Russian Easter Dessert (Cyrnaya Pascha)

This is a variation of a traditional Easter dessert that Russian Orthodox make. It is quite rich and too much will cause you to pack on the pounds. This isn't a huge concern after a long lent. The number of portions is an estimate (depends on how much you put on your plate - my kids load it on). The cooking and preparation times are also rough estimates.

• Ready In: 1 hr 25 mins
• Serves: 10-15

Ingredients

• 2  lbs  pressed cottage cheese (no salt)
• 3  lbs cream cheese
• 10  egg yolks
• 1⁄2 lb unsalted butter
• 1  pint  whipping cream
• 3 1⁄2 cups fine sugar
• 5 (9 g) packages  vanilla sugar, we use oetker original vanilla sugar

Directions

1. Mix yolks and whip cream over double boiler until it coats the spoon. Stir in vanilla sugar.
2. Press cottage cheese, cream cheese, and butter through a ricer or sieve.
3. In batches, place cheese mixture in mixing bowl and slowly add yolks until smooth. Add fine sugar and blend into mixture.
4. Combine bowls and mix.
5. Place in small containers, loosely cover in plastic, then a cheese cloth and a weight. For the weight, we use a plastic margarine container filled with water.