Tag: Cream Cheese

White Chocolate Sernik

  • Updated 14 February 2025.
  • This is a baked sernik (cheesecake) that I discovered recently.
  • It is based on one in a Christmas book by Mary Berry.
  • I tried it out with the ingredients adjusted several times.
  • This is my final version, which is slightly different to the one in Mary Berry’s book. 
  • It is very rich and creamy – in many ways like a set sernik.
  • The sernik tends to crack on top – do not worry it does not affect the taste!
  • I used Lindt white chocolate, which is super.
  • (I have read that Milky Bar does not melt as well.)
  • There is no sugar in the cake – the sweetness is from the chocolate – and the biscuits in the base.
  • I found it best to loosen the cake slightly in the tin and then leave it in the tin to cool.
  • I think this sernik is best served chilled.

INGREDIENTS – base

  • 150g of plain chocolate digestive biscuits
  • 40g of butter – plus a little to grease the tin.

METHOD – base

  • Melt the butter gently in a small saucepan.
  • Grease a 20cm round loose bottomed tin with some of the melted butter.
  • Crush the biscuits with a rolling pin.
  • Mix in the crushed biscuits with the melted butter.
  • Put the mixture in the bottom of the tin and flatten out to all the sides.
  • Leave to cool.

INGREDIENTS – sernik

  • 400g of full fat cream cheese or yoghurt cheese.
  • 2 eggs & 1 egg yolk (or 3 eggs)
  • 150 ml of soured cream
  • 300g of white chocolate
  • 2 – 3 drops of vanilla essence 
  • A little cocoa powder for dusting the edges.

METHOD – sernik

  • Pre-heat the oven to GM3 – 160°C.
  • Whisk together the cheese, eggs and yolk and vanilla essence until smooth.
  • Mix in the soured cream and again whisk until smooth.
  • Break the chocolate into a bowl and place over a pan of water.
  • Slowly heat the water and mix the melted chocolate well with a wooden spoon,
  • Take care not to overheat and keep mixing so it is smooth.
  • Allow to cool (this is the hardest part to gauge when to use the chocolate).
  • Slowly stir the cooled, melted chocolate into the cheese mixture and mixture until uniform.
  • Pour the mixture over the dark chocolate base.
  • Flatten the top.
  • Bake for around 50 minutes.
  • When the centre is set – turn off the oven and leave for another 15 minutes with the door slightly open,
  • Using a spatula loosen the sides from the tin.
  • Leave to go cold in the tin before removing.
  • Best kept in the fridge before serving.
  • Dust the edges with cocoa powder using a fine sieve.
  • *
  • NOTE 
  • This is quite rich so maybe do not give huge slices!
  •  

Babeczki – with Sweet Cheese

  • You might think these are too much trouble compared with making a normal large circular sernik .
  • But after making  little babeczki, which people liked being able to pick up an individual little cake, I thought I would give them a try.
  • They turned out well  and very good if you want these for a large number of people.
  • The sweet cheese mix does not want to be one that rises too much so I adapted the filling from flat sernik. 

Ingredients

  • Shortcrust pastry – Kruche ciasto – from 250g plain flour
  • This made 24 pastries.
  • 200 – 250g yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  •  2 egg yolks
  • 50g granulated sugar
  • 30g ground almonds
  • Fine grated zest of 1 lemon or orange
  • 50g mixed chopped peel 

Method

  • Pre-heat the oven to – GM5
  • Butter shallow tart tins.
  • Roll out the pastry very thinly.
  • Cut out circles to fit and line each tart mould.
  • *
  • Filling
  • ¾ fill each tart – leaving room for expansion.
  • Bake for 15-20 minutes.
  • Leave to cool a little before removing them from the tins.

