Cheese Tarts in the Air Fryer
Description
Delicious pastries for the whole family. In this recipe, I suggest making a filling of cottage cheese and sour cream, but you can also use jam, fruit butter, or cottage cheese with berries, for example. In the air fryer, vatrushki bake through beautifully—the main thing is not to overbake them. Serve with tea or coffee.
Instructions
- 1
Step 1
Prepare the ingredients and warm the milk slightly in a small saucepan right away — to about 35–37°C.
- 2
Step 2
Prepare the dough. In a large bowl, add the yeast and a tablespoon of sugar.
- 3
Step 3
Pour in the warm milk and whisk everything until the yeast dissolves.
- 4
Step 4
Sift 100 grams of flour into the yeast mixture.
- 5
Step 5
Mix vigorously until you have a smooth, uniform mixture — this is the sponge. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and leave it on the counter to rise for 30 minutes.
- 6
Step 6
Meanwhile, you can prepare the sweet dough mixture. Beat the eggs into a bowl and add the remaining sugar.
- 7
Step 7
Add the butter melted in a saucepan, already slightly cooled. Whisk everything together. The enriched mixture is ready.
- 8
Step 8
By this time, the sponge has already risen — it has noticeably increased in volume and developed a bubbly structure.
- 9
Step 9
Add the enriched dough mixture to the sponge and mix everything with a whisk or a spoon.
- 10
Step 10
Now sift in the flour in portions and add the salt as you go. At first, mix in the flour with a spoon, then switch to kneading by hand. Don’t overwork the dough with extra flour — it should end up soft, but it shouldn’t stick to your hands. Knead the dough by hand for 8–10 minutes.
- 11
Step 11
Round the dough in the bowl and cover the bowl with a towel — let the dough rise for 1–1.5 hours.
- 12
Step 12
The dough has risen — it has noticeably increased in volume and is ready for the next step.
- 13
Step 13
Divide the total dough into 70 g portions and roll each into a ball. Cover the dough balls with a towel and let rest for 15 minutes.
- 14
Step 14
Prepare the filling. Place the cottage cheese, sour cream, and sugar in a bowl.
- 15
Step 15
Add the egg.
- 16
Step 16
Beat these ingredients until you have a smooth, homogeneous mixture. The filling is ready.
- 17
Step 17
Now place one ball of dough on the work surface and, using a handy glass (I use a measuring cup with a handle), press an indentation into the ball for the filling.
- 18
Step 18
Place all of these shaped vatrushki dough bases with indentations on the lower rack of the air fryer basket. I lined the basket rack with baking parchment, but I think you can skip that step. Now very carefully spoon the cottage cheese filling into the indentations of the vatrushki with a teaspoon and place the basket with the future vatrushki into the air fryer. I baked the vatrushki for 7 minutes at 200°C, but you may need more or fewer minutes—it depends on the power of your air fryer. Also, only 4 vatrushki fit on my rack and I baked them in batches; in total I ended up with 12 vatrushki.
- 19
Step 19
Ready vatrushki can be served hot.