than crepes.

Word Comparison Posts

List Of Examples Of Blintz And Crepe Use In Sentences

You are now armed with all there is to know about crepes and blintzes. But can you create example sentences that stand out? Read the ten example sentences featuring these words below.

Example sentences of the word blintz

  1. My mum finally taught us the blintz recipe.
  2. I love my morning cup of tea with blintz.
  3. A blintz is my favorite breakfast dish from today.
  4. The first time my husband spent the night at my house, I made him blintz and tea for breakfast.
  5. Do you know that blintz is a Jewish dish brought to us by the Russians?

young teacher board

Example sentences of the word crepe

  1. My mum used crepe paper to decorate the dishes
  2. The back of the paper looks like a flattened crepe.
  3. Crepes are incredible breakfast treats.
  4. My wedding guests loved the crepes our Roman chef cooked.
  5. My secret crepe recipe ingredient is rice flour.

Conclusion

Crepes and blintzes are thin and flat pancake-like treats made with wheat flour. They are both easy to make because all it takes is preparing the batter and pouring it over a hot pan. Crepes are more popular than blintzes because they appear on restaurant menus more than their counterparts.

Now that you know what these terms mean, you might start to notice them on a few menus. Let us know what you think about these words from what you have learned in this article.