Tea plate by Crown Staffordshire

Flat Sernik

  • Today is the 7th anniversary of my first post on this blog! 
  • This is my 490th post.
  • I have enjoyed doing this so much.
  • I still have lots of recipes old and new to try out.
  • My friends and relative keep giving me ideas and recipes – long may that continue.
  • This recipe is a cross between old and new.
  • I found this recipe in an old book and adapted it slightly.
  • It is a good recipe for when you do not have a large quantity of  cheese.
  • The sernik – baked cheese cake, is made in a rectangular baking tray.
  • It is really a placek – flat cake.
  • Shortcrust pastry – kruche ciasto – is used as a base.
  • Best to use a rich buttery shortcrust

Ingredients

  • Shortcrust  pastry  made from around 250 -300g flour
  • *
  • 300g -350g yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 90g granulated sugar
  • 30g ground almonds
  • Fine grated zest of 1 lemon
  • 50g sultanas
  • 50g mixed chopped peel

Method

  • Make enough pastry for a 18 x 28cm baking tray.
  • Pre-heat oven to GM6 – 200°C
  • Grease the baking tray.
  • Roll out the pastry thinly to cover the base of the tin and raise up the sides.
  • Crimp the sides to form an even pattern.
  • Prick the surface with a fork.
  • Cover the base with foil and baking beans.
  • Bake for 10 – 15 minutes.
  • Remove the beans and foil and bake again for 8-9minutes.
  • Leave to go cold completely.
  • *
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM3 – 160°C.
  • *
  • Mix all cheese, yolks, sugar, almonds and lemon zest together.
  • Stir in the sultanas and peel.
  • Spread the filling over the pastry to fill the “hollow”.
  • Bake for 50 – 55 minutes.
  • Turn off the oven.
  • Leave in the oven for 20 – 25 minutes.
  • *
  • Cut into rectangles to serve.

Served on Crown Staffordshire Tea Plate – Design not known.

Optional but not tried – orange zest rather than lemon zest.

Chocolate Roll

  • This cake would be called a rolada in Polish.
  • The baking of this is simple – the hardest part is adding the filling and rolling it back together.
  • You can make many versions of this with different fillings.
  • Here I have used a sour cherry jam layer and a sweet curd or cream cheese layer on top.

Ingredients – Cake

  • 2 eggs
  • 75g caster sugar
  • 50g Plain flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 25g cocoa powder
  • *
  • extra sugar for rolling

Ingredients – Filling

  • Sour Cherry Jam & a little water
  • *
  • 150-200g  yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  • 1-2 tablespoons of soured cream
  • Icing sugar to taste

Method – Cake

  • Pre-heat the oven to GM 7 – 220°C.
  • Grease and line a 24 x 34cm baking sheet.
  • *
  • Have ready 2 more sheets of baking paper.
  • Lay one of these flat and sprinkle with caster sugar.
  • *
  • Whisk the eggs and sugar until light, pale and fluffy.
  • Mix the flour, baking powder and cocoa together till uniform.
  • Fold in the flour mixture with a metal spoon.
  • Spread the mixture over the prepared tin with a spatula –
  • Getting to all the edges as nearly as possible.
  • Bake for 7- 8 minutes.
  • DO NOT OVERBAKE or it will crack later.
  • Take out the cake and tip it onto the sugared paper.
  • Peel off the paper which was under the cake.
  • Using a metal spatula can be helpful.
  • Put the third sheet of baking paper on top of the cake.
  • Roll up the cake from the narrow end with the paper inside.
  • Leave the cake to cool completely.

Method – Filling

  • Use a small saucepan to thin down the jam by adding a little water, mixing and heating it gently.
  • Leave to cool completely.
  • *
  • Mix the cheese ingredients to taste.
  • You want a soft spreadable mixture.

Assembling the cake

  • Unroll the cake gently and flatten a little.
  • Spread on the jam over the whole cake.
  • Spread on the sweet cheese mixture over the jam.
  • Roll up the cake again.
  • Leave in a cool place for about an hour before serving.
  • Serve as thick slices
  • *
  • Can taste even better the next day as the jam seeps into the cake.
  • Served on Royal Doulton – Flirtation from the late 1970s.

You can try this with a variety of options with different jams and flavours for the sweet cheese. 

Tuna Spread

  • There are many recipes in my Polish cookery books for a variety of spreads using cooked meat or fish.
  • In Polish this would be called pasta – a paste or a spread.
  • This is based on my salmon spread recipe, which was given to me by my late cousin who lived near Durham.

