Cottage Cheese Syrniki

This is one of my favorites from the former USSR, albeit in a North American incarnation. Normally - in Russia and Ukraine anyways - these would be made with творог ("tvoroh" or farmer's cheese), not cottage cheese. To each their own though!

This is a great recipe for Maslenitsa, which is nearly upon us Orthodox, so if you have any Orthodox friends, now is the time to invite them over for syrniki! (But seriously, within the next week - after that it'll be Lent and they'll think you're trying to lead them into temptation!)

This recipe makes about twelve small syrniki, so if you're cooking for more than two or three people you'll want to double or even triple the recipe.


Cottage Cheese Syrniki

Ingredients
1 cup of small curd cottage cheese
2 eggs (beaten)
1/2 cup of all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon of sugar
1/4 teaspoon of baking powder

Syrniki

Canola oil (for frying)

Directions
1) Mix the cottage cheese and eggs in a mixing bowl and the dry ingredients in a small bowl.
2) Gradually blend the dry ingredients into the cottage cheese and eggs until thoroughly mixed.
3) Using a large table spoon put dollops of the cottage cheese mixture into oil heated over medium or medium-low heat. (See what heat setting works best for you.) I've found that in a large cast iron skillet about a 1/3 or 1/2 a cup of oil is good to start with, though you may need to add a little more as you go. My no-stick wok, on the other hand, only needs a tablespoon per batch (I usually cook three at a time and add a little oil between each set of three.) Cook the syrniki until the edges turn golden brown and then carefully flip them to cook the other side. Place the finished syrniki on a paper towel to cool and get rid of some of the excess oil.
4) Serve the syrniki hot or warm with sour cream, fruit preserves, honey, or all of the above and enjoy!