Arriving back in the U.S. several weeks later, I dreamt of these delicious morsels. In larger U.S. cities, it may be possible to find these treats. Surely any store that sells eastern European food may have them. In Missoula there is little chance of such a find.
I set out to make these sweets on my own. I figured they could not be complicated to make, and they are not.
I do not make them with just cottage cheese. I usually make them mixed with cream cheese, or with cream cheese alone. When made with only cream cheese, they are much creamier and do not freeze as hard. The ingredients are simple and it takes little effort to prepare them, but you should put aside ample time to make them. It is not advisable to make them the day you want to serve them. It is better to set aside one evening for them to cool in the freezer.
Ingredients:
- Cottage Cheese (300g/10.5oz) : The fattier and creamier the better. Skim, watery cottage cheese will form crystals when frozen, and the Túró Rudi will not be as creamy.
- Cream Cheese (300g/10.5oz)
- Sugar (100g/1/2 cup)
- Flour (130g/3tbs)
- Flavoring (vanilla/almond/orange/etc.)
- Chocolate (300g/10.5oz) : Whatever kind you prefer - dark, semi-sweet, milk.
- Wax or Parchment Paper
- Toothpicks
Drain the cottage cheese of its liquid. You want it to be as dry as possible. Squeezing it in a cheese cloth with help. Mix together the cottage
cheese and cream cheese. You can do the mixing in a bowl by hand, or
with an electric mixer. I like the smooth result that comes from using
an electric mixer when one is available.
You
can mix all the ingredients together in one bowl and separate the
portions when you want to add the flavors. Or you can mix the
ingredients in separate bowls from the beginning.
Add sugar and flour to the cheese mixture.
Separate the different portions to
add the different flavors (if not already separated). Add the flavoring
to the cheese mixtures. I made two types on this occasion: orange and
almond. I usually use extracts. For the almond I was able to use
extract, but could not find any orange extract this time. Instead I
used a bit of orange juice and orange zest. If you do use fresh juice,
you should add a bit more flour so that the mixture is not too wet and
tough to form. But I would suggest using extracts when they are available, because the final product comes out more flavorful.
Mix the ingredients thoroughly, so they are smooth.
Now that the mixtures are complete, you can form them into little rolls.
Take a spoonful of cheese mixture and drop it into a bowl of flour. Roll the mass in the flour, making sure to cover all surfaces. Place in your hand the floured mass and gently form into a roll.
Take a spoonful of cheese mixture and drop it into a bowl of flour. Roll the mass in the flour, making sure to cover all surfaces. Place in your hand the floured mass and gently form into a roll.
Place the formed roll onto a plate lined with wax or parchment paper.
Place toothpicks in the ends of each formed roll, and place them in the freezer for at least several hours. You need them to be frozen all the way through before dipping them in chocolate.
When the cheese rolls are frozen, you can prepare the chocolate for dipping. On a double boiler, place the chocolate and melt it slowly.
Stir until the chocolate is smooth.
Remove the frozen cheese rolls from the freezer only at the last moment, when the chocolate is ready. Holding the toothpick, dip the roll and spin it in the melted chocolate. To coat completely, you can take spoonfuls of chocolate and drip it over the uncovered spots. Let the excess drip off, or take the back of the spoon and smear off the excess. Because the rolls are cold, the chocolate will cool and adhere to the surface immediately. The coating can become too thick if you do not wipe some off.
Place the Túró Rudi back in the freezer. Once completely cooled, you can peel them from the paper and put them into freezer safe bags or containers. You can eat them frozen, because the creamy filling never gets completely hard. I leave the toothpicks in to make them easier to handle when eating them.
