This post has a story, and the story is about my mum. You see, we as a family (translation: my mum) have been making these “Cheese Buns” for forever. In fact, back in the day, we has a stand at the Orono (Maine) Town Festival and boy, were these danishes popular. So what are “Cheese Buns”? They are actually what would be called Süße Quarkbrötchen in German: brioche-style sweet, soft buns, with a creamy, lemony filling. In Germany, there is a type of fresh cheese called Quark. Quark is like yogurt, but not, like cream cheese but not. You can find Quark in the U.S. but it is pretty hard to find (check the deli case), so the closest thing you might find in the US, that I have found at least, is “farmer’s cheese” (also available in the deli case, by the artisan cheeses). My mum used to actually make it herself. In this recipe, I use cream cheese mixed with quark, but you can also use a bit of sour cream. Any which way, they are a “family recipe” and one of my favorite childhood things. There are raisins — I know, I know, highly controversial in baked goods — but they are optional so omit them if you are anti-raisin. 🙂
Ingredients
for the dough
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons instant or rapid rise yeast
1 cup milk, warmed to between 100-110F
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
for the filling
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, room temperature (alternatively, farmer’s cheese)
4 tablespoons quark (alternatively, sour cream)
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
3 tablespoon corn starch
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon extract
pinch of salt
For baking and garnishing
1 eggs, beaten with a tablespoon of milk for egg wash
powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)
Directions
Combine flour, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the middle and add your yeast. Heat milk and butter, and pour into the well. Let sit for 10-15 minutes until the yeast begins to foam. Add egg and raisins and mix until fully combined. Turn out onto a well-floured counter and knead until you have cohesive dough. It should be fairly soft and supple. Set aside in a warm, draft free place for a couple of hours in a greased bowl until it has doubled in size.
Make your filling by combining the softened cream cheese, quark or cream cheese, sugar, egg, corn start and lemon juice, extract and salt. Combine with a whisk until you have a smooth, lump free cream. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Divide dough into 12 equal balls, each weighing approximately 3 ounces. Flatten to a round disk and place a generous tablespoon of the filling mixture in the middle. Pull up corners and seal seams well. They have a tendency to leak, so make sure you seal the seams as tightly as you can. Cup the dough ball in your hand and roll on the counter, seam side down, so that you have a taunt ball. Place on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining buns. Let rise, covered with a clean dishtowel, while the oven heats.
Heat oven to 375F. Once the oven is ready, brush the danishes with the egg wash mixture, before sliding into the oven and baking for 25-30 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet. Before serving, dust with powdered sugar (optional). can be served warm or at room temperature.
