Breakfast
Baked Farmer's Cheese Casserole (Zapekanka)
Zapekanka is the baked farmer's cheese casserole that almost every Russian remembers from nursery school, and home versions are even better. Semolina soaked in sour cream binds the tvorog, a dry fresh cheese sold as farmer's cheese or quark, without any flour, so the texture stays creamy and tangy rather than cakey. It is somewhere between a crustless cheesecake and a pudding. Bake it in the evening, then slice and warm it for breakfast. It is good hot or cold, children love it, and it costs very little. This makes a 20 cm square dish.
Method
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Mix the semolina with the sour cream and leave for 15 minutes to swell.
Heat the oven to 180°C. Butter a 20 cm square or 22 cm round dish and dust it with a pinch of semolina.
Blend the cheese with a stick blender or push it through a sieve until smooth.
Stir in the eggs, sugar, vanilla sugar and salt.
Mix in the soaked semolina. The mixture should be like very thick sour cream.
Spread it in the dish and smooth the top. Brushing the surface with a spoonful of sour cream gives a golden top.
Bake on the middle shelf for 40-45 minutes until golden and the centre no longer wobbles when you shake the dish.
Turn the oven off and leave the casserole inside with the door ajar for 10 minutes, then cool in the dish for another 15 minutes before slicing.
Tips for success
- A too-hot oven makes it crack. Keep it at 170-180°C.
- Sudden temperature changes make it sink, so let it cool gradually in the switched-off oven.
- Do not beat the mixture at high speed. Extra air puffs it up in the oven and then it collapses.
- It is hard to slice neatly while hot, so let it cool to warm at least.
Serving and storage
Serve warm or cold with sour cream, jam, condensed milk or a berry sauce. With morning coffee or cocoa it is about as homely as breakfast gets.
Keep covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. Microwave slices for 30-40 seconds or eat cold.
Variations
- Raisin or apricot: add 60 g dried fruit, soaked in hot water for 10 minutes.
- Apple: lay 2 thinly sliced apples in the bottom of the dish and sprinkle with cinnamon.
- Semolina-free: use 2 tablespoons of cornflour instead, no soaking needed.
Calories and macros
Per serving (about 138 g):
Per 100 g: 175 kcal, P 12.8, F 7.7, C 13.4. An estimate based on average ingredient values. Your daily calories ›