Ingredients

  • Tin of tuna in brine, spring water or oil
  • 200g of cream cheese or yoghurt cheese
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • Grated rind of half a lemon
  • *
  • A little soured cream- optional
  • Salt and pepper
  • Pinch of sugar – optional

Method

  • Drain the tuna from the liquid in the tin.
  • Remove the skin and any bones.
  • Mash the tuna up with a fork.
  • Add the cheese and the lemon juice.
  • Mix it all together to a smooth paste.
  • Add some soured cream to make a softer spread.
  • Season to taste.
  • *
  • Put into a bowl to serve or into individual little pots.
  • *
  • Serve with bread, toast or crackers and green salad.
  • Or use as a dip with crudities.

Breaded Aubergines

  • I went to my favourite restaurant in the area, which is very near to where I live.
  • It is called Healds Hall .
  • They had a new starter on the menu, which was delicious.
  • I decided to recreate this at home.
  • I used Polish honey from the Mazurian Lakes, which was delicious.
  • The Polish word for aubergine is bakłażan and it comes from the Persian – badigan. 
  • Americans call aubergines – egg plant.

Ingredients

  • 1 Aubergine
  • Plain flour
  • 1 egg – beaten
  • Salt and pepper
  • Dried breadcrumbs
  • *
  • Sunflower oil to fry
  • *
  • To serve
  • *
  • Runny honey
  • Yoghurt cheese or cream cheese

Method

  • Slice the aubergine into 1 – 1.5cm circles.
  • Sprinkle them with salt and put them into a colander over a bowl.
  • Leave for around 30 minutes.
  • Dry the slices with kitchen roll.
  • Sprinkle with a little pepper.
  • Have ready dishes of flour, beaten egg and dried breadcrumbs.
  • Dip each slice of aubergine first into the flour, then the beaten egg and lastly the dried breadcrumbs.
  • In a frying pan heat up the oil.
  • Fry the slices gently on both sides till golden.
  • Remove from the oil, place onto kitchen roll to remove some of the oil.
  • Serve with yoghurt cheese or cream cheese with runny honey on top.
Vintage Pyrex

Fruity Twaróg Desserts

  • These desserts are a more fruity version of twaróg desserts 
  • As well as flavoured jellies and twaróg, puréed tinned fruits such as peaches, apricots and pears or runny jams are used.
  • The jelly, fruit and twaróg mixture is left to set in a bowl and scoops are then put into individual serving dishes.
  • The flavours and fruits used here are just examples – use the flavours of jellies that you like as well as the fruit.

Ingredients – Raspberry

  • 1 packet of raspberry jelly
  • 250 – 350g of twaróg , yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  •  4 tablespoons of raspberry jam

Ingredients – Peach

  • 1 packet of lemon or orange jelly
  • 250 – 350g of twaróg , yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  • 1 tin of peaches

Ingredients – Apricot

  • 1 packet of lemon or orange jelly
  • 250 – 350g of twaróg , yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  • 1 tin of peaches

Toppings

  • Fresh fruit chopped
  • Tinned or bottled fruit chopped
  • Thickened syrup made from tinned fruit juices and potato flour
  • Sauce made from runny jam or jam and water (heated and cooled)
  • Grated chocolate or chocolate flake
  • Mint or lemon balm leaves

Method

  • Make up a packet of jelly with 200ml of boiling water.
  • Leave to cool.
  • Drain the fruit from the syrup.
  • Purée the fruit .
  • Or gently heat the jam with some water and then cool.
  • Whisk in the twaróg and fruit or jam into the cooled jelly mixture.
  • Pour into a large bowl.
  • Leave to set in the fridge.
  • Put scoops into individual glasses.
  • Add the toppings.

Note – you can make two flavours and serve scoops of each.

Tort Melba – Fat Free Sponge

  • This tort – layer cake – mimics  a pêche melba – peach melba dessert .
  • It is a recipe for a fat free sponge cake, sandwiched with a filling made from yoghurt cheese or cream cheese and puréed tinned peaches plus a thick raspberry sauce.
  • I used an English quick style version of the sponge cake.

Ingredients -Fat Free sponge

  • 4 eggs
  • 150g caster sugar
  • 150g plain flour
  • 2 teaspoons of baking powder

Method – Fat Free sponge

  • Pre-heat the oven to GM4 – 180°C
  • Grease and line the base of  two 18cm diameter baking tins.
  • In a bowl whisk the eggs and caster sugar until they are pale and creamy.
  • Sift the flour and the baking powder together.
  • Gently fold in the flour.
  • Pour the mixture into the tins and bake for 25-30 minutes until golden.
  • Leave to cool completely.

Ingredients -Filling

  • Tin of peaches
  • 200g of yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  • 1-2 tablespoons of icing sugar

Method – Filling

  • Drain the peaches from the juice/syrup.
  • Save the juice.
  • Chop the peaches and then purée them.
  • Mix together the yoghurt cheese and the puréed peaches.
  • Add the sugar – do not make it too sweet.

Ingredients – Raspberry Sauce

  • 100g of raspberry jam
  • 50ml of water

Method – Raspberry Sauce

  • Put the jam and water into a small saucepan.
  • Heat gently and stir with a wooden spoon.
  • Heat until the sauce is thick and smooth.
  • Leave to cool.

Assembling the cake

  • Place one of the cakes onto a serving plate or stand.
  • Prick the cake with a wooden skewer.
  • Sprinkle half the peach juice over the cake.
  • *
  • Spread half the raspberry sauce over the cake.
  • Spread the peach filling on the cake. (You might not need all of it)
  • Drizzle the rest of the raspberry sauce on the filling.
  • *
  • Prick the other cake with a wooden skewer.
  • Place the second cake on top.
  • Sprinkle the rest of the peach juice over the cake.
  • *
  • Dust with icing sugar before serving.
  • Greenway Hostess tea plate by John Russell
    1960 – 1979

Note

  • There is more than enough filling with this size cake.
  • You might try using some to slightly cover the sides of the cake as well.
  • This modern spreading of the icing is called “semi-naked”.

Twaróg Dessert

  • This dessert is one I make when I do not wish or have time to to make a layered torcik. 
  • The jelly and twaróg mixture is left to set in a bowl and scoops are then put into individual serving dishes.
  • The more twaróg you use the softer will be the mixture.
  • As I do not really like to drink milk using twaróg ensures I get calcium in my diet.
  • The flavours and fruits used here are just an example – use the flavours of jellies that you like as well as the fruit.

Ingredients

  • 1 packet of lemon jelly
  • 250 – 400g of twaróg , yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  • Juice and rind of 1 lemon
  • *
  • Toppings
  • Bottled blackcurrants – drained
  • Grated chocolate or chocolate flake

Method

  • Make up 500ml of jelly as per the packet instructions.
  • Add the lemon juice and rind.
  • Leave to cool.
  • Whisk in the twaróg and mix till all  is blended in.
  • Pour into a large bowl.
  • Leave to set in the fridge.
  • Put scoops into individual glasses.
  • Add the toppings.

Salmon Spread

  • There are many recipes in my Polish cookery books for a variety of spreads using cooked meat or fish.
  • In Polish this would be called pasta – a paste or a spread.
  • This recipe was given to me by my late cousin who lived near Durham.

Ingredients

  • Small tin of pink salmon
  • 200g of cream cheese or yoghurt cheese
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • *
  • A little soured cream- optional
  • Salt and pepper

Method

  • Drain the salmon from the liquid in the tin.
  • Remove the skin and any bones.
  • Mash the salmon up with a fork.
  • Add the cheese and the lemon juice.
  • Mix it all together to a smooth paste.
  • Add some soured cream to make a softer spread.
  • Season to taste.
  • Put into a bowl to serve or into individual little pots.
  • *
  • Serve with bread, toast or crackers and green salad.
  • Or use as a dip with crudities.

 

Served on an oval plate by Johnson Brothers – Snowhite – 1960-1979

Note

You can use some left over poached fresh salmon instead.