Lviv syrnyk is one of the most delicious desserts of Western Ukraine. It’s a true culinary treasure. Many pastry shops and coffee houses proudly include this cake on their menu. Yet, you can cook this delicious dish all by yourself and it will be no less tasty – even more – since it’ll be filled with your love)
This dessert is made using cottage cheese/farmer’s cheese (is a fresh cheese product made from the curds of milk, either whole, part-skimmed, or skimmed) with a high-fat content and has a light, fluffy and silky-smooth texture. It is garnished with raisins and flavored with fresh lemon zest. The cherry on top is a rich chocolate glaze coating which gives the cake a delightfully sweet aftertaste. When served with a cup of fragrant tea or * coffee, it just melts in the mouth.
Ingredients:
For dough
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 tsp of salt
- 2-3 tsp vanilla sugar
- 1 tbsp semolina
- 120 g (4 oz) sugar
- 80-85 g (3 oz) dairy butter
- 400 g (14 oz) cottage cheese/farmer’s cheese (5-10%)
- 60 g (2 oz) raisins
- 1 lemon
For chocolate coating
- 200 g (7 oz) chocolate
- 50-60 ml cream (12%)
- a handful of walnuts – for decoration
Cooking
Wash raisins under running water. Place them in a bowl and pour hot water above. Leave the raisins for half an hour. Then pour off the water and put the raisins on a paper towel to let any excess water drip off.
Separate whites and yolks into different bowls. Add salt, vanilla sugar, sugar, semolina, cottage cheese/farmer’s cheese, and soft dairy butter to the yolks. Grate the outer yellow lemon rind and add it to the mass.
Mix everything with a blender until you get an even and smooth creamy texture.
Add a pinch of salt to egg whites and whip them until soft peaks form.
Add the beaten whites and raisins to the cottage cheese mass. Stir the ingredients thoroughly.
Grease the baking tray with dairy butter or cover it with foil/parchment paper.
Your oven should be already preheated to 180°C (356°F) – this kind of dough shouldn’t wait on a table until your oven will heat.
Transfer the dough to the tray and spread it evenly.
Bake the cake for 40-50 minutes at 180°C (356°F).
When you take your cake out of the oven, slightly press it down with a slicing board to make the upper layer more even.
Leave the cheesecake for 2-3 hours to let it cool completely (the mold should cool as well). Then put syrnyk the fridge for the whole night.
The next morning put the cake on an oven rack upside down.
Pour hot cream over the chopped chocolate and mix the mass until the chocolate dissolves completely.
Pour the hot chocolate over our cheesecake to cover it all over. Leave syrnyk until the chocolate fully sets (around 40 minutes).
The final step. Sprinkle the cheesecake with crushed walnuts. Lviv syrnyk is ready for serving.
Enjoy your meal!
Have you liked the recipe for cottage cheese cheesecake?
Join and follow us on social media to keep up-to-date with our freshest recipes, cooking tips, and entertaining articles related to the Ukrainian people, culture, and traditions!
Find us on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. to comment and share your favorite Ukrainian recipes with friends and relatives!
