Luxury rösti and cheesy pancakes: Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipes for weekend breakfasts

I’m not sure where I stand on the word “staycation”. I’m also not sure why making a bit of an effort for breakfast, as opposed to for lunch or dinner, feels disproportionately special. What I am sure of, though, is that when I’m at home and the holidays have kicked in, there’s more time to play with at weekends, and starting the day off with buddies and breakfast just feels like holiday fun. I like to serve things I’ve pretty much prepped well ahead – the day before, even – so the focus can be on making coffee and chatting. One of my kids asked for a “man-ccino” the other day (the obvious graduation from babyccino, which he’s clearly too grown-up for), so I’ll figure out something for him, too.
This makes a showstopping brunch centrepiece, and the perfect (if slightly indulgent) vehicle for a fried egg, although you may also want to have it for lunch and dinner. The toppings can all be made in advance, as can the rösti itself – well, up to the final 25-minute cook, anyway.
Prep 20 min
Cook 1 hrServes 4-6
1kg potatoes (maris piper or another all-rounder), peeled and coarsely grated40g panko (or regular) breadcrumbs85ml olive oil
1 egg, lightly beatenFine sea salt and black pepper4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed2 skinless smoked haddock fillets (235g), cut into roughly 5cm pieces100g cherry (or baby plum) tomatoes, halved20g parsley, roughly chopped150g creme fraiche
20g capers, roughly chopped20g chives, finely chopped1 lemon, zest finely grated, to get ½ tsp, and juiced, to get 1 tbsp
Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Pile the grated potato into the middle of a clean tea towel, draw up the sides to enclose, then squeeze out as much liquid as possible – you should get about 350ml out. Transfer the potato to a large bowl, add 20g of the panko, 40ml oil, the egg, a teaspoon and a quarter of salt and a few grinds of black pepper, then mix to combine.
Transfer the rösti mix to a large, 22cm x 32cm baking tray lined with greaseproof paper and press down gently so it sits in an even layer. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Lift off the foil, turn up the heat to 220C (200C fan)/425F/gas 7, brush the top with a tablespoon or two of oil and bake again, this time uncovered, for a further 25 minutes, until golden and crisp.
Meanwhile, put a tablespoon of oil in a medium frying pan on a medium heat. Add the remaining 20g breadcrumbs, half the garlic and a pinch of salt, and fry, stirring constantly, for about three minutes, until golden and crisp.
Transfer the garlicky breadcrumb mix to a plate, wipe out the pan and pour in another two tablespoons of oil. Stir in the remaining garlic, the haddock and an eighth of a teaspoon of salt, then fry for four minutes, until the fish turns opaque and is starting to flake apart. Transfer to a bowl, leave to cool for a few minutes, then gently stir in the tomatoes and a quarter of the parsley.
In a small bowl, mix the remaining parsley with the creme fraiche, capers, chives, lemon juice, lemon zest and an eighth of a teaspoon of salt.
Transfer the rösti to a large board. Dollop the creme fraiche mixture here and therep, scatter the tomato and breadcrumb mixtures on top, cut into squares and serve.
Keep an eye out for the Insta-worthy cheese pull on these Venezuelan corn pancakes that are often sold at roadside food stands. They’re usually made with fresh corn, but I’ve used frozen corn for ease; if you’d prefer to use fresh, just stand the husk up on a board and shave off the kernels with a big, sharp knife; don’t use tinned sweetcorn here, though, because it’s far too wet. If you like, make the pancakes and the cheese mixture up to 24 hours ahead, ready for stuffing the following day.
Prep 25 min
Cook 35 min
Makes 6
For the pancake batter 300g frozen corn, defrosted 2 eggs
50g plain flour
40g masa harina, or fine semolina1 tbsp caster sugar
250ml milk
Flaky sea salt
For the filling300g firm/low-moisture mozzarella, roughly grated180g feta, finely crumbled 80g spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced 1 fresh jalapeño chilli, finely chopped (discard the pith and seeds if you prefer less heat)1 tsp coriander seeds, roughly crushed 2 tbsp olive oil
1 lime
2 tsp runny honey
Put all the batter ingredients in a blender, add a teaspoon of flaky salt and blitz smooth. Transfer to a bowl, cover with a tea towel and set aside for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, put the two cheeses, spring onions, jalapeño and crushed coriander seeds in a bowl and mix well.
Put a medium, 18cm frying pan on a medium heat and, once hot, brush it with a little oil. Ladle in about 120ml of the batter, swirl the pan so the batter covers the base, then cook for three to four minutes, until the top is set and the bottom is deeply golden. Carefully flip over using a spatula, cook for another minute, then transfer to a large tray and repeat with the remaining batter, adding more oil to the pan as required.
Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Put roughly 90g of the filling into one half of each pancake, fold over, return to the tray, then bake for 10 minutes, until the cheese has melted.
Finely grate the lime zest over the tops of the pancakes, then drizzle over the honey. Sprinkle a pinch of flaky salt on top, cut the zested lime into wedges and serve alongside the pancakes.