Biezpien Maizîtes

Latvian-style cheese danishes

Ingredients

 * 1 cup milk
 * 2½ cups flour
 * 1 package (1 tbsp) yeast
 * 5 tbsp butter
 * 5 tbsp sugar
 * ½ tsp salt
 * 2 lbs (dry) cottage cheese
 * raisins (to taste)
 * 10 tbsp sugar
 * 1 package Oetker's vanilla sugar
 * 1 package Oetker's vanilla pudding powder
 * juice of half a lemon
 * 2 eggs, separated

Dough

 * 1) Put milk in saucepan and heat until bubbles start to form.
 * 2) Let it cool until lukewarm.
 * 3) Then add one tbsp.
 * 4) sugar, yeast, and let stand about 10 minutes.
 * 5) Add enough flour to make a soft dough.
 * 6) Let this rise for 20 minutes.
 * 7) cream butter, add sugar and salt.
 * 8) When dough has risen (for the 20 minutes) add the butter mixture, and remaining flour.
 * 9) Let rise for about one hour.

Filling

 * 1) Beat cottage cheese with a fork (or run through a Cuisinart-type food processor) to break up the lumps.
 * 2) Add sugar, vanilla sugar, pudding powder, lemon juice, egg yolks, and raisins.
 * 3) Beat well.
 * 4) Whip egg whites and fold into cottage cheese mixture.

Pastries

 * 1) Preheat oven to 325°F.
 * 2) Roll out batter onto a cookie sheet, and spread with filling.
 * 3) Alternately: make a number of small, Danish-style pastries and spoon filling into centre of each one.
 * 4) Bake for 30 – 50 minutes. Put on a rack to cool.
 * 5) If made in a sheet, cut only when cooled.
 * 6) This has fewer calories than a traditional cheese Danish, but tastes just as good, if not better!