Buda Cottage Cheese Casserole
Description
Homemade baking for tea. When I was on a business trip to Budapest, I once had the chance to try a Budai curd pie that my Hungarian colleagues had told me about with such enthusiasm. I tried it and I liked it—I wouldn’t call it the eighth wonder of the world, but the pie really did taste good even to me, someone who isn’t big on sweets. Kind, hospitable Hungarians shared an authentic Budai curd cake recipe with me, and I keep spreading the word about Hungarian national cuisine among visitors to this site :P Serve with tea or coffee.
Instructions
- 1
Step 1
Combine sifted flour, walnuts finely ground in a blender, grated zest, and butter in a bowl. Rub everything together with your fingers until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.
- 2
Step 2
Add 3 egg yolks to the mixture and very quickly knead the dough for the curd cake.
- 3
Step 3
You should get a ball like this. Wrap it in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- 4
Step 4
After half an hour, divide the dough into two parts — 1/3 and 2/3. Roll out the larger part and place it into a baking dish, as shown in the photo. Put the baking dish in the oven and bake for 15 minutes at 180 degrees.
- 5
Step 5
Meanwhile, mash the cottage cheese with sour cream, add semolina, sugar, and a finely diced apple. If desired, the apple can be replaced with a pear—it will turn out just as good, I’ve tried it.
- 6
Step 6
Whisk the egg whites separately, then gently fold them into the cottage cheese mixture.
- 7
Step 7
Meanwhile, our pie base has already baked. Take it out of the oven. It should look roughly like it does in the photo.
- 8
Step 8
Evenly spread our cottage cheese filling over the baked dough. Decorate the top of the pie with a lattice made from the remaining dough, as in the photo.
- 9
Step 9
Bake for about 35 minutes at 180 degrees. Then let it cool slightly — and serve.