A Lithuanian childhood tastes like home-made curd cheese doughnuts. It’s a traditional pastry we’ve all grown up with and there are reasons we still get back to this recipe when winter seems to last just a little too long. Curd cheese doughnuts seem to have everything you’d want in a sweet treat. They are beautifully browned and crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. They fill your kitchen with sweet smells of vanilla. They leave your fingers greasy and your heart wanting for more.
And they’re not just tasty. Curd cheese doughnuts are also easier to make than the American-style ones, as they don’t use any yeast, which makes them healthier. Also, curd is high in protein and we will gladly take that for an excuse to take another bite.
Let us show you how to make curd cheese doughnuts at home.
What are we gonna need:
500 g curd cheese (9% fat)
100 g sugar
3 eggs
1,5 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp vanillin sugar
¼ tbsp fine salt
180 g flour
Oil to cook the doughnuts in (about 2 cups)
Powdered sugar (up to you)
1. Press the curd cheese through a strainer until it has a smooth, uniform texture. Add eggs, sugar and vanillin sugar and mix everything together well.
2. Mix sifted flour with baking powder and salt. Pour in the curd cheese mix. Spoon everything together – the batter should be very thick but not hard.
3. Heat the oil over medium heat. Roll the batter into little balls using your wet or oil-covered hands.
4. Place several doughnuts into the hot oil and boil them for about 5 minutes, turning occasionally.
5. Once the doughnuts are done, take them out and place them on a paper towel-covered plate so that the excess oil could drain.
6. Finally, arrange the cooled doughnuts on a serving plate and sprinkle them with powdered sugar.
The hardest thing in this recipe is waiting for the curd doughnuts to cool off before digging in. We recommend enjoying this irresistible treat with a glass of cold milk